Text 32
vastropavītābharaṇa-
patra-srag-gandha-lepanaiḥ
alaṅkurvīta sa-prema
mad-bhakto māṁ yathocitam
vastra — with clothing; upavīta — a brāhmaṇa thread; ābharaṇa — ornaments; patra — decorations drawn on various parts of the body with tilaka; srak — garlands; gandha-lepanaiḥ — and smearing of fragrant oils; alaṅkurvīta — he should decorate; sa-prema — with love; mat-bhaktaḥ — My devotee; mām — Me; yathā ucitam — as is enjoined.
My devotee should then lovingly decorate Me with clothing, a brāhmaṇa thread, various ornaments, marks of tilaka and garlands, and he should anoint My body with fragrant oils, all in the prescribed manner.
Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī quotes Lord Śrī Viṣṇu’s instructions to Ambarīṣa Mahārāja in the Viṣṇu-dharma Upapurāṇa as follows: “Absorbing your mind completely in the Deity, you should give up all other shelter and consider the Deity your intimate well-wisher. You should mentally worship Him and meditate upon Him while you walk, while you stand, while you sleep and eat. You should see the Deity in front of you, behind, above, below and on both sides. In this way you should constantly remember My Deity form.” In the Gautamīya-tantra one is enjoined to give the Deity of the Lord a brāhmaṇa thread, if possible one made of gold. In the Nṛsiṁha Purāṇa it is stated, “If one offers to Lord Govinda a yellow sacred thread containing three strands of silk, he will become an expert in Vedānta.”