Prasadam: Not Just Food

(written on November 16, 2019)

The general definition for prasadam is the mercy of the Lord as explained in BG 18.73. However, prasadam can come in any form or shape and there are a few nuances to the definition:

• Food offered to Krishna, or the remnants of His food: this is the common version of prasadam which we know; the remnants of Krishna’s food are considered mercy. This is referenced from BG 9.26, “If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water, I will accept it.”

• Any other paraphernalia first offered to Krishna: this means smelling the flowers offered to the Lord, etc. These are all equivalent to prasadam. This was referenced fro CC Antya Lila, “Everyone drank the water that had touched the lotus feet of Haridāsa Ṭhākura, and then they smeared remnants of Lord Jagannātha’s sandalwood pulp over Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s body.”

• Benedictions/blessing of Krishna: any blessing given by Krishna is his mercy, hence it is prasadam. This was referenced from SB 7.9.27, “Unlike an ordinary living entity, my Lord, You do not discriminate between friends and enemies, the favorable and the unfavorable, because for You there is no conception of higher and lower. Nonetheless, You offer Your benedictions according to the level of one’s service, exactly as a desire tree delivers fruits according to one’s desires and makes no distinction between the lower and the higher.”

• Rules imposed by Krishna: any rules which Krishna has presented to us are mercy because anything that He says is for our good, and hence Krishna is being merciful by guiding us in the correct way. An example of this is from SB 6.11.23, in which it is said, “Our Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, forbids His devotees to endeavor uselessly for religion, economic development and sense gratification. O Indra, one can thus infer how kind the Lord is. Such mercy is obtainable only by unalloyed devotees, not by persons who aspire for material gains.”

Note: There are many other definitions of prasadam but these are the main categories of the definition of prasadam