When people want to do svaroop seva, one of the first question they ask is, what svaroop should we buy ? Next series of questions are often related to the svaroop, what should it be made from, should it be a new or old ? How should we do the seva ?
First and foremost, I sincerely believe the svaroop we worship must reflect our own bhava. If the bhav you have is mirrored by the svaroop you worship, you can progress rapidly in your spiritual sadhana. If there is a mismatch, it can slow you down or even confuse you. For our own spiritual progress, it is important to worship God in a form that matches our spiritual aspirations. There is a svaroop to match each and every bhav – emotions / feelings we can have towards GOD. At the bottom of this article, there are a number of links to help identify your principle bhav and how to do seva according to that bhav. There are articles to explain how to do seva etc.
Choosing a svaroop is like choosing your life partner. Its YOU who has to live with that person 24x7 so u had better like the person. Everyone else may have an opinion as to what makes an ideal wife, but at the end of the day it has to be you who decides. The svaroop you worship should be of your choice and reflect your ideals. Afterall, we worship ideals in our idols.
In Hinduism, we are fortunate enough to have several svaroops of GOD for us to choose from. For worship at home, the svaroop should be clear to see, pleasing to the eye, strong enough to bear daily rigours of worship (bathing, clothing etc) and big / small enough to fit in our seva.
Popular svaroops to worship :-
Vishnu - There are a number of Vishnu svaroops -
Four armed svaroop, supine form
reclining on Ananta and meditating form.
Avatars of Vishnu - Nrusimha, Rama, Krushna (with and without flute),
baby forms
of Rama and Krushna.
Shiva - Most popular anthramorphic form is
Shiva Linga (divine phallus). Human forms
include Nataraja, Dakshina Murti,
Ardhanarishvar and meditating
Shiva.
Devi - Female form of the goddess is worshiped in a wide variety of forms, from
multi armed warrior Shakti
to demure dainty damsels. Goddess are also worshiped in anthramorphic form
as natural rock and
yantras.
Skandha - Forms of Kartik Swami worshipped at home and in the temple are usually
standing.
Ganesh - Large bodied Ganesh is often worshiped in
sitting and standing pose. There
are a number of anthramorphic rocks
forms also worshiped as Ganesh.
Hanuman - The brave hero of Ramayan is often worshiped as an
ape brandishing a mace and
carrying a mountain in his left hand. Sometimes he is worshiped as a
devotee of Rama. As with Shiva, Devi and Ganesh, there are a number of
anthramorphic forms of Hanuman in popular worship.
Nagdaman (Krushna) in bronze (South Indian style)
Bhav Sambandh with svaroop you wish to worship
Different material svaroops are made from
Svaroops in Pushti Marg and their bhav
Daily seva as per Pushti Marg
Astayam seva (8 times a day) with different bhavas - Tanuja & Mansi
Chitra bhed in Pushti Marg
Index of seva articles in Pushti Marg
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