Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.15.38

taḿ tv āgataḿ pratihṛtaupayikaḿ sva-pumbhis

te 'cakṣatākṣa-viṣayaḿ sva-samādhi-bhāgyam

haḿsa-śriyor vyajanayoḥ śiva-vāyu-lolac-

chubhrātapatra-śaśi-kesara-śīkarāmbum

SYNONYMS

tam — Him; tu — but; āgatam — coming forward; pratihṛta — carried; aupayikam — the paraphernalia; sva-pumbhiḥ — by His own associates; te — the great sages (the Kumāras); acakṣata — saw; akṣa-viṣayam — now a subject matter for seeing; sva-samādhi-bhāgyam — visible simply by ecstatic trance; haḿsa-śriyoḥ — as beautiful as white swans; vyajanayoḥ — the cāmaras (bunches of white hair); śiva-vāyu — favorable winds; lolat — moving; śubhra-ātapatra — the white umbrella; śaśi — the moon; kesara — pearls; śīkara — drops; ambum — water.

TRANSLATION

The sages, headed by Sanaka Ṛṣi, saw that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, who was formerly visible only within their hearts in ecstatic trance, had now actually become visible to their eyes. As He came forward, accompanied by His own associates bearing all paraphernalia, such as an umbrella and a cāmara fan, the white bunches of hair moved very gently, like two swans, and due to their favorable breeze the pearls garlanding the umbrella also moved, like drops of nectar falling from the white full moon or ice melting due to a gust of wind.

PURPORT

In this verse we find the word acakṣatākṣa-viṣayam. The Supreme Lord cannot be seen by ordinary eyes, but He now became visible to the eyesight of the Kumāras. Another significant word is samādhi-bhāgyam. Meditators who are very fortunate can see the Viṣṇu form of the Lord within their hearts by following the yogic process. But to see Him face to face is a different matter. This is only possible for pure devotees. The Kumāras, therefore, upon seeing the Lord coming forward with His associates, who were holding an umbrella and a cāmara fan, were struck with wonder that they were seeing the Lord face to face. It is said in the Brahma-saḿhitā that devotees, being elevated in love of God, always see Śyāmasundara, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, within their hearts. But when they are mature, the same God is visible before them face to face. For ordinary persons the Lord is not visible; however, when one can understand the significance of His holy name and one engages himself in the devotional service of the Lord, beginning with the tongue, by chanting and tasting prasāda, then gradually the Lord reveals Himself. Thus the devotee constantly sees the Lord within his heart, and, in a more mature stage, one can see the same Lord directly, as we see everything else.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness