Adhikara

This article explains who an adhikari is and elaborates on the meaning of adhikara.

As opposed to many other spiritual traditions that preach and convert, the Indian spiritual tradition is based on the idea of adhikara, “qualification.”

An adhikari, “a genuine seeker” is one who has, through keen observation and spontaneous spiritual experiences, come to the conclusion that there is nothing permanent in the world.

A teacher often asks if the student is an adhikari, one who has the adhikara. The adhikari is one who is ready to receive this higher teaching. The sages parted reluctantly with the secret teachings. An adept will often test the aspirant in many different ways to confirm that he is a genuine seeker.

Photo: Meeta J.

An adhikari is one who:

• Feels, “I am bound, I should be liberated.”

• Seeks something permanent; is uninterested in the transient and ever-changing.

• Sees pain and suffering in all worldly life.

• Asks “What is happiness? What is suffering?”

An adhikari asks fundamental questions like:

• Who am I?

• From where have I come and why have I come here?

• What is my relationship with the universe and other human beings?

• What is the essential nature of my being, and what is the essential nature of the manifested world, and its cause?

• What is the relationship between the center of consciousness and the objects of the world?

• Do we live after death?

Download the free pdf Adhikara read about the qualities of a genuine seeker, spontaneous spiritual experiences, how to prepare the foundation and the four primitive urges.