God Resembles - The Concrete Beauty of the Supreme Form
Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is not a formless void or an unimaginable energy. The Vedic literatures provide exact, concrete descriptions of His eternal, spiritual body. Because our material minds cannot fully grasp pure spiritual substance, the great sages use metaphors from the natural world to help us understand what the Lord resembles. By comparing His features to the most beautiful and powerful elements of creation, we can begin to appreciate His supreme attractiveness.
The Humanlike Supreme Person
A common misunderstanding is that if God is the creator of the universe, He must not have a physical shape like ours. However, Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that the human form is actually modeled after the Lord's original form, although His body is completely transcendental and devoid of material elements.
- The Lord is narakrti, exactly resembling the form of a human being, but His form is different from ours.
- Narayana is catur-bahu, but the Supreme Person resembles a human being. This is also confirmed in the Bible, where it is said that man was made in the image of God.
- The Lord is situated in many forms, such as Rama, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna, and these forms may exist in any part of His creation. All these forms exist permanently, eternally, as individual Personalities of Godhead, and they resemble many candles, all equally powerful.
- A concrete description of the eternal form of the Lord is given here. The Lord's sole is depicted with distinctive lines resembling a thunderbolt, a flag, a lotus flower and a goad.
The Hue of Rain Clouds and Lotus Eyes
The dazzling complexion of the Lord is frequently described in the scriptures. Śrīla Prabhupāda notes that the Lord's hue is not like ordinary dark skin; it possesses a luminous, bluish-black quality that resembles a thundercloud, complemented by perfectly formed eyes.
- As confirmed in the Brahma-samhita, barhavatamsam asitambuda-sundarangam: the hue of the Lord's beautiful form resembles the blackish color of dense clouds. Asita means blackish, and ambuda means cloud.
- He resembled a bluish rain cloud with flashing lightning, and in two of His four hands He held a conchshell and disc.
- Lord Brahma, along with Lord Siva, saw the crystal-clear personal beauty of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose blackish body resembles a marakata gem, whose eyes are reddish like the depths of a lotus, who is dressed with garments that are yellow like molten gold.
- The Lord's appearance is described here as padma-garbharuneksanam. His eyes resemble the inside of a lotus flower, and in His four hands He holds the four symbols: conchshell, discus, mace and lotus.
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose eyes resemble the petals of a newly blossomed lotus, sat on the back of Garuda, spreading His lotus feet over Garuda's shoulders.
Jasmine Teeth and Golden Ornaments
The facial features and adornments of the Supreme Lord offer deep objects of meditation for the yogīs and devotees. Śrīla Prabhupāda describes how the Lord's smile and His brilliant golden ornaments captivate the minds of those who see Him.
- When the Supreme Lord is laughing, one can see His small teeth, which resemble jasmine buds rendered rosy by the splendor of His lips. Once devoting his mind to this, the yogi should no longer desire to see anything else.
- The exceptional beauty of the laughter of Lord Visnu is that when He smiles His small teeth, which resemble the buds of jasmine flowers, at once become reddish, reflecting His rosy lips.
- Visnu's pure smiling resembles the increasing light of the moon.
- All of the ornaments on the body of Lord Visnu resemble molten gold of the reddish-gold color of the morning sunrise.
- O Lord, who resemble the shining sun, You are always ready to fulfill the desire of Your devotee, and therefore You are known as a desire tree.
The Fearsome Protector
While the Lord is supremely attractive and gentle toward His pure devotees, He can manifest unimaginable ferocity when protecting them from demons. Śrīla Prabhupāda details the terrifying beauty of the Lord's wrathful incarnations.
- The Lord's form was extremely fearsome because of His angry eyes, which resembled molten gold; His shining mane, which expanded the dimensions of His fearful face; His deadly teeth; and His razor-sharp tongue, which moved about like a dueling sword.
- Licking the edge of His mouth with His tongue, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nrsimhadeva, decorated with a garland of intestines taken from Hiranyakasipu's abdomen, resembled a lion that has just killed an elephant.
- His arms, which resembled flanks of soldiers, spread in all directions as He killed the demons, rogues and atheists with His conchshell, disc, club, lotus and other natural weapons.
Conclusion
The supreme science of bhakti-yoga provides far more than a theoretical understanding of the Absolute Truth; it offers a direct, personal meditation on the ultimate reality. Śrīla Prabhupāda beautifully illustrates how the Supreme Personality of Godhead resembles the most striking features of the material world, yet He is entirely untainted by matter. He is narakṛti, resembling a human being, which proves that we are made in His image. By meditating on His dark, cloud-like complexion, His eyes that resemble fresh lotus petals, and His teeth that shine like jasmine buds, the mind becomes thoroughly cleansed of material desires. Whether He is charmingly crawling like a serpent in the courtyards of Vraja, expanding like lit candles to manage the creation, or appearing as a fearsome lion to tear apart the enemies of His devotees, the Lord’s form is perfectly complete. A sincere soul who regularly hears these descriptions and fixes their mind upon the transcendental body of the Lord eventually loses all attraction for the fleeting beauties of this world and returns to the eternal, spiritual realm.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category God Resembles. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.