Shiva sat in meditation so long, and so still, that he seemed not to breathe.
When he opened his eyes, tears fell.
Where they touched the earth, the tree grew.
Rudraksha, the tears of bliss from Shiva's eye
Here is what we know about rudraksha, how we tell the real ones, and what is done before one reaches you.
A seed, first
It grows on a tree, Elaeocarpus ganitrus, in the Himalayan foothills of Nepal and on the islands of Indonesia, Java above all.
The fruit is blue. Strip the flesh and soak the stone, and what is left is the rudraksha.
Run a finger down it. The lines that divide it from top to bottom are its mukhi, its faces. Most have five. A few have one, or eleven, or fourteen.
Each line marks a seed chamber inside. Cut a real one open and you can count them.
Cut a real rudraksha open and you can count its faces.
The faces
Each face has its tradition: a deity, often a planet, and what people have worn it for. Teachers and texts differ in the details. These are the readings most often given.
None of it is a promise. It is what the tradition says, and what seekers have kept rudraksha for.
Panch mukhi
Kalagni Rudra, Jupiter
Traditionally worn by anyone, every day, and the rudraksha of the japa mala.
Not sure which face is yours? Ask Shambhavi, or have an acharya read your chart first.
How we choose
The fakes are well known to anyone who has sold rudraksha for long:
Bhadraksha, a look-alike seed from another tree, sold as rudraksha.
Extra lines carved into a cheap rudraksha to raise its mukhi, and its price.
Two rudraksha glued into one.
Rudraksha dyed dark to look old.
Moulded plastic and wood.
Floating it in water proves nothing.
Floating it in water proves nothing. Neither does spinning it between two coins. A real one can fail both, and a fake can pass.
What works is slower, and it is done by people.
Our rudraksha are chosen at source, a lot at a time. Nepal and Java, among others.
Each lot is purified, the shuddhi, and taken to a temple: Kedarnath, Badrinath, or Mahakaleshwar at Ujjain. Only then does a rudraksha go on our shelf.
When you order, an acharya checks your rudraksha again, in hand: the count of its faces, its lines run end to end, its surface, its weight. One that fails is not sent.
That check is the one we claim. It happens on every order, by a person you will know by name.
In your name
Every rudraksha that asks for a rite is energised by our acharyas after you order, before it is packed, at no extra cost.
The rite is performed only by acharyas the platform has verified, of priestly lineage, paramparā, as the tradition requires. Whoever takes your order performs it.
Six steps.
Selection
Chosen at source, a lot at a time. Nepal and Java, among others.
Shuddhi
The lot is purified and taken to Kedarnath, Badrinath, or Mahakaleshwar at Ujjain, before any rudraksha reaches the shelf.
The order
An acharya picks your rudraksha, checks it, and writes your name on a leaf.
The rite
He performs the energising, with mantra, in your name. One person at a time. Never in bulk.
He does it in his own puja space, in his ashram or a temple nearby. The temples of the shuddhi are for the lot, not for your rite.
Witness
The clips of your rite come to you. In the box, its documentation: the acharya's verified licence, and a record that your name was written and the rite performed. You will know who performed it, and that we vetted him.
Packing and delivery
Packed after the rite, and sent anywhere in India, 3 to 7 days from dispatch.
Your rite, shown to you. Never in bulk.
What it costs
₹10
You can buy a rudraksha for ₹10.
You may already own one. It came from a fair, a temple stall, a cousin's trip. Nobody checked it. Nobody said your name over it. It may still be dear to you, and that's fine. It is a different thing.
Here is what happens to ours before it reaches you.
- Chosen at source, a lot at a time.
- Purified, the shuddhi, at Kedarnath, Badrinath or Mahakaleshwar.
- Your order reaches an acharya.
- He checks every rudraksha, by hand.
- He writes your name on a leaf.
- He performs the rite in your name.
- The clips of your rite come to you.
- In the box, the documentation: his verified licence, and a record of your rite.
- Packed after the rite.
- At your door in 3 to 7 days from dispatch.
- A person to talk to, at any hour.
- 7 days to return it if it arrives damaged, different or wrong.
That is the price. Nothing is added for the energising.
Nobody said your name over it.
What we are not
We name no one. You will know the patterns.
Elsewhere
Here
Keeping it
A rudraksha is wood, more or less. Treat it like wood.
- Oil
- Once every month or two, a few drops of sesame or mustard oil, rubbed in with your fingers. Leave it overnight. Wipe off what is left.
- Water
- Plain water does no harm. Soap, shampoo and chlorine dry it out. Take it off for the bath if you use them.
- Sweat
- It will darken with wear. That is the rudraksha taking on oil from your skin, and it is no fault.
- Cleaning
- A soft toothbrush and lukewarm water, along the lines. Dry it in the shade, never in the sun.
- Sleep
- Wear it or keep it beside you. Traditions differ. Choose one and keep to it.
- Thread
- Cotton or silk, red or black. Change it the day it frays, before it breaks.
- Lending
- Tradition says a rudraksha you wear, or count your japa on, is yours alone. Don't lend it.
- When it cracks
- A cracked rudraksha has done its time. Keep it in your puja place, or return it to flowing water.
- Re-threading
- If the thread breaks, keep every one. Shambhavi will tell you how to re-thread it, or a person from the team will.
It will darken with wear. That is no fault.
The first day
Monday is the traditional day to begin. Shravan, and Shivaratri, for those who wait for them.
Bathe first. Rinse the rudraksha in clean water.
Hold it in your right hand. If you keep a mantra, say it. Om namah shivaya is the one most say for rudraksha. If you keep none, sit quietly for a minute. That counts.
Wear it where it touches your skin.
What to expect
A small thing you reach for through the day. A reason to stop and remember.
What not to expect
A change by Friday. A rudraksha is a support for your practice. It does not replace it.
A rudraksha is a support for your practice. It does not replace it.
Doubts
It is chosen at source, purified at a temple, and checked by an acharya, one by one, when you order. You receive the clips of the rite, and in the box, its documentation and the acharya's verified licence. A rudraksha needs no lab certificate. It needs a trained eye, and you will know whose.
Honestly, no one can promise you that, and we won't. What our acharyas offer is a rite performed in good faith, and a support for your own practice and effort. Many seekers find that keeping it close, and turning to it each day, steadies them.
Yes. Rudraksha has been worn by women for as long as it has been worn. A few families have their own rules about certain days. Follow yours if you keep them.
No. It's a seed from a tree. Anyone may wear one with respect.
If it arrives damaged, you have 7 days to return it, and your refund goes to your original payment method. If the thread breaks later, keep every rudraksha, and ask us how to re-thread it.
Returns cover a rudraksha that arrives damaged, different or wrong. They don't cover a change of mind. So ask before you buy. Shambhavi will help, and an acharya can read your chart if you want one to.
No. Each rudraksha is energised after your order, in your name, before it is packed. The clips of the rite come to you, so you can see for yourself.
An acharya the platform has verified, of priestly lineage, paramparā, as the tradition requires. His licence comes to you in the box.
From wherever the best are found, Nepal and Java among them. They are chosen at source, a lot at a time, and purified at Kedarnath, Badrinath, or Mahakaleshwar at Ujjain before they reach our shelf.
The shelf
Every rudraksha below is checked by an acharya. Those that ask for a rite are energised in your name after you order.
Before you go
Some things were never meant to be faked. Faith is one of them.
Fake rudraksha are sold by the sack, everywhere. We are here to end that trade, one rudraksha verified by an acharya at a time.
Ask Shambhavi about rudraksha. She will suggest one, or two. Never four.