Svaroop - Idol

We Hindus worship the divine in the form of Yantra, Mantra, Svaroops and Chitra.  Infinite power of the divine is requested to inhibit a finite space and help guide the spiritual progress of the aspirant.  These forms can be made from the following materials :–  
    stone – precious stones, sacred stones, normal stones, crystals and other minerals
    metal – gold, silver, bronze, brass and other alloys
    ivory – perfect for crisp clear features
    wood – most hard woods are excellent for the purpose worship
    clay – usually clay images are made for festivals and temporary pujas 
    paper – made from different materials (flowers, wood pulp, fabric etc) is perfect for drawing yantras, mantras and divine figures 

Yantras are sacred designs.  They range from the simple 'bindu' (dot) to complex symmetrical designs.

Mantras are sacred words, spoken as 'bij mantras' or verses in ancient languages.

Svaroops are 'forms'.  These can be in human, animal or plant form.

Chitra are sacred images drawn on paper, heaps of grain or in sand.

In Hinduism, we are fortunate enough to have several svaroops of GOD for us to choose from.  There is a svaroop to match each and every bhav – emotions / feelings we can have towards GOD.  Here is a series of articles to help explain how to choose appropriate svaroops for seva and how we should do seva.

Svaroop of Vishnu, popular known as Tirupati Balaji (South Indian, stone)