In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam we find this beautiful verse:

vasanti yatra puruṣāḥ sarve vaikuṇṭha-mūrtayaḥ / ye ’nimitta-nimittena dharmeṇārādhayan harim (SB 3.15.14)

“In the Vaikuṇṭha planets, all the residents are similar in form to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They engage in devotional service to the Lord without any desires for sense gratification.”

As followers of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and as aspiring rāgānugā-bhaktas, our destination is not Vaikuṇṭha but the crown jewel of all abodes—Śrī Goloka Vṛndāvana. Yet, in describing Vaikuṇṭha, the Bhāgavatam opens a window into a deep truth: the perfected souls all have eternal spiritual forms suitable for service.

Jīva Gosvāmī’s Insight

In the tenth section of the Prīti-sandarbha, Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī comments on this verse:

“In the spiritual world, the Supreme Lord has unlimited spiritual forms, all expansions of Himself illuminating that realm. With each of those forms, the Lord enjoys pastimes with a single liberated soul. Thus, in Vaikuṇṭha there are unlimited forms, shining like the Lord, which are the perfected spiritual bodies of liberated souls.”

These spiritual bodies are eternal, conscious, and blissful. They exist even before the soul enters them, and they continue to exist afterward. Until the soul becomes qualified by devotion and grace, that form remains, as my Param Gurudeva says, in an inactive state.

The Meaning of “Inactive”

Here lies the subtle point. In this world, “inactive” means lifeless, swallowed by time. But in the spiritual world there is no such deathly stillness—everything there is conscious, ever-fresh, and eternally present. So what does “inactive” mean?

It means that the eternal spiritual body exists, but the individual soul has not yet entered and engaged in it. The form is not created by our sādhana; it is already there, waiting. Until Guru and Bhagavān bestow mercy, that body is “inactive” only in relation to me.

It is hard for us to conceive of timelessness but it means that when we reach Goloka, it is like we have always been there.

Imagine a jewel hidden in a chest. The jewel is not dull or lifeless—it shines brilliantly even when unseen. But until the chest is opened, I cannot behold or use it. When, by Guru’s grace, the chest is unlocked, I discover the radiant jewel that was always there, waiting for me.

The Role of Gurudeva

Śrī Gurudeva writes:

“The siddha-deha of the sādhaka is a beautiful treasure of the eternal divine abode and it is permanent. All the siddha-dehas are conscious, blissful, and pure. Our sādhana does not create the siddha-deha. It is already there. When we accomplish success in bhakti and become worthy of serving Śrī Bhagavān in reality, we are blessed with the opportunity to serve in our siddha-deha. Hence, it is imperative that we follow the siddha-praṇālī received in the Guru-paramparā and meditate on that form which Gurudeva has revealed.”

Thus, what was “inactive” for me becomes alive and active as soon as I begin to recognize and meditate upon it, and ultimately when I am admitted into Goloka’s eternal līlā.

From Time to Eternity

Here, time is the devourer of all things—kāla destroys worlds, bodies, and identities. There, time is the eternal present, the fresh pulse of rasa. We leave behind this temporary current of time and step into the timeless stream of eternal service.

The siddha-deha is already there, shining, awaiting us. By Guru’s mercy, we come to recognize and manifest the form that has always been ours, and we learn to say with deep conviction:

“I am this divine body, meant only for the service of Śrī Rādhā-Śyāma.”