Conquering The Tongue With Nice Prasādam
In the practice of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the tongue is considered the most critical sense to control, as it directs the other senses towards material engagement. Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches that one cannot suppress the tongue's desire for enjoyment through artificial austerity; instead, one must engage it in tasting kṛṣṇa-prasādam—foodstuff that has been sanctified by being offered to the Lord. By honoring nice prasādam, a devotee not only conquers the urges of the tongue but also purifies their existence and advances on the path of spiritual realization.
Controlling the Voracious Senses
Śrīla Prabhupāda frequently cites the teachings of the previous ācāryas to illustrate that spiritual life begins with the control of the tongue. He explains that the tongue is a formidable enemy, but Kṛṣṇa has kindly provided the solution through the provision of spiritual food, which allows the living entity to satisfy the desire for taste without becoming entangled in sense gratification.
- Bhaktivinoda Thakura said, "Out of all the senses, the tongue is very difficult to control, formidable enemy." So in order to control the tongue, He has given nice prasadam.
- Of all the senses the tongue is the most voracious and difficult to control. It is very difficult to conquer the tongue in this world; therefore Sri Krsna has given us this nice prasadam, spiritual food, to conquer the tongue.
- Don't spoil it by sense gratification. You can eat; there are so many nice thing, krsna-prasadam. Why should you eat meat? Why should you eat, drink and all nonsense? Be little frugal.
The Secret Weapon for Preaching
The distribution of palatable prasādam is a cornerstone of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness's preaching mission. Śrīla Prabhupāda instructs that offering the public nice foodstuff is the most effective way to attract them to the temple, where they can subsequently engage in other devotional activities like chanting and hearing philosophy.
- Give them nice prasadam by which they are attracted. It doesn't matter khicuri, puri, kacuri, ladu. That I want.
- To attract them to really nice prasadam, palatable food, we shall spend. And we shall earn also by literature, produce, as they're earning. Where is the difficulty.
- Have a European preaching center and try to enlist all the hippies and tourists who come to Vrndavana. Give them nice prasadam, engage them in chanting, cleaning the temple, reading our books, and give them all facilities for becoming devotees.
- Many people have mentioned the nice prasadam distribution program in our New York Temple. I have heard also that on Sundays there are 500 people attending. So there is tremendous scope for preaching.
Standards of Deity Worship
The preparation of prasādam is an integral part of Deity worship, requiring high standards of cleanliness and devotion. Śrīla Prabhupāda insists that the Deities must be served by qualified brāhmaṇas who prepare opulent offerings, ensuring that the Lord is treated with the utmost respect and love.
- All servant, we are. Somebody is engaged in dressing the Deity. Somebody is engaged in preparing nice foodstuff for Deity. Somebody is making flower garlands. Somebody is going to distribute literature to make people understand the glories of Krsna.
- You should make sure that there is nice fresh, clean dress every morning, nice bathing ceremony every morning, nice offerings of prasadam. You should see that the Deity is tended for and cooked for only by the duly second initiated brahmanas.
- Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "Of course, every day I eat varieties of prasadam, but I have never tasted such nice prasadam as that which Raghunatha is eating".
True Spiritual Enjoyment
Devotees of Kṛṣṇa are not dry renunciants; rather, they enjoy life perfectly by accepting the remnants of the Lord. Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that those who desire to please Kṛṣṇa are automatically satisfied with nice prasādam, making their enjoyment spiritual rather than material.
- Those who are desiring for Krsna, they are not behind any enjoyment. They are rather in perfect enjoyment. These Krsna conscious students, they are desiring for Krsna nice prasadam, so they are not bereft. Practically they are enjoying but it is Krsnized.
- We take prasadam. The nice prasadam, the foodstuff that is prepared, is not taken directly - we take it through Krsna.
- This is a rascaldom civilization. What is difficulty there? You come, sit down, chant Hare Krsna, take nice prasadam, hear philosophy, see nice pictures, decorated Deity. What is the difficulty there.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the culture of nice prasādam is a comprehensive spiritual process designed to purify the living entity. Whether used to curb the demands of the senses, attract the conditioned souls to the mercy of Lord Caitanya, or satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead through loving offerings, prasādam is the bridge between material existence and spiritual life. As Śrīla Prabhupāda indicates, by simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and honoring nice prasādam, one can overcome the complexities of material life and happily return to Godhead.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Nice Prasadam. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.