tvayopayukta-srag-gandha-
vÄso 'laá¹…kÄra-carcitÄḥ
ucchiṣṭa-bhojino dÄsÄs
tava mÄyÄá¹ jayema hi

 tvayÄ - by You; upayukta - used; srak - flower garlands; gandha - scented substances like sandalwood pulp; vÄsaḥ - garments; alaá¹…kÄra - ornaments; carcitÄḥ - being decorated with; ucchiṣṭa - remnants of food; bhojinaḥ - eating; dÄsÄḥ - servants; tava - Your; mÄyÄm - illusory energy; jayema - can conquer over; hi - certainly.


Text

“ ‘My dear Lord, the garlands, scented substances, garments, ornaments and other such things that have been offered to You may later be used by Your servants. By partaking of these things and eating the remnants of food You have left, we will be able to conquer the illusory energy.’ â€

Purport

This is a quotation from ÅšrÄ«mad-BhÄgavatam (11.6.46). In the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahÄ-mantra, the dancing in ecstasy and the eating of the remnants of food offered to the Lord are very, very important. One may be illiterate or incapable of understanding the philosophy, but if he partakes of these three items, he will certainly be liberated without delay.

This verse was spoken by Uddhava to Lord Kṛṣṇa. This was during the time when the Uddhava-gÄ«tÄ was spoken. At that time there was some disturbance in DvÄrakÄ, and Lord Kṛṣṇa decided to leave the material world and enter the spiritual world. Uddhava could understand the situation, and he talked with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The verse quoted above is an excerpt from their conversation. ÅšrÄ« Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes in this material world are called prakaá¹­a-lÄ«lÄ (manifested pastimes), and His pastimes in the spiritual world are called aprakaá¹­a-lÄ«lÄ (unmanifested pastimes). By “unmanifested†we mean that they are not present before our eyes. It is not that Lord Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes are nonexistent. They are going on exactly as the sun is shining perpetually, but when the sun is present before our eyes, we call it daytime (manifest), and when it is not present, we call it night (unmanifest). Those who are above the jurisdiction of night are always in the spiritual world, where the Lord’s pastimes are constantly manifest to them. As the Brahma-saá¹hitÄ (5.37-38) confirms:

Änanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhÄvitÄbhis
 tÄbhir ya eva nija-rÅ«patayÄ kalÄbhiḥ
goloka eva nivasaty akhilÄtma-bhÅ«to
 govindam Ädi-puruá¹£aá¹ tam ahaá¹ bhajÄmi
premÄñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena
 santaḥ sadaiva há¹›dayeá¹£u vilokayanti
yaá¹ Å›yÄmasundaram acintya-guṇa-svarÅ«paá¹
 govindam Ädi-puruá¹£aá¹ tam ahaá¹ bhajÄmi

“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who resides in His own realm, Goloka, with RÄdhÄ, who resembles His own spiritual figure and who embodies the ecstatic potency [hlÄdinÄ«]. Their companions are Her confidantes, who embody extensions of Her bodily form and who are imbued and permeated with ever-blissful spiritual rasa. I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is ÅšyÄmasundara, Kṛṣṇa Himself, with inconceivable innumerable attributes, whom the pure devotees see in their heart of hearts with the eye of devotion tinged with the salve of love.â€