SB 4.8.45

SB 4.8.45

Devanagari

प्रसादाभिमुखं शश्वत्प्रसन्नवदनेक्षणम् । सुनासं सुभ्रुवं चारुकपोलं सुरसुन्दरम् ॥ ४५ ॥

Verse text

prasādābhimukhaṁ śaśvat prasanna-vadanekṣaṇam sunāsaṁ subhruvaṁ cāru- kapolaṁ sura-sundaram

Synonyms

prasāda abhimukham — always prepared to offer causeless mercy ; śaśvat always ; prasanna pleasing ; vadana mouth ; īkṣaṇam vision ; su nāsam — very nicely constructed nose ; su bhruvam — very nicely decorated eyebrows ; cāru beautiful ; kapolam forehead ; sura the demigods ; sundaram good looking .

Translation

[The form of the Lord is described herein.] The Lord’s face is perpetually very beautiful and pleasing in attitude. To the devotees who see Him, He appears never to be displeased, and He is always prepared to award benedictions to them. His eyes, His nicely decorated eyebrows, His raised nose and His broad forehead are all very beautiful. He is more beautiful than all the demigods.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

That Lord is always inclined to give mercy. He has a joyful face and glance, with graceful nose and eyebrows, beautiful forehead, and is more beautiful than the devatās. Sura-sundaram means “more beautiful than the devatās.”

Purport

This verse clearly explains how one has to meditate on the form of the Lord. Impersonal meditation is a bogus invention of modern days. In none of the Vedic literatures is impersonal meditation recommended. In Bhagavad-gītā, when meditation is recommended, the word mat-paraḥ, which means “pertaining to Me,” is used. Any Viṣṇu form pertains to Lord Kṛṣṇa because Lord Kṛṣṇa is the original Viṣṇu form. Sometimes someone tries to meditate upon the impersonal Brahman, which is described in Bhagavad-gītā as avyakta, meaning “unmanifested” or “impersonal.” But it is remarked by the Lord Himself that those who are attached to this impersonal feature of the Lord suffer a very troublesome task because no one can concentrate on the impersonal feature. One has to concentrate on the form of the Lord, which is described here in connection with Dhruva Mahārāja’s meditation. As will be apparent from later descriptions, Dhruva Mahārāja perfected this kind of meditation, and his yoga was successful.