Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 11 - Chapter 1 - Verse 6

Sanskrit:

श्रीभगवानुवाचन ह्यन्तोऽनन्तपारस्य कर्मकाण्डस्य चोद्धव ।सङ्‌क्षिप्तं वर्णयिष्यामि यथावदनुपूर्वश: ॥ ६ ॥

ITRANS:

śrī-bhagavān uvācana hy anto ’nanta-pārasyakarma-kāṇḍasya coddhavasaṅkṣiptaṁ varṇayiṣyāmiyathāvad anupūrvaśaḥ

Translation:

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: My dear Uddhava, there is no end to the innumerable Vedic prescriptions for executing Deity worship; so I shall explain this topic to you briefly, one step at a time.

Purport:

Here the word karma-kāṇḍa refers to the various Vedic methods of worship, culminating in Deity worship of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Just as the means of sense gratification and material renunciation are innumerable, the transcendental pastimes and qualities the Supreme Personality of Godhead enjoys in His own abode, called Vaikuṇṭha, are also innumerable. The various concepts of piety and methods of purification in the material world ultimately cannot be reconciled amongst themselves without accepting the Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead, since without appreciation of Him there is no definitive understanding of what is actually obligatory for a human being. Even though almost all human beings are engaged in various processes of worship, the Lord will now summarize this topic, describing how one should worship Him in His Deity form.