Devanagari
बहिर्जलाशयं गत्वा तत्रोपस्पृश्य वाग्यत: ।
विभज्य पावितं शेषं भुञ्जीताशेषमाहृतम् ॥ १९ ॥
Verse text
bahir jalāśayaṁ gatvā
tatropaspṛśya vāg-yataḥ
vibhajya pāvitaṁ śeṣaṁ
bhuṣjītāśeṣam āhṛtam
Synonyms
bahiḥ
—
outside of urban areas, in a secluded place
;
jala
—
of water
;
āśayam
—
to a reservoir
;
gatvā
—
going
;
tatra
—
there
;
upaspṛśya
—
being purified by contact with water
;
vāk
—
yataḥ — without speaking
;
vibhajya
—
duly distributing
;
pāvitam
—
purified
;
śeṣam
—
remnants
;
bhuṣjīta
—
one should eat
;
aśeṣam
—
completely
;
āhṛtam
—
gathered by begging .
Translation
Taking the food gathered through begging, one should leave the populated areas and go to a reservoir of water in a secluded place. There, having taken a bath and washed one’s hands thoroughly, one should distribute portions of the food to others who may request it. One should do this without speaking. Then, having thoroughly cleansed the remnants, one should eat everything on one’s plate, leaving nothing for future consumption.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Taking the food gathered through begging, he should leave the populated areas and go to a reservoir of water. There, performing ācamana, in silence he should purify the food and distribute portions. He should eat everything he has begged, leaving no remnants.
One should distribute part of the food to Viṣṇu, Brahmā, the sun and living entities. One should not leave remnants to keep for eating later.
Purport
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura explains that a saintly person should not argue or quarrel with materialistic persons who may request or demand part of his foodstuff. The word
vibhajya
indicates that one should give something to such persons to avoid disturbance, and then, offering the remnants to Lord Viṣṇu, one should eat everything on one’s plate, without saving food for the future. The word
bahiḥ
indicates that one should not eat in a public place, and
vāg-yata
indicates that one should eat silently, meditating upon the Lord’s mercy.