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Re: Idol worship and Vedas???

From the Bhakti List Archives

Pradeep Janakiraman • November 6, 2002 


To discuss this we can use the importance and presence of water in 
different forms. Water is highly essential for our survival, just as 
the Lord is the most essential for everyone. 

Lord Narayana in Sri Vaikuntam is like the water high-up in the 
clouds. To get that water, one has to be like a bird that can fly 
high enough to drink it directly (just an analogy). Only great 
mahatmas can visit Narayana there. 

Rama & Krishna avatarams are like the rain-water showers. IF we went 
to a place in a season other than the monsoon, then we miss those 
showers. So only those who are lucky enough to have drenched in it 
get the benefit. 

Then the rain water goes deep into the ground after the rains. But 
that is accesible if we dig deep wells. This is the Bhagavan who is 
the "antaryaami", deep inside us.  Not everyone can use that fact 
effectively and meditate on the "Antaryaami". 

But water collected in the dams after rains, and made accesible 
through channels and pipes is the easiest to use and access. That is 
the Lord in the Archavataaram. Out of his extreme kindness and for 
the benefit of everyone, he is still standing there in those Divya-
Kshetrams and in the numerous forms and shapes that we worship in our 
homes. 

This is the easiest form to comprehend and worship for everyone. Thus 
idol-worship is very important to begin the progress in Bhakti. 

At a more unified theory level, non-controversial people would say 
that "Nirgunam" and "Sagunam" are like the 2-sides of a paper. Just 
as the paper definitely has 2-sides and appears based on which side 
and how we look at it, Lord also is both "Nirgunam" (wihtout Rajas, 
and Tamas gunas) and yet "Sagunam" posessing Ananta-Kalyaana-Gunams. 

(the last paragraph is not my personal view, but I have heard the 
above being said by quite a few pravachana-kartaas)

Radhe Krishna

-- Pradeep 





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