SB 3.16.8 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

नाहं तथाद्मि यजमानहविर्विताने श्‍च्योतद्‍घृतप्लुतमदन् हुतभुङ्‍मुखेन । यद्ब्राह्मणस्य मुखतश्चरतोऽनुघासं तुष्टस्य मय्यवहितैर्निजकर्मपाकै: ॥ ८ ॥

Verse text

nāhaṁ tathādmi yajamāna-havir vitāne ścyotad-ghṛta-plutam adan huta-bhuṅ-mukhena yad brāhmaṇasya mukhataś carato ’nughāsaṁ tuṣṭasya mayy avahitair nija-karma-pākaiḥ

Synonyms

na — not ; aham — I ; tathā — on the other hand ; admi — I eat ; yajamāna — by the sacrificer ; haviḥ — the oblations ; vitāne — in the sacrificial fire ; ścyotat — pouring ; ghṛta — ghee ; plutam — mixed ; adan — eating ; huta — bhuk — the sacrificial fire ; mukhena — by the mouth ; yat — as ; brāhmaṇasya — of the brāhmaṇa ; mukhataḥ — from the mouth ; carataḥ — acting ; anughāsam — morsels ; tuṣṭasya — satisfied ; mayi — to Me ; avahitaiḥ — offered ; nija — own ; karma — activities ; pākaiḥ — by the results .

Translation

I do not enjoy the oblations offered by the sacrificers in the sacrificial fire, which is one of My own mouths, with the same relish as I do the delicacies overflowing with ghee which are offered to the mouths of the brāhmaṇas who have dedicated to Me the results of their activities and who are ever satisfied with My prasāda.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

I do not eat the offerings of the sacrificer accepted through my mouth in the form of fire as much as I eat the morsels filled with ghee enjoyed by the mouth of the brāhmaṇa who is satisfied by the results of his actions offered to me. Thus I serve the brāhmaṇas. Those who serve the bṛahmaṇas by my order are my servants, because I eat through the mouth of the brāhmaṇas. Though I eat using fire as my mouth the offerings of rice made by the sacrificer, I do not eat to the same extent that I eat from the mouth of the brāhmaṇa who eats morsels filled with ghee and is satisfied with the results of his actions offered to me. In verse 17 it will said viprāṇāṁ devadevānāṁ bhagavān ātmadaivatam: the Lord is the object of worship for the brāhmaṇas. Thus if a brāhamaṇa is devoid of bhakti, he should not be respected. śva-pākam iva nekṣeta loke vipram avaiṣṇavam If a person born in a brāhmaṇa family is not a devotee, one should not see his face, exactly as one should not look upon the face of a dog-eater. Padma Purāṇa Thus contradiction is avoided. Avaiṣṇava in this context means one who hates Vaiṣṇavas. There are also brāhmaṇas such as Viśiṣṭa who have dharma mixed with a little bhakti. Those who are brāhmaṇas by birth such as Nārada, are called vaiṣṇavas because of predominance of bhakti.

Purport

The devotee of the Lord, or the Vaiṣṇava, does not take anything without offering it to the Lord. Since a Vaiṣṇava dedicates all the results of his activities to the Lord, he does not taste anything eatable which is not first offered to Him. The Lord also relishes giving to the Vaiṣṇava’s mouth all eatables offered to Him. It is clear from this verse that the Lord eats through the sacrificial fire and the brāhmaṇa’s mouth. So many articles — grains, ghee, etc. — are offered in sacrifice for the satisfaction of the Lord. The Lord accepts sacrificial offerings from the brāhmaṇas and devotees, and elsewhere it is stated that whatever is given for the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas to eat is also accepted by the Lord. But here it is said that He accepts offerings to the mouths of brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas with even greater relish. The best example of this is found in the life of Advaita Prabhu in his dealings with Haridāsa Ṭhākura. Even though Haridāsa was born of a Muhammadan family, Advaita Prabhu offered him the first dish of prasāda after the performance of a sacred fire ceremony. Haridāsa Ṭhākura informed him that he was born of a Muhammadan family and asked why Advaita Prabhu was offering the first dish to a Muhammadan instead of an elevated brāhmaṇa. Out of his humbleness, Haridāsa condemned himself a Muhammadan, but Advaita Prabhu, being an experienced devotee, accepted him as a real brāhmaṇa. Advaita Prabhu asserted that by offering the first dish to Haridāsa Ṭhākura, he was getting the result of feeding one hundred thousand brāhmaṇas. The conclusion is that if one can feed a brāhmaṇa or Vaiṣṇava, it is better than performing hundreds of thousands of sacrifices. In this age, therefore, it is recommended that harer nāma — chanting the holy name of God — and pleasing the Vaiṣṇava are the only means to elevate oneself to spiritual life.