Title: Do acarayas pictures needs to be half covered with some clot

User: nitgrg   Date: 2007-06-12 07:21:06

 

My pranams Maharaj

 

Please accept my humble obeisances ! All glories to Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga!

 

Maharaj at our home we recently put the  pictures of our Guru parampara and all great acarayas.

One devotee came to our house and told us that we should cover half picutres with some cloth.

is it true maharaj ?

 

I know that they should be given some garland,which we are trying to obtain, but regarding cloth can you confirm Maharaj ?

 

Many thanks in advance.

Hare Krishna

Your servant

Preeti

 

Title: Re: Do acaryas pictures needs to be half covered with some cloth

User: Swami Gaurangapada Date: 2007-06-16 15:37:07

 

Nityananda! Gauranga! Hare Krishna! Jaya Guru Parampara! Pranams  and Blessings !  As far as I aware, the photos of Acharyas to worship on the altar should be full i.e. head to their lotus feet not just the face etc. Also I personally prefer the actual photographs of the Acharyas whenever available, then paintings, especially for worship. Like for example, in some of the paintings of Seventh Goswami Shrila Sacchidananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura done by sincere devotees as a nice service, the facial form and expressions differ a lot from the original. Therefore I personally prefer the direct and original photograph of Seventh Goswami Shrila Sacchidananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura where his divine lotus feet and clearly seen. In most cases when the original photos of the Acharyas are available, the paintings somehow do not evoke in me the same divine bliss of their holy darshana like the original photos do. But maybe this is subjective only for me.

 

There are no hard and fast rules for other general photos in frames which we hang on walls or place somewhere etc. I am not aware of this rule that they should be half covered by cloth. I have seen it only in one Mamagachi Gaudiya Math for the Deity of Shrila Vrindavana Dasa Thakura that they cover him fully by cloth and only his lotus face is seen. But logically if they are half or more covered half by cloth on the altar, how can others have full darshana of their lotus feet?  And without the darshana (vision) of their lotus feet, how will our lives becomes successful? vaishnavera pada dhuli, sei mora snaana keli...So even if it may be a traditional rule, for the sake of benefit of others souls we can give the darshana of their lotus feet and their full form.

 

Daaso'smi, Swami Gaurangapada.