How should you practise from the SHIV Book? The book includes a complete Shiv Abhishekam sequence. For many people, however, arranging every ingredient every morning is not practical. In that case, the same sequence can be used as a mental Abhishekam or Mansik Puja—a meditative practice based on visualization, mantra and devotion.
यह लेख हिंदी में भी उपलब्ध है: शिव बुक से मानसिक अभिषेक कैसे करें?
How to begin your daily SHIV Book practice
After your morning routine, sit comfortably on your asana in your home temple or any clean and sacred space. Keep your SHIV Book with you. Close your eyes for a few moments and imagine a beautiful golden Shiva Lingam in front of you.
Now open the Abhishekam section of the book. Read Step 1, then visualize yourself offering the ingredient described in that step to the Shiva Lingam. Continue in the same manner for as many steps as you wish to practise that day.
Step-by-step mental Shiv Abhishekam
- Sit in a calm posture: Settle on your asana and allow your breathing to become natural.
- Visualize a golden Shiva Lingam: With your eyes closed, imagine a luminous golden Lingam before you.
- Read the first step from the SHIV Book: Keep the book in your hand or beside you and follow the sequence.
- Offer mentally: If the step is an offering of water, imagine a pure stream of water flowing from your hands onto the Lingam. For other steps, visualize each corresponding offering in the same way.
- Chant the mantra: Recite the mantra linked to that step. You may chant aloud or repeat it silently in your mind.
- Continue with the next step: Move through the sequence slowly, staying connected to the visualization rather than rushing.
Do you need a physical Shiva Lingam in front of you?
No. For this specific mental Abhishekam, a physical Shiva Lingam is not necessary. The practice can be done entirely in the mind through visualization and mantra. If you do have a Shiva Lingam at home, you may of course sit before it, but the mental form of worship remains possible even without one.
Do you have to complete every step every day?
No. You do not have to perform the complete sequence daily. Choose the steps that are practical for you. On a busy day, you may do only the water Abhishekam mentally with the associated mantra. On another day, you may include more of the sequence from the book.
The aim is to build regularity, devotion and concentration, not to create pressure around completing every step.
Should the mantra be chanted aloud or silently?
Either is fine. If you are in a private space and comfortable chanting aloud, pronounce the mantra clearly. If you prefer silence, repeat it mentally. While chanting, keep the inner image steady—for example, see the water continuously flowing over the golden Shiva Lingam.
Take a 7, 9, 15 or 40-day Sankalp
You can turn this daily practice into a structured Shiv Sadhana by taking a sankalp for a fixed period such as 7 days, 9 days, 15 days or 40 days. A sankalp helps bring discipline and continuity to the practice.
You may place a prayer or intention before Lord Shiva and continue the practice with faith and surrender. It is better to treat the sankalp as a spiritual discipline rather than as a guarantee of a particular outcome. Spiritual experiences and results can differ from person to person.
The essence of Mansik Abhishekam
In mental worship, the offering is made through the mind in its purest imagined form. If you visualize water, let it be crystal clear. If you visualize flowers, imagine them fresh and fragrant. If you visualize light, let it be radiant. The outer object becomes secondary; attention and bhava become central.
This is what makes Mansik Puja so powerful as a daily practice—it can be done even when physical materials, time or space are limited.
Quick daily SHIV Book routine
- Sit on your asana in a clean, peaceful space.
- Close your eyes and visualize a golden Shiva Lingam.
- Open the Abhishekam section in the SHIV Book.
- Read one step at a time.
- Visualize each offering mentally.
- Chant the related mantra aloud or silently.
- Choose only as many steps as you can do with attention.
- For consistency, take a 7, 9, 15 or 40-day sankalp.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Shiv Abhishekam be done without all the physical ingredients?
For a daily meditative practice, the sequence can be followed mentally when arranging every ingredient is not practical. Read the steps from the SHIV Book and visualize each offering.
Can I do only mental water Abhishekam?
Yes. If you have limited time, you can select only the water offering and mantra, or include additional steps on other days.
Can I practise without a Shiva Lingam at home?
Yes. Visualize a Shiva Lingam clearly in your mind and perform the Abhishekam as an inner act of worship.
How many days should I practise?
You can make it a daily practice without a fixed end date, or choose a 7, 9, 15 or 40-day sankalp for greater consistency.
Get the SHIV Book
This practice follows the Abhishekam sequence given in SHIV – A Journey of Inner Discovery Through the Wisdom of the Vedas, which sets out each step with its mantra. Available in English and Hindi.
This article explains how to use the SHIV Book as a simple personal mental worship practice. Where a specific temple, lineage or Agamic ritual prescribes its own procedure, follow the rules of that tradition.
