Pradyumna: "Especially for the householder-devotees, the path of Deity worship is strongly recommended. As far as possible, every householder, by the direction of the spiritual master, must install the Deity of Visnu, forms like Radha-Krsna, Laksmi-Narayana or Sita-Rama especially, or any other form of the Lord, like Nrsimha, Varaha, Gaura-Nitai, Matsya, Kurma, salagrama-sila and many other forms of Visnu, like Trivikrama, Kesava, Acyuta, Vasudeva, Narayana, Damodara, etc., as they are recommended in the Vaisnava tantras or puranas, and one's family should worship strictly, following the directions and regulations of arcana-vidhi."

Prabhupada: Now, this is the important point. I understand that some of our householder devotees are ordering for Deities in India. But here is the point. The point is that "they worship strictly, following the direction and regulation of arcana-vidhi." Don't make a play. If you follow strictly the Deity worship method, then you establish; otherwise, don't establish. It will be offense. One who is able to manage… Just like we are showing the example, how to worship Deity in the temple. In the same way, if one can… The idea is, that as here, our devotees are engaged in the worship of the Deity, similarly, a householder, when all the family members are trained up how to worship the Deity, then they can establish. Not that make a farce. Cleanliness, and the rules and regulation, that must be.

Deity worship, it is the duty of all householders. That means automatically all the members become devotee. But it must be done according… There are sixty-four kinds of offenses; in the Nectar of Devotion you'll find.

For chanting Hare Krsna mantra, there are ten kinds of offenses. But Deity worship, there are so many offenses. These are described. "You cannot sit down before the Deity like this, you cannot yawn before the Deity, you cannot talk nonsense before the Deity." So many things are there. Therefore it is said that "strictly following the direction and regulation of arcana-vidhi."

Unless you are fully trained, don't establish Deity to make a farce. Better learn it perfectly in the temple, and when you think that the members of the household are also now as good as the devotees in the temple, then you must establish Deity.

From Srila Prabhupada's lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.3.22 — June 19, 1972, Los Angeles