And yet, Lal, when devas visited the Buddha illuminating the place all around (that is to say, in their deva bodies) they bowed, circled the Buddha keeping Him to the right, etc – all distinctive of their retaining a ‘physical presence’ of one sort or another. Conversations took place, not exchanges of thoughts via telepathy, as would be the case if they were present with only their manomayakaya. That is, IF verbal conversations took place.
In other passages in the suttas, devas could assume other forms when contacting humans. And for humans to be even aware of their presence, they (the devas) must have taken on not only a human appearance, but also the type of body, the ‘density’, had to be that which humans are made of. Else, they (the devas) would remain invisible. In some passages, the human in fact asks: ‘Are you (in truth) human or divine? (a deva) ‘
So why cannot it work the other way around as well? When the Buddha or an Arahant visits a deva world, the same courtesies and formalities take place. Is that consistent with the participants in the conversation being in only their manomayakaya body? For if the latter were the case, why bother to go there at all? The ‘contact’ can be made telepathically across space to that deva world. Or can it?
This is why I thought that when visiting a particular realm, the visitor temporarily puts on a body made of the fabric that that realm is made of.
Thank you