Hindus believe that God is Ananta (Infinite) or ever existing, omnipresent with no proper form. Temples are a Hindu place of worship where god is shown limited in a small area with finite size and with a proper form (like lord Krishna or lord Shiva or any other deity). Will that mean visiting temple and worshiping the god in such a form is inappropriate as per the scriptures? We will explore some of the verses from Bhagavad Gita and Rig Veda to get to the bottom of the idea of visiting a temple and worshiping a seemingly finite god.
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Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 15 – Verse 15
The meaning of above verse (Shloka) is: I am seated in the heart of every human being and from me arises consciousness, wisdom, removal of doubts and even wrong notions about god. Verily I am to be known from Vedas and I am the compiler and knower of the Vedas.
The above verse clearly explains that god resides in each one of us and it is god alone which creates our consciousness and knowledge. Famous Hindu chant Har Har Mahadeva in praise of lord Shiva means everybody has Mahadeva within. While praying we are always told to close our eyes so that we focus within, where god is said to be seated as per the above verse.
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Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 11 – Verse 40
In Mahabharta, when Arjuna was in doubt about fighting the battle with his cousins (Kauravas), lord Krishna assumed a divine form called Vishwaroopa (universal form) which was magnificent and it showed complete universe in him. Such a form of god could be seen only by divine eyes, which lord Krishna granted to Arjuna so that he could see the divine form of the God which is ever existent and embodying the complete universe within. The above verse was spoken by Arjun when he saw the Vishwaroopa form of lord Krishna.
Meaning of the above verse is: O Lord of infinite power, my salutations to you from all the sides! You possess infinite valor and might and pervade everything, and thus, you are everything.
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Rig Veda
This verse appears in Rig Veda and it means: That which exists is one, sages call him with various names. This would simply mean that even though Hindus worship many deities as god and they call each deity with a different name but god is one only and all these deities represent that one supreme soul called Paramatma or God or Bhagwan etc.
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Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 7 – Verse 20
Meaning of the above mentioned verse: Those whose minds are distorted by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.
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Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 7 – Verse 21
Meaning of the above mentioned verse: Whichever demigod a devotee desires to worship with faith, I sustain that faith in him.
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Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 8 – Verse 22
Meaning of the above mentioned verse: Endowed with faith, the devotee worships a particular demigod and obtains the objects of desire. But in reality I alone arrange those benefits.
Significance of idol worship and temple:
God has no form, god exists in every thing. We call god with various name and we worship him in various forms. If our faith on god is derived from material desires then we have a corrupted mind but if we do idol worship too with complete devotion and with a feeling of surrender then we are in the duty of that ruling supreme which has no form and which is infinite. God is finally seated in the faith within us. A person may go to a temple with a desire to earn a lot of money and offer Prasad in return to the idol of Lakshmiji and another person may go to the same temple with the faith that “Lakshmiji is a form of god and I am in her service. Before I have my food I ll offer food to the goddess”. Both the person may seem to be doing same action but both the person have completely different faith. First person in the example has attachment to the fruits for his action while the second person in the example was detached from the desire of fruits for his actions. Whatever fruits one get in his or her life is always granted by the will of the supreme almighty and if supreme almighty is pleased with the devotion then one may have fruits beyond his desires.
We hope this article has helped in clearing the idea that worship in a temple or at home or to an idol or to a Yantra or anywhere else in any form, it doesn’t matter, all that matters is the selfless devotion and faith that one has towards the god.
From here on we will begin a series of blog on various temples across India.
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