Wisdom of today.

In my opinion a saintly state has nothing to do with specific spiritual practices. It is a specific state of the chitta. Anyone can get to that state following any path can be considered a saint. These days Shaktipat is being transformed into a type of business. Normally the duty of a saintly master is to lead the disciple on the path of spirituality by awakening the disciple's Shakti, without expecting anything from the disciple, without accepting any monetary services and taking full responsibility for fulfilling all the needs of the disciple.

Saints have experienced the inner light, bliss and consciousness directly. Not driven by ego but overcome by the sentiment for public welfare, and if appropriate, to push a capable disciple toward such experiences, is the nature of saints. For a saint, it is not necessary to impart knowledge to an aspirant through speech. Knowledge can be transmitted and received only through silence. The Union of one chitta with another, the contact between one Shakti and anohter. That is the true grace of a saint. By the virtue of this grace, the border between the hearts is broken. This grace is real grace. The Divine Power of God is the basis of grace. The sermon of the guru continues in silence, and yet the doubts of the disciples get dispelled. Such grace is called Shambhavi Diksha (highest form of initiation), but in today's age it is impossible to find such saints as well as worthy disciples. Consequently, the level of a saint's grace has descended to the level of Shaktipaaya Diksha, in which the conscious power is infused in the disciple through words, touch, sight and other means. Then the internal sadhana (practice) of the disciple begins.

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Sometimes his active involvement seemed to be detached and at other times even if he was inactive and detached, it seemed he was actively involved. Is there a mahatma great soul] in our tradition today who runs the ashram by seeking alms! Swami Narayan Tirth Dev Maharaj had only one goal in front of him, the spiritual progress of his disciples. As soon as the guru’s attention turns towards the wealth and prosperity of disciples, the goal of the disciples’ spiritual progress fades from sight.”

Source: The Second Dawn, The Revival of Shaktipat Knowledge, Swami Shivom Tirth.