The most common and traditional way of wearing rudraksha is to buy a mala of five mukhi beads from a good source, ensuring that the beads are of uniform size and color, perform a normal pooja and prayers at home and then wear the mala around the neck. No specialised or expert knowledge is needed for this and thousands of people across the country have been wearing rudraksha in this manner for generations. (The sadhus and sanyasis wear larger beads.) In such cases, the wearer do not know anything about the beads or rudraksha per sex, except their belief that the beads are divine, they help in spirituality and are good for health. It has also been the experience that people wearing rudraksha, say from the early age of 24 years, usually do not suffer from blood pressure-related problems or diabetes even though they have no knowledge about the medicinal properties of the beads. However, if we wish to adopt a rational approach to understand about the divine nature of the beads, it is necessary to know that these beads are capable of changing you from within so that you can lead a better life full of confidence and fearlessness. There are several people who wear one single rudraksha of five mukhi and claim that they have been immensely benefited. However, without disputing their claim, it must be pointed out that this type of wearing is not in accordance with the scriptures or generally accepted procedures. There are different ways to follow in selecting and wearing different rudrakshas in multiple numbers or rudrakshas of various mukhis.
Some of the recommended practices are given below:
1. As per one’s expectations:
Here, the properties of different mukhi rudrakshas are taken as the basis and depending on the problems or expectations, the suitable rudraksha is chosen. For example, if you need to flourish in business and get wealth, then a combination of seven mukhi (Goddess Lakshmi), eight mukhi (Lord Ganesh) and 12 mukhi (Sun) beads may be selected. The basis of this suggestion is: Seven mukhi rudraksha is assigned to Goddess Mahalakshmi, the goddess of wealth. Eight mukhi rudraksha, assigned to Lord Ganesh, is intended to remove obstacles. Usually Mahalakshmi is worshipped along with Ganeshji. Twelve mukhi rudraksha, assigned to Sun, is chosen to develop administrative skills and authority, which are necessary to run a business. Also, this rudraksha helps the wearer to maintain good health. In addition to this combination, if the person is suffering from high blood pressure, then three mukhi rudraksha (Agni) and five mukhi rudraksha (Kalagni) may be added or a full mala of 54 or 108 smaller beads may be made for wearing in order to increase the contact area over the body and to get better acupressure effects. In case the person is suffering from blood pressure and/or diabetes, without any other expectations or problems, then five larger Nepali beads (two beads of three mukhi and three beads of five mukhi) can be strung in a mala along with smaller beads.
2. As per horoscope:
Usually, this method is followed by priests or astrologers, whereby rudraksha representing a specific planet (or zodiac sign) is recommended for wearing. In such case, there is no stipulation of wearing a minimum of three beads or other combinations. Rudraksha is to be considered like a precious gem and has to be worn exactly like a gem.
3. Numerology:
In this method, the selection of beads is done in terms of numbers associated with a person’s psyche and his or her destiny. These numbers are then correlated to planets and then the most appropriate rudraksha is recommended. Numbers associated with names are used rarely for choosing a rudraksha. For many, this method gives very good results as horoscope, astrology and numerology are all combined to get the results.
4. Guru Prasad:
When a Guru or any saintly person offers any rudraksha, it becomes guru Prasad and the same should be worn with extreme reverence. However, one can add other bead(s) along with this to fulfill any objective. If, for any reason the bead given by a guru or saintly person is not found to be genuine, never ever mention this to the giver, instead, the bead should be discarded with due respect in a river or sea as fake articles should not be kept at home.