śrī-uddhava uvāca
kriyā-yogaḿ samācakṣva
bhavad-ārādhanaḿ prabho
yasmāt tvāḿ ye yathārcanti
sātvatāḥ sātvatarṣabha
sri-uddhavah uvaca -- Sri Uddhava said; kriya-yogam -- the prescribed method of activity; samacakshva -- please explain; bhavat -- of You; aradhanam -- the Deity worship; prabho -- O Lord; yasmat -- based on what kind of form; tvam -- You; ye -- who; yatha -- in what manner; arcanti -- they worship; satvatah -- the devotees; satvata-rishabha -- O master of the devotees.
Sri Uddhava said: My dear Lord, O master of the devotees, please explain to me the prescribed method of worshiping You in Your Deity form. What are the qualifications of those devotees who worship the Deity, on what basis is such worship established, and what is the specific method of worship?
In addition to performing their prescribed duties, devotees of the Lord engage in regulated worship of the Lord in His Deity form in the temple. Such worship acts powerfully to cleanse the heart of both the lust to enjoy one's material body and the material family attachment that results directly from this lust. To be effective, however, the process of Deity worship must be performed in the authorized way. Therefore Uddhava now inquires from the Lord about this subject.
