Seeing Me

[from Srimad Bhagavatam 7.4.25]
ma bhaista vibudha-sresthah
sarvesam bhadram astu vah
mad-darsanam hi bhutanam
sarva-sreyopapattaye
jnatam etasya dauratmyam
daiteyapasadasya yat
tasya santim karisyami
kalam tavat pratiksata

SYNONYMS

ma—do not; bhaista—fear; vibudha-sresthah—O best of learned persons; sarvesam—of all; bhadram—the good fortune; astu—let there be; vah—unto you; mat-darsanam—the seeing of Me (or offering of prayers to Me or hearing about Me, all of which are absolute); hi—indeed; bhutanam—of all living entities; sarva-sreya—of all good fortune; upapattaye—for the attainment; jnatam—known; etasya—of this; dauratmyam—the nefarious activities; daiteya-apasadasya—of the great demon, Hiranyakasipu; yat—which; tasya—of this; santim—cessation; karisyami—I shall make; kalam—time; tavat—until that; pratiksata—just wait.



TRANSLATION

The voice of the Lord vibrated as follows: O best of learned persons, do not fear! I wish all good fortune to you. Become My devotees by hearing and chanting about Me and offering Me prayers, for these are certainly meant to award benedictions to all living entities. I know all about the activities of Hiranyakasipu and shall surely stop them very soon. Please wait patiently until that time.

PURPORT

Sometimes people are very much eager to see God. In considering the word mad-darsanam, “seeing Me,” which is mentioned in this verse, one should note that in Bhagavad-gita the Lord says, bhaktya mam abhijanati [Bg. 18.55]. In other words, the ability to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead or to see Him or talk with Him depends on one’s advancement in devotional service, which is called bhakti. In bhakti there are nine different activities: sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam pada-sevanam/ arcanam vandanam dasyam sakhyam atma-nivedanam [SB 7.5.23]. Because all these devotional activities are absolute, there is no fundamental difference between worshiping the Deity in the temple, seeing Him and chanting His glories. Indeed, all of these are ways of seeing Him, for everything done in devotional service is a means of direct contact with the Lord. The vibration of the Lord’s voice appeared in the presence of all the devotees, and although the person vibrating the sound was unseen to them, they were meeting or seeing the Lord because they were offering prayers and because the vibration of the Lord was present. Contrary to the laws of the material world, there is no difference between seeing the Lord, offering prayers and hearing the transcendental vibration. Pure devotees, therefore, are fully satisfied by glorifying the Lord. Such glorification is called kirtana. Performing kirtana and hearing the vibration of the sound Hare Krsna is actually seeing the Supreme Personality of Godhead directly. One must realize this position, and then one will be able to understand the absolute nature of the Lord’s activities.