(The Five Stages of God-Realization)
A seeker walking on the path of spiritual practice experiences many kinds of inner revelations.
Among them, one of the rarest and most sacred is the Darshan—the vision of God.
Divine vision is not of one kind; it manifests in five distinct forms depending on the seeker’s spiritual state and inner purity.
1. Dream Vision — The Touch of Divinity in Sleep
Sometimes, God appears in a dream and grants His vision.
Though it may sound simple, it is exceedingly rare.
Many lifelong seekers have confessed that even after years of spiritual practice, they never once had a divine dream.
This type of vision offers the first glimpse into the subtle realm, where the soul’s dialogue with the Divine begins.
2. Veiled Vision — The Descent of Compassion in Disguise
At times, God takes another form to help His devotee,
yet conceals His true identity — that is, He remains veiled.
In that moment, the devotee does not realize who it was,
but soon it becomes clear that it was none other than the Lord Himself.
God can assume any form to protect His devotee.
One of my teachers, a revered preacher of Ramcharitmanas,
was once invited to deliver a discourse in a village.
He had to cross the Ganga River, but due to a terrible storm and rain, he had to return.
Two days later, the villagers arrived saying,
“Your discourse was wonderful; everyone was deeply moved.”
The teacher remained silent for a while and then said to me,
“There is no doubt that Lord Rama Himself came and spoke in my place.”
The circumstances left no other explanation possible.
That was Veiled Vision—when God hides His form yet fulfills the devotee’s work.
3. Meditative Vision — Communion Within
The third kind of vision occurs through meditation.
When a devotee contemplates deeply upon the chosen deity,
that form becomes alive before the inner eye and even engages in conversation.
Another of my teachers, Brahmachariji, used to experience such visions daily.
He would speak to Lord Krishna on behalf of suffering devotees.
If the Lord granted permission, he would give a single Tulsi leaf to that devotee—
and the person would be healed.
If permission was not granted, no medicine would work.
This shows that Meditative Vision is not mere imagination,
but a living communion between the soul and God.
4. Direct or Ocular Vision — When the Lord Appears Before You
When God appears to the devotee in the very form in which he worships Him,
it is called Direct Vision (Chakshush Darshan).
This occurs with open eyes,
and the flood of divine emotion that follows is beyond description.
Brahmachariji too received such a vision—
he could see the Lord standing vividly before him.
5. Vision Through Divine Sight — The Experience of the Cosmic Form
This vision is not through physical eyes but through Divine Sight.
As described in the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna revealed His Vishvarupa (Universal Form) to Arjuna,
but first granted him divine vision,
for ordinary eyes cannot behold such a form.
Some devotees too are blessed with this divine sight—
they directly witness the pastimes of Krishna’s Vrindavan or Rama’s Ayodhya.
This vision transcends time and space;
it carries the soul into those divine realms where God eternally abides.
For Both the Formed and the Formless Paths
These experiences usually occur to those devoted to the saguna (with form) aspect of God,
yet at times even seekers of the nirguna (formless) Reality are overwhelmed by such visions.
A shining example is Sri Shyamacharan Lahiri (Lahiri Mahasaya),
a yogi of meditation who still had visions of the personal forms of God.
Paramhansa Yogananda, in his Autobiography of a Yogi, wrote that
once, while staying in a hotel in America,
he looked out of the window toward the sky
and there beheld the living vision of Lord Krishna Himself.
Conclusion — The Essence of Vision
Each form of divine vision has its own grandeur.
Some see God in dreams, some behold Him in meditation,
some with open eyes, and some through divine sight.
But the underlying truth is one —
where there is true faith, there God is manifest.
Swami Brahm Bodhi 
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