Live Caitanya Caritamrta · CC Madhya 3.99
Never Regard Prasādam as Ordinary Food
“Nityānanda Prabhu replied, “These are the remnants of food left by Lord Kṛṣṇa. If You take them to be ordinary remnants, You have committed an offense.””
What the purport teaches
- Nityānanda Prabhu identifies the food as remnants left by Lord Kṛṣṇa. To consider these remnants ordinary is an offense.
- Prasādam is transcendental and is not subject to ordinary distinctions of touchable and untouchable. The purport compares its freedom from contamination to that of Lord Viṣṇu’s body.
- The Bṛhad-viṣṇu Purāṇa gives severe warnings against treating mahā-prasādam as ordinary rice and dhal. Even being a brāhmaṇa does not protect one from the consequences of this offense.
Try this today
When receiving prasādam today, consciously acknowledge it as Lord Kṛṣṇa’s remnants.
Ask yourself
Do I sometimes judge prasādam as though it were merely ordinary food?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport; the practice and question are plain words for trying the verse today.