Adhikara

(“qualification”) In any sort of Hindu
worship, but particularly in tantra,
adhikara indicates that one has the religious qualifications to perform certain
ritual actions. This refers partly to knowing how to perform the ritual, and thus
being “qualified” in that sense of the
word. More importantly, it refers to having gained the ritual status that entitles
one to perform the ritual. This status is
usually conferred by some sort of formal
initiation or initiations given by one’s
teacher, who decides what type of and
how much adhikara to transmit based
on an assessment of the student’s abilities, temperament, and desire to learn.