Text 13]
The Lord in the Heart
83
ekaikaśaḥ —one to one, or one after another;  aṅgāni —limbs;  dhiyā —by attention;  anubhāvayet —meditate upon;  pāda-ādi —legs, etc.;  yāvat —until;  hasitam —smiling;  gadā-bhṛtaḥ —the Personality of Godhead;  jitaṁ jitam —gradually controlling the mind;  sthānam —place;  apohya —leaving;  dhārayet —meditate upon;  paraṁ param —higher and higher;  śuddhyati —purified;  dhīḥ —intelligence;  yathā yathā —as much as.
TRANSLATION
The process of meditation should begin from the lotus feet of the Lord and progress to His smiling face. The meditation should be concentrated upon the lotus feet, then the calves, then the thighs, and in this way higher and higher. The more the mind becomes fixed upon the different parts of the limbs, one after another, the more the intelligence becomes purified.
PURPORT
The process of meditation recommended in the  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  is not to fix one's attention on something impersonal or void. The meditation should concentrate on the Person of the Supreme Godhead, either in His  virāṭa rūpa , the gigantic universal form, or in His  sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha , as described in the scriptures. There are authorized descriptions of  Viṣṇu  forms, and there are authorized representations of Deities in the temples. Thus one can practice meditating upon the Deity, concentrating his mind on the lotus feet of the Lord and gradually rising higher and higher, up to His smiling face.
According to the  Bhāgavata  school, the Lord's  rāsa  dancing is the smiling face of the Lord. Since it is recommended in this verse that one should gradually progress from the lotus feet up to the smiling face, we shall not jump at once to understand the Lord's pastimes in the  rāsa  dance. It is better to practice to concentrate our attention by offering flowers and  tulasī  to the lotus feet of the Lord. In this way, we gradually become purified by the  arcanā  process. We dress the Lord, bathe Him, etc., and all these transcendental activities help us purify our existence. When we reach the higher standard of purification, if we see the smiling face of the Lord or hear the  rāsa  dance pastimes of the Lord, then we can relish His activities. In the  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam , therefore, the  rāsa  dance pastimes are delineated in the Tenth Canto (Chapters 29-34).