God Is Invisible - Revealed Only Through Devotion
Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the all-pervading creator and maintainer of the universe, yet He remains completely invisible to material eyes. To the common man, God is an unseen puzzle, but to the pure devotee, He is visibly revealed through transcendental love.
Beyond Material Vision
Although the Supreme Lord exists everywhere, Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches that imperfect material senses are entirely incapable of perceiving Him. He is present within the core of every living entity's heart and all throughout space, yet He remains hidden from mundane vision.
- Before the creation Everything was darkness. The Supreme Personality of Godhead then entered the universal space, and although He is invisible, He created the visible cosmic manifestation.
- In the beginning of her prayers, Kuntidevi said to the Lord, "You are within, and You are without, but still You are invisible." Krsna is within everyone's heart (isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese 'rjuna tisthati (BG 18.61), sarvasya caham hrdi sannivistah.
- Queen Kunti affirms that the Lord, although both within and without all living beings, is still invisible. The Lord is, so to speak, a puzzle for the common man.
- Let us offer our respectful obeisances unto the Supreme, who is invisible to our material eyes.
The Unseen Controller
Even though we cannot see Him, the Lord is constantly active. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that God controls the cycle of birth and death and sustains planetary systems through His invisible potencies and expansions.
- The Lord is invisible to the eyes of the common man, but His energies act in various ways.
- By His (God's) spiritual energy Sesa Naga sustains all the planetary globes upon His invisible hoods. Sesa Naga is popularly known as Sankarsana, or - that which keeps balance by the law of magnetism.
- The Lord kills the process of birth and death and keeps Himself invisible.
- Yet He is a person, and now by the grace of Kunti we can understand that this Supreme Person, although alaksyam, invisible, has now visibly appeared as Krsna.
Invisible Yet Never Formless
A common misconception is that because God cannot be seen, He must not have a form. Śrīla Prabhupāda strongly refutes this, clarifying that the Supreme Lord has a fully spiritual, transcendental body that He can make visible or invisible at His own will.
- The Personality of Godhead is never formless. In the material world He may not be visible in His personal form to the less intelligent class of men, and therefore He may sometimes be called formless.
- Your form as Visnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is appreciated by yogis in meditation. Please make this form invisible to those who see with material eyes - SB 10.3.28.
- I request that for the time being You (Visnu) become invisible to our material eyes - Devaki expressed her motherly affection to God while praying.
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is invisible even to Lord Brahma, yet He descends on this earth and becomes visible to people in general. This is certainly an act of His causeless mercy, but fools and nondevotees think that Krsna is an ordinary historical person.
Revealed Through Devotion
The ultimate requirement for seeing the invisible Lord is pure love. Śrīla Prabhupāda confirms that through the authorized practice of devotional service, the Lord favors His sincere devotees by personally revealing Himself to them.
- By devotional service one can achieve the favor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although He is not visible or understandable to materialistic persons.
- I pray to that Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is eternally existing, who is invisible, who is the Lord of all great personalities, such as Brahma, and who is available only by transcendental bhakti-yoga.
- Maharaj Dhruva says "My dear Lord, I have practiced austerities and penances because I was desiring to receive something from You, but in exchange You have allowed me to see You, who are never visible even to the great sages and saintly persons."
- Under the direction of the spiritual master, one must cultivate bhakti-yoga (SB 7.5.23). Then, even within this material world, although the Lord is not visible, a devotee can see Him. This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gita 18.55 and in Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.14.21.
Conclusion
To realize the Absolute Truth, one must accept that the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot be measured by mundane visual perception. Śrīla Prabhupāda concludes that while the Lord remains invisible and formless to the materialistic class of men, He lovingly reveals His supreme, transcendental form to those who humbly engage in the process of bhakti-yoga.
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Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category God Is Invisible. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.