Shloka 27
Jñāna-hetu-nirūpaṇa
On the Causes/Means of Knowledge
पूर्णानन्दज्ञानदेहो ऽपि नित्यं सदा शरीरी भाष्यते भक्तिमद्भिः / यतस्तव प्राकृतो नास्ति देहो ह्यतोपि नित्यमशरीरीति च स्मृतः
pūrṇānandajñānadeho 'pi nityaṃ sadā śarīrī bhāṣyate bhaktimadbhiḥ / yatastava prākṛto nāsti deho hyatopi nityamaśarīrīti ca smṛtaḥ
आप नित्य ही पूर्ण आनन्द और ज्ञानमय देह हैं, फिर भी भक्तजन आपको सदा ‘शरीरी’ कहकर वर्णित करते हैं। परन्तु क्योंकि आपका कोई प्राकृत (भौतिक) देह नहीं, इसलिए आप नित्य ‘अशरीरी’ भी स्मरण किए जाते हैं।
Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Bhaktas speak of Bhagavan’s divine form as ‘embodied’ (for worship and intimacy), yet scripture affirms He is ‘ashariri’ in the sense of being free from prakritic limitation; His ‘body’ is consciousness-bliss, not matter.
Vedantic Theme: Saguna-nirguna reconciliation: transcendental form (divya-vigraha) without materiality; acintya-bhedabheda/qualified non-dual style harmonization—form affirmed without prakriti.
Application: In worship, relate to Vishnu’s form with love while keeping philosophical clarity that the divine form is not material; this prevents both crude anthropomorphism and dry negation.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Related Themes: Garuda Purana (general): Vishnu’s divya-svarupa descriptions; teachings distinguishing divya-deha from prakrita-deha
FAQs
This verse clarifies that the Lord’s form is not made of material nature; devotees speak of his divine form for worship, while scripture also calls him bodiless to deny any prakṛta (material) embodiment.
It states that the Lord’s ‘body’ is complete bliss and consciousness, unlike embodied beings whose bodies are products of prakṛti; therefore, he is aśarīrī with respect to material composition.
Worship the Lord’s form with devotion while remembering his transcendence—avoid projecting human limitations onto the divine, and cultivate pure bhakti grounded in right understanding.