Isn’t it material conception of Deity to offer fan or candana when we feel hot in summer?
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This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
The question is that if we offer a fan to the Deity or we offer a tandoor to the Deity, thinking that the Deity will be hot and we will cool it, isn’t this a material consumption of the Deity? Because we feel hot and think that Krishna is hot also. So is it a material consumption? There are two important things which should not be confused. First is the consumption of material and spiritual in terms of constitution.
And then the consumption of material and spiritual in terms of application. In terms of constitution or composition, the Atma is Satchitananda. And the body is made up of Bhumiraponal oil, earth water fire oil.
It is material. It is a clear difference. Now we may say that the Deity, the pure and holy body is spiritual.
Now what does that mean? It is not that the pure and holy body is made up of Satchitananda. But it is used, this is used as spiritual in terms of application. It is being used for a spiritual purpose, for serving Krishna.
So now when Krishna manifests as the Deity, Krishna himself is transcendental. But he has manifested as a material. The Satchitananda Krishna is manifesting through a Deity which may be made of marble or stone or other materials.
So the material conception of Deity is to see the Deity simply as stone. Yes, there is stone, but there is more. Just like currency is also paper.
But there is more, not just ordinary paper. So material conception of Deity is to see Deity simply as matter and nothing more. Now what does it mean to see the Deity as more? To see the Deity as Krishna himself was manifesting.
Now when we invite Krishna to manifest as the Deity, the purpose is that we get the opportunity to serve him. So now how do we serve him? By serving, by offering him everything the way we would offer to a respectable guest. So there are two modes.
One is that a very beloved guest has come to our house and the other is a king has come to our house. So there is popular worship and there is intimate worship, whichever one it is, depending on the mood. But the principle is that just as we would offer affection and service to a person whom we respect and love, similarly we offer respect to the Deity.
So it’s not material conception to offer a fan to Krishna or offer chandan to Krishna because actually if we had a material conception, we would think this is just stupid. What is the need to do anything? Why offer a fan or offer chandan? It’s just stupid. But it’s because we don’t have a material conception.
It’s because we understand that Krishna is manifesting only. So our offering Krishna, the fan or the chandan, is not because he needs it. But it is because we want to express ourselves to him.
So Prahlad Maharaj in the 7th and 1st chapter will often pray once in a day. He says that by the Lord you are Poornam, you are complete. And you don’t need anything from us.
But when we offer you respect, when we offer you service, it is for our benefit because we become unified by offering that service. So now if we say that Krishna is transcendental, then yes, Krishna is transcendental. But he has manifested here to give us a portion of his heart.
If we just had a simplistic notion of God’s transcendence, then we would say what is the need for a fan? There is no need for a fan. There is no need for even food to be offered. There is no need for dress.
There is no need for decorations. And then there is no need for needles also. So that is the opposite extreme of the material conception.
One material conception is to reduce the deity to only matter. The other extreme of the material conception is to conceive God as so transcendental that in no material way he can be served. So that also ends up alienating us from God.
How can we connect with him? The principle of deity worship is that we want to serve him. And whether it is offering chandan or having fan, it is that we want to serve him in a way that is harmonious with the mood in which he is manifesting. Which is that as a guest or as a king whom we have an opportunity to serve.