262 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta (Madhya-lila, Ch. 3

outside and shout very loudly to see if there is anyone without food. In this
way he invites people to take prasdda. If someone comes, the householder
offers him prasada, and if there is not much left, he should offer his own por-
tion to the guest. If no one responds to his call, the householder can accept
his own lunch. Thus the householder’s life is also a kind of austerity. Because
of this, the householder’s life is called the grhastha-asrama. Although a person
may live with his wife and children happily in Krsna consciousness, he also
observes the regulative principles followed in any temple. If there is no Krsna
consciousness, the householder’s abode is called a grhamedhi’s house.
Householders in Krsna consciousness are actually grhasthas—that is, those
living in the agrama with their families and children. $ri Advaita Prabhu was an
ideal grhastha, and His house was the ideal grhastha-asrama.

TEXT 42

fom Stfee cont aigieer Ha +h |
SCBA CIT ASIA vg-orycattfs 0 Be A

tina thafii bhoga badaila sama kari’
krsnera bhoga badaila dhatu-patropari

SYNONYMS

tina thafi—in three places; bhoga—cooked foodstuffs; badaila—
distributed; sama—equal; kari’—making; krsnera bhoga—the foodstuff
offered to Krsna; badaila—was arranged; dhdtu-patra upari—on a metal
plate.

TRANSLATION

All the prepared foods were divided into three equal parts. One part
was arranged on a metal plate for offering to Lord Krsna.

PURPORT

The word badaila, meaning “increased,” is very significant in this verse. It is
a sophisticated word used by the grhasthas in Bengal. Whenever food is pre-
pared and we take away a portion, the food is actually decreased. But here it
is the system to say badaila, or “increased.” If food is prepared for Krsna and
offered to Him and the Vaisnavas, the stock is increased, never decreased.
