Over the past several years I've often been asked, "How many Oneness Blessings should I have?" or "How many deekshas will it take for me to become enlightened?" These are both very valid questions. I wondered about them myself after having my first deeksha for enlightenment.

In case you've had the same questions I've put the answers, based on my experiences, in the following article.

--P. J., March, 2008

The Deeksha Oneness Blessing:
How Many Should I Have?

When I was at the Oneness University in India, the analogy was often given that the mind is like a wall that stands between you and God, and deeksha makes a hole in that wall. The larger the hole, the more we can experience of the Divine.

Sometimes the first Oneness Blessing only makes a small hole, or just makes a chip, or even merely puts a small dent in the "wall." On rare occasion the entire wall will instantly come tumbling down with the very first deeksha, but for most people the result lies somewhere in between.

The slower process of disintegration is actually a good thing, and is certainly understandable. If your "wall' suddenly came crashing down, and you immediately and totally merged with God, the disorientation that could occur could make it difficult for you to function in your everyday life, even if it were only for a short period of time.

How many Oneness Blessings will it take?

How many Oneness Blessings it takes for full awakening is a very individual thing--on two levels...

Each deeksha chips away at "the wall" making the hole larger and larger until separation from God no longer exists. Some people become very content with the peace and happiness derived from the glimpses and experiences of the Divine that a small hole provides, while others don't want to settle for anything less than a full collapse of the wall resulting in a total merging with All Of Creation.
This complete wall collapse and merging usually requires more deekshas, but still depends upon the following--
How many Oneness Blessings you need for the depth of awakening you want also depends upon many, many variables that are personally unique and individual to you. These come in so many forms that they can't all be listed here, but just a few of these variables are: spiritual, physical, mental, emotional or karmic factors; past lives; ancestry; childhood or birth traumas, etc., etc.

Since you have little or even no control over most of these variables, how many deekshas you need can't really be determined. Therefore, how many you want to have is up to you. My suggestion would be to continue having Oneness Blessings until you reach the state of awakening you desire.

The deeksha energy of enlightenment has an intelligence of its own and each Oneness Blessing can provide different benefits--each time, to each recipient. It depends on whatever your particular need is at the time. Therefore the outcome of each blessing can differ widely, depending on what is perfect for you at the moment.