There is a great misunderstanding in the secular and religious world and especially within the Abrahamic traditions, (Judaism, Islam and Christianity) on the question of Deity worship. The English word 'idol' is usually used when describing any worship that concentrates on likenesses of demons, gods, goddesses, Visnu or Krsna. The term 'idol' has a very bad connotation in the west and conjures up images of pagans, heathens and other wild uncultured persons ...
During my many travels in India I have visited certain temples where it is claimed that the Deity of Visnu or Krishna was self-manifest. So my question is, whether it is possible that God self-manifests His Deity form or is it always necessary that an acarya or representative of God be instrumental in establishing a Deity?