But in order to develop this kind of humility and forbearance, we must learn to see the Lord’s hand in everything. And therefore the Vedas tell us to remember that the glance of the Lord is always upon us. Om tad Visnoh paramam padam sada pasyanti surayah: we are asked to see the holy feet of Narayan as we see the sun in the sky. Why the sun? The sun is described as pradarsaka: the seer, the witness. Apparently we see the sun, but really the sun helps us to see. The holy feet of Visnu means the lowest part of Visnu — deha-dehi-vibhago ’yam nesvare vidyate kvachit. His lower part to us is the beginning of realisation for us. The beginning of realisation is to think that God is always seeing us. As the sun helps us to see, Visnu’s holy feet are like the sun. So, we should try to always see everything by the rays of the holy feet of Visnu.
From another point of view, His holy feet are like a big eye spread over the sky. He sees everything. Whatever we do, our guardian’s vigilant eye is over our head like the sun. Before we enter into any action we must remember this Vedic mantra. The Rg-veda is the first Veda, and this is the most important mantra of the Rg-veda. The brahmans of the Vedic school are told that whenever they do any service pertaining to religion or varnasram, they must first remember this Rg-veda mantra: «Visnu’s feet are over you, and they are looking at you like a guardian’s vigilant eye. Always remembering this, do your duty.»
If you always remember that He is seeing everything you do, you can’t do anything wrong. You won’t be able to venture to do anything offensive to the Lord as long as you remember that through everything, the searching eye, the all-knowing, omniscient eye, of the Lord is always watching over you. This remembrance cannot but purify your heart and understanding and the whole of your mental system, and help you to approach Divinity in the right way. It is not that you can do anything and everything without His knowing; not that you are the master wire-puller of both your own life and of the world; not that you are going to exert your mastery, your influence over the environment in a selfish attempt. Always remember that one big eye is spread over your head seeing everything like the searching light of a strong x-ray. What even you do not know about yourself, He knows. What is underground in the innermost subconscious region of your heart, He can also see. If you remember this as you move and live, you cannot but be purified. Just as cancer can be removed from the body by a laser ray, the whole disease of material existence will vanish from our hearts by this purifying influence of the divine rays of light from the holy feet of Visnu.