Vedic Hospitality

(How to welcome your guests)

Sit right
down sir—make yourself at home,

my place is
yours—I never eat alone.

I hope
you’re hungry, with a healthy appetite.

Allow me to
serve, it’ll be all right.

Sukta,
green salads, bitter and dry,

fried
potato, fruits and lentil pie,

thick
yogurt, squash and bananas too!

[Guest]: “Will there
be anything left for you?”

O’ yes, my
friend, there’s plenty more there,

enough for
you with more to spare—

samosas,
pakoras, with kachoris galore…

So my dear
friend—are your ready for more?

Creamy curd
subji, Nariyal sak,

koftas in
sauce—it’s your good luck,

avocado
dip, lettuce, gaja raita!

[Guest]: “O’ my
friend, bring the sweets a little later!”

Goranga
potatoes with dash of fresh ghee,

laden with
devotion—it’s easy to see.

Sit up
straight now and breathe with haste,

for we can
not afford to have you waste.

Dahi-badis,
tamarind, chapatis with gur,

curd-pakoras,
eggplant pukis galore!

Maybe you
would care for a nimbu pani?

There’s no
need to rush, ‘cause we’re not in a hurry.

Hot puris,
mung dhal, pickled lemon spice,

O ‘please
don’t forget that hot pot of rice.

Pusphana,
spicy-sweet, lemon n’ lime…

[Guest]: “But, but,
but, but, but will I have enough time?”

Most
certainly Sir, let time now freeze,

chew your prasadam—digest with ease.

The Lord is
so kind to appear as this feast,

to serve
you this meal is indeed the least!

Bring the
sweets now please, he nearly can’t breath!

Prasadam to
the neck is what we like to see.

The cooks
have worked hard, please taste their peach pie—

a half a
cup of laasi and everything’s fine!

Hot
strawberry halava, mango sweet rice,

rasagulas,
burfis too, laddhu with spice,

malpuras,
kulfi and saffron sandesh—

please stay
a little longer while we bring the rest.

Biscuits,
jam tarts, apple pie, fresh cream— 

a feast for
a king and a poor man’s dream,

luglu, mint
pera and gajaks galore!

We only
used the finest ghee, grains, milk, gur.

Our
pleasure is your happiness—this you must see,

my house is
yours—please bless my family.

Vedic law
says: “Have an open door—

Invite the world—whether rich or poor!”

Feed them
all your might—with no hesitation,

satisfy
their hunger with a mood of veneration.

Uninvited
guest—“serve-like-God” you see,

chant the
holy name and set yourself free!

Prasadam
distribution—it’s a revolution,

Vedic
Hospitality institution…

No
invitation, qualification,

prasadam
for all—without discrimination!!!

What do you
say, Prabhupada?…

Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

“Dance in
ecstasy!”

From the Prasada Sevaya CD (c) 1996 Food for Life Global, written by Priyavrata