Within non-dual Shaiva Tantra, ritual and contemplation are woven together so that outer actions continually point back to Shiva as pure consciousness. Devotees commonly engage in pūjā to Shiva in the form of the liṅga or image, offering water, milk, honey, flowers, bilva leaves, incense, lamps, and sacred ash while reciting mantras such as “Om Namaḥ Śivāya.” These rites often include abhiṣeka, the ritual bathing of the liṅga, and ārtī, the waving of light, all framed as gestures of honoring the all-pervading presence of Shiva. Such worship may also extend to Śakti, recognizing the inseparability of Shiva and Śakti as the dynamic and static aspects of the same reality. Through these observances, the practitioner gradually learns to see the body, the ritual space, and the elements themselves as permeated by Shiva.

Mantra and meditation form a second, deeply interior strand of practice. Repetition of Shiva mantras—whether the pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” “So’ham,” or other bīja mantras—is undertaken as japa, sometimes with a mālā and sometimes silently, to refine attention and attune it to the presence of Shiva. This often unfolds under the guidance of a guru through dīkṣā, or initiation, in which specific mantras and methods are transmitted. Alongside this, practitioners cultivate dhyāna on Shiva’s form or formless aspect, meditate on the unity of Shiva-Śakti, and may employ techniques such as gazing on the liṅga or sacred symbols. Advanced contemplative work includes recognizing Shiva as pure awareness and dissolving the apparent separation between meditator, act of meditation, and the deity contemplated.

Tantric disciplines directed toward the subtle body complement these devotional and contemplative modes. Practices of prāṇāyāma, chakra meditation, and kuṇḍalinī-oriented yoga aim to purify and awaken the inner currents of prāṇa so that Śakti may be realized as one with Shiva. Visualization plays a central role here: the practitioner may contemplate yantras or maṇḍalas associated with Shiva and Śakti, or inwardly envision the divine union of Shiva and Śakti as the archetype of non-dual realization. In many lineages, these inner practices are supported by fire rituals (homa), where offerings are made into a consecrated flame with mantras to invoke Shiva’s grace and transform limiting tendencies. Observances such as fasting, night-long vigil on Mahāśivarātri, and pilgrimage to sacred Śaiva sites further reinforce the orientation of one’s entire life toward the recognition that all phenomena arise within, and are not other than, Shiva-consciousness.