Radha Krishna Temple ISKCON London

 

'The devotee should regularly see My statues in the temple, touch My lotus feet, and offer worshipable paraphernalia and prayer. He should see in the spirit of renunciation, from the mode of goodness, and see every living entity as spiritual'

Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.29.16

 

In addition to purifying the heart, deity worship has two other important effects: it increases the devotees' interest to hear about the Lord, and it bestows the ability to concentrate the mind, which increases the capacity to hear.

 

 Tending the deity naturally awakens awareness of Krsna's personality. As devotees become increasingly attached to the person they are worshipping, they want to know more about Him. Subsequently, they want to hear about His pastimes and to learn how to serve Him better. As they increase their service, their instinctive taste for hearing and reading becomes purified and directed toward topics of the Lord.  The inquisitive neophytes of Naimisarana exemplified this taste when they said;

 

' O wise Suta, please narrate to us the transcendental pastimes of the Supreme Godhead's multi-incarnations. Such auspicious adventures and pastimes of the Lord, the supreme controller, are performed by His internal powers'

Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.18

 

Srila Prabhupada also glorified deity worship as a means to fix the mind:

 

 “This deity worship means to train the neophyte devotees how to concentrate upon the form of Krsna, especially His lotus feet.”

 

 By observing the Lord's form during arati, thinking of Him during the day, and tasting His remnants at meals, devotees naturally remember Him. This regular remembrance is a form of training that helps new devotees subdue and direct the restless mind. When they have achieved a certain measure of success, devotees find reading and hearing much more rewarding.

 

 We often see new devotees distracted or sleepy while listening to class or reading. Learning to fix the mind on the deity helps fix the mind on topics of Krsna. Thus deity worship helps devotees stay alert and focused in other devotional acts. Through the medium of deity worship, the devotees' dormant attachment to Krsna is awakened. That attachment naturally increases their qualification for and interest in hearing topics of Krsna. In this way they overcome the influence of the lower modes and advance happily in Krsna consciousness.

 

 And although deity worship is especially recommended for neophytes, Srila Prabhupada warns advanced devotees not to neglect it. Although they were fully realized souls, associates of the Lord such as Rupa Gosvami and Gadadhara Pandit worshiped their own deities with love and attention. While advanced devotees generally worship the Lord by the process of remembrance, they initiate many neophytes into serving the deity in the temple and show their disciples how to dedicate themselves to caring for Him. 

 

 Srila Prabhupada writes, “Similarly, places outside India where there are centres of the Krsna consciousness movement and where Radha-Krsna deities are worshiped must all be visited and worshiped by those who want to be spiritually advanced. One who intends to advance in spiritual life may visit all these places and perform ritualistic ceremonies to get results a thousand times better that the results of the same activities performed in any other place”. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.14. 30-33 Purport)

 

Adapted from