8 / Offenses to be Avoided
In the supplementary Vedic literature, there is the following list of 32 offenses in the matter of serving the Lord: 1) One should not enter the temple of the Deity in a car or palanquin or with shoes on the feet. 2) One should not fail to observe the various festivals for the pleasure of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, such as  Janmāṣṭamī ,  Ratha-yātrā , etc. 3) One should not avoid bowing down before the Deity. 4) One should not enter the temple to worship the Lord without having washed his hands and feet after eating. 5) One should not enter the temple in a contaminated state. (According to Vedic scripture, if someone dies in the family the whole family becomes contaminated for some time, according to its status. For example, if the family is  brāhmaṇa  their contamination period is 12 days, for the  kṣatriyas  and  vaiśyas  it is 15 days, and for  śūdras  30 days.) 6) One should not bow down on one hand. 7) One should not circumambulate in front of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. (The process of circumambulating the temple is that one should begin circumambulating from the Deity's right-hand side of the temple and come round. Such circumambulation should be performed outside the temple structure at least three times daily.) 8) One should not spread his legs before the Deity. 9) One should not sit before the Deity holding the ankles, elbows or knees with his hands. 10) One should not lie down before the Deity of Kṛṣṇa. 11) One should not accept  prasādam  before the Deity. 12) One should never speak a lie before the Deity. 13) One should not talk very loudly before the Deity. 14) One should not talk with others before the Deity. 15) One should not cry or howl before the Deity. 16) One should not quarrel or fight before the
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