Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 26
Arcana-vidhi: The Method of Deity Worship
Vedic, Tantric, and Mixed
पाद्योपस्पर्शार्हणादीनुपचारान् प्रकल्पयेत् । धर्मादिभिश्च नवभि: कल्पयित्वासनं मम ॥ २५ ॥ पद्ममष्टदलं तत्र कर्णिकाकेसरोज्ज्वलम् । उभाभ्यां वेदतन्त्राभ्यां मह्यं तूभयसिद्धये ॥ २६ ॥
pādyopasparśārhaṇādīn upacārān prakalpayet dharmādibhiś ca navabhiḥ kalpayitvāsanaṁ mama
The worshiper should first imagine My seat as decorated with the personified deities of religion, knowledge, renunciation and opulence and with My nine spiritual energies. He should think of the Lord’s sitting place as an eight-petaled lotus, effulgent on account of the saffron filaments within its whorl. Then, following the regulations of both the Vedas and the tantras, he should offer Me water for washing the feet, water for washing the mouth, arghya and other items of worship. By this process he achieves both material enjoyment and liberation.
According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī, religion, knowledge, renunciation and opulence are the legs of the Lord’s sitting platform and occupy the four corners, beginning with the southeast. Irreligion, ignorance, attachment and wretchedness are the intermediate legs, standing in the four directions beginning with the east. The nine śaktis, or potencies, of the Lord are Vimalā, Utkarṣiṇī, Jñānā, Kriyā, Yogā, Prahvī, Satyā, Īśānā and Anugrahā.
FAQs
This verse states that one should prepare standard worship offerings such as pādya (water for the Lord’s feet), cleansing water, respectful reception, and other upacāras as part of proper deity worship.
In Canto 11, Krishna instructs Uddhava in practical bhakti—showing how devotion is expressed through orderly, respectful deity worship that engages body and mind.
Keep worship simple but respectful: offer clean water, maintain cleanliness, and cultivate dharma-like qualities (integrity, self-control) as the inner “seat” for devotion.