Jan passed away on July 5, 2025.

Jan Esmann, born 1960, is an "enlightened kundalinī shaktipāt master" living in Copenhagen, Denmark, where he teaches, transmits and gives shaktipāt. The highest teachings are transmitted in silence during meditation or afterward. Jan is not part of any tradition or represents a lineage. He has been giving shaktipāt since the mid-1980s but did not fully emerge as a teacher until after 2006.

He has an MA in History of Modern Culture from Copenhagen University, and a B.Sc in Art-restoration from the Royal Academy of Arts in Copenhagen. He earns his living as an artist, a writer, and a software developer.

Books:

Lovebliss: The Essence of Self-Realization

Enlightenment 101: From Ignorance to Grace

Kundalini Tantra: Song of Liberation

Website: shaktipat.one

Transcript of this interview

First BatGap interview with Jan.

Interview recorded 2/1/2014

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 - Introduction and Spiritual Journey

00:04:51 - Awakening versus Self-realization

00:09:14 - The Journey to Self-Realization

00:13:42 - The Distinction Between Enlightenment and Awakening

00:18:44 - Witnessing Consciousness and Self-Realization

00:23:11 - Awakening vs Self-realization

00:27:29 - The Mechanism of Self-realization

00:32:35 - The Dark Night of the Soul and Depression

00:37:12 - Witnessing Sleep and Dream

00:41:53 - Witnessing and Self-Realization

00:46:34 - Dissolving the Kundalini and Liberation

00:51:24 - Remembering Past Lives

00:55:51 - The Value of Understanding

01:00:20 - Bliss in God-Consciousness

01:05:52 - Pure Self-Realization and God-Consciousness

01:10:39 - A Divine Encounter

01:15:44 - Self-realization as a baby

01:20:28 - The Soul and Kundalini

01:25:59 - Kundalini awakening and Shaktipat

01:31:08 - Endless Journey of Enlightenment

01:37:07 - Advaita Vedanta and Ramanuja's Point of View

01:41:27 - The Opening and Expansion of the Crown Chakra

01:46:09 - The Significance of Profound Experiences

01:51:00 - Zen Practice and Enlightenment

01:55:11 - The Effectiveness of In-Person Interaction

02:00:00 - The Recognition of Bliss

02:05:25 - Sahaja Samadhi and the Variations of Experience

02:09:59 - The Power of Shaktipat

02:14:55 - The Mechanics of Meditation and Shaktipat

02:20:33 - Self-Realization and Para-Bhakti

02:26:09 - Meditation Practices and Contact Information