Cooking for Krishna
Dec 14th, 2007
Q. How to prepare and offer food to Krishna ?
A. Preparing and offering food to the Lord shows Him our devotion and gratitude. Krishna doesn’t need to eat, of course, but He accepts the love with which we offer food to Him.
As far as possible, use fresh, natural ingredients for cooking. Krishna accepts only vegetarian food, and packaged, store-bought products may contain meat, fish, or eggs. So read labels carefully.
Cleanliness is important in cooking for Krishna . Wash your hands before you begin. And don’t taste the food while cooking; the meal is for Krishna ‘s pleasure, so He should taste it first. It’s best to have a new set of dinnerware used only for Krishna ‘s offerings and not used by anyone else.
Place the plate in front of Krishna and ask Him to accept the offering. Leave the plate there for a few minutes, just as you would if someone else was eating. Remove the plate, transfer the food to a serving plate, and wash Krishna ‘s dinnerware. The food is now prasadam, or “mercy†from Krishna .
While you eat, consider the spiritual value of the food; because Krishna has accepted it, it is spiritually identical to Him. Therefore by eating prasadam you become purified.
Everything you offer Krishna becomes spiritualized prasadam—flowers, incense, water, food. All prasadam should be respected and shared with others. Spread the mercy around.