HONOURING THE DEITIES OF KRISHNA – PROPER WAY – PART-1
(As said by Sri Rupa Gosvami & Srila Prabhupada)
Sri Rupa Gosvami has given many tips for Honouring the deities of Krishna in a proper way to avoid offenses. Every devotee should be serious in honouring the deities of Krishna as explained below:
Dancing Before the Deity
In the Dvaraka-mahatmya, the importance of dancing before the Deity is stated by Lord Krsna as follows:
“A person who is in a jubilant spirit, who feels profound devotional ecstasy while dancing before Me, and who manifests different features of bodily expression can burn away all the accumulated sinful reactions he has stocked up for many, many thousands of years.”
(Why Krishna’s idols are white or black in different temples? READ HERE!)
In the same book there is a statement by Narada wherein he asserts, “From the body of any person who claps and dances before the Deity, showing manifestations of ecstasy, all the birds of sinful activities fly away upward.”
Bowing Down in Honor of the Deity
In the Naradiya Purana there is a statement about bowing down and offering respect to the Deity. It is said there, “A person who has performed a great ritualistic sacrifice and a person who has simply offered his respectful obeisances by bowing down before the Lord cannot be held as equals.”
The person who has executed many great sacrifices will attain the result of his pious activities, but when such results are finished, he has to take birth again on the earthly planet; however, the person who has once offered respects, bowing down before the Deity, will not come back to this world, because he will go directly to the abode of Krsna.
(Who will take care of my Krishna deities after my death? (3 Questions) READ HERE!)
Standing Up to Receive the Lord
In the Brahmanda Purana it is said, “A person who sees the Lord’s Ratha-yatra car festival and then stands up to receive the Lord can purge all kinds of sinful results from his body.”
Following the Deity
A similar statement is there in the Bhavisya Purana, in which it is said, “Even if born of a lowly family, a person who follows the Ratha-yatra car when the Deities pass in front or from behind will surely be elevated to the position of achieving equal opulence with Visnu.”
Going to the Temple of Visnu or to Places of Pilgrimage
It is stated in the Puranas, “Persons who attempt to visit the holy places of pilgrimage, like Vrndavana, Mathura or Dvaraka, are actually glorified. By such traveling activities, they can pass over the desert of material existence.”
(COMPLETE PROCEDURE TO BATHE & CARE THE DEITIES OF KRISHNA / BABY KRISHNA/ BAL GOPAL AT HOME! READ HERE!)
Circumambulating the Temple of Visnu
It is said in the Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya, “A person who is circumambulating the Deity of Visnu can counteract the circumambulation of repeated birth and death in this material world.”
The conditioned soul is circumambulating through repeated births and deaths on account of his material existence, and this can be counteracted simply by circumambulating the Deity in the temple.
………It is stated in the Skanda Purana that during this (Caturmasya) period, if someone circumambulates the temple of Visnu at least four times, it is understood that he has traveled all over the universe.
Arcana (Archana)
Arcana means worship of the Deity in the temple. By executing this process one confirms himself to be not the body but spirit soul. In the Tenth Canto, Eighty-first Chapter, verse 19, of Srimad-Bhagavatam, it is told how Sudama, an intimate friend of Krsna’s, while going to the house of a brahmana, murmured to himself, “Simply by worshiping Krsna one can easily achieve all the results of heavenly opulence, liberation, supremacy over the planetary systems of the universe, all the opulences of this material world, and the mystic power of performing the yoga system.
In the Visnu-rahasya, also, it is stated, “Any person within this world who is engaged in the worship of Visnu can very easily achieve the ever-blissful kingdom of God, known as Vaikunthaloka.”
(I AM UNABLE TO TREAT MY HOME DEITIES PROPERLY. WHAT TO DO? READ HERE!)
Rendering Service to the Lord
It is stated in the Visnu-rahasya, “Any person who can arrange for service to the Lord in the same way that a king is given service by his attendants is surely elevated to the abode of Krsna after death.” Actually, in India the temples are just like royal palaces. They are not ordinary buildings, because the worship of Krsna should be performed in just the way that a king is worshiped in his palace. So in Vrndavana there are many hundreds of temples wherein the Deity is worshiped exactly like a king. In the Naradiya Purana it is stated, “H a person stays in the Lord’s temple even for a few moments, he can surely achieve the transcendental kingdom of God.”
…….In this connection, there is a statement in the Fourth Canto, Twenty-first Chapter, verse 31, of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, wherein King Prthu says to his subjects, “My dear citizens, please note that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, is actually the deliverer of all fallen, conditioned souls. No demigod can perform this act of delivering the conditioned souls, because the demigods themselves are conditioned. A conditioned soul cannot deliver another conditioned soul. Only Krsna or His bona fide representative can deliver him. The Ganges water which is flowing down from the toe of Lord Visnu falls upon the earthly planet and other planets and thereby delivers all the conditioned sinful living entities. So what need is there to speak of the deliverance of persons who are always engaged in the service of the Lord? There is no doubt about their liberation, even if they have stocks of sinful activities from many, many births.”
In other words, a person who is engaged in the worship of the Deities can minimize his stock of sinful reactions coming from many, many previous births. This process of worshiping the Deity has already been described, and one should try to follow these rules and regulations seriously.
(Honouring the deities of Krishna Will be continued in Part-2)
(Is Shaligram Shila & Deity worship not recommended at Home For all? READ HERE!)