Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He, although He is all-pervading, universal, He has agreed to accept your service just to give you liberation from this misunderstanding, no ātma-tattvam. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, that Kṛṣṇa, God, is great. How great He is, you cannot imagine. But still, He has agreed to accept your service, becoming small. That is greatness. In the material world, if something is big, very big, he cannot become, or it cannot become small. Just like, say, for . . . elephant is very big animal. You ask the elephant, "Please become like an ant." "Oh, that is not possible, sir. That is not possible." Bu t God is so great that although He's universal, He can enter into the atom. That is . . . nṇor aṇīyān mahato mahīyān: "Greater than the greatest, smaller than the smallest." That is God. Aṇor aṇīyān mahato . . . aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu . . . in the Brahma-saṁhitā it is said,
- eko 'py asau racayituṁ jagad-aṇḍa-koṭiṁ
- yac-chaktir asti jagad-aṇḍa-cayā yad-antaḥ
- aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham
- (Bs. 5.35)
Eko 'py asau. One portion of Kṛṣṇa, Paramātmā. Just to create this material world, He has entered in the mahat-tattva as Mahā-Viṣṇu, and He has entered within the universe as Garbhodakaśāyī-Viṣṇu, He has entered everyone's heart as Supersoul, Kṣīrodakaśāyī-Viṣṇu, and He has entered into the atom—although He is so great. So it is Kṛṣṇa's mercy that He can become smaller than the smallest and the greater than the greatest.
So we cannot capture the greater than the greatest. That is not possible. Therefore it is His kindness that He has become just to be handled by you. This is called arcā-mūrti, arcā-vigraha. The Deity worship means arcā-vigraha. Because the devotional service, one of the item of devotional service: arcanam.
- śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ
- smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam
- arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ
- sakhyam ātma-nivedanam
- (SB 7.5.23)
So you hear about Kṛṣṇa, you chant about Kṛṣṇa, you memorize or remember about Kṛṣṇa. You worship Kṛṣṇa, this Deity, arcanam. You offer prayers to Kṛṣṇa. There are nine different ways. So you just try to understand Kṛṣṇa in nine processes or either of, some of the processes, or one process only, Kṛṣṇa will agree. Kṛṣṇa is so kind. And as soon as you understand Kṛṣṇa, His nature, then actually you become liberated. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). This is the process. Real problem is how to get out of this material existence. If we remain attached to this material existence, either in this body or in the society or in the nationalism or in the greater, greater, greater—you make greater—but that is your bondage.
So one should be careful to understand the position of the soul, and how he can go back to home, back to Godhead, again meet the Supersoul, Kṛṣṇa, and live there permanently with blissful life and full of knowledge. This is wanted.