hindu-devotionWe're still mapping where this idea was first discussed. Key passages and related ideas below.
Sacred Beholding (Darśana)
To see the divine and be seen in return — a sacred exchange of sight that conveys grace.
Darśana means 'seeing' — and in devotional life it is a charged, reciprocal seeing: the worshipper beholds the deity in the image, or a revered saint, and is beheld in return, and the very exchange of sight is held to convey blessing. To 'take darśana' of a deity or a holy person is itself the goal of much temple-going and pilgrimage. (Confusingly, the same Sanskrit word, in a different register, names a philosophical 'view' or school — as in the six darśanas.) Here the devotional sense is meant.
Key passages(10)
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Vivekacūḍāmaṇi 335↗explains
Vivekacūḍāmaṇi · Śaṅkara (traditionally ascribed; authorship doubted)
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Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 3,1.4↗explains
Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad · Vedic Revelation (śruti)
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