The naivedyam thread

[Viraja]

I mix freshly soaked (and drained) puffed rice with jaggery, add a few bits of cashewnuts and serve this as one prasadam to the deity, Kanhaji loves it (as we know from Kuchela story).

You can also offer just plain thick curd as naivedyam. It should be freshly made and not eaten from earlier.

I also make this recipe called 'Kozhukkattai' (which is not modak).

I am adding the link for this type of kozhukkattai (by the way, you can scroll through Yogambal Sundar ji's youtube page and find a variety of recipes for naivedya).

 

[ameyAtmA]

Namaste Bhakta

Daals, Sabzis and many everyday food items are usually served along with rice. Normally available rice is the highly polished white one.

No. They are also served with grains - breads chapatis , rotis made of non-gluten multigrain (for those who are allergic to gluten). Also, there is brown rice, wild rice...

I do not know if uncustomary items like oats, millets, etc., are used to make naivedyams.

For the line I have bolded, my response again, is , please read post #17 on this thread. The fact that you are worried about "uncustomary" means the msg of post#17 did not reach/ was not understood.

... Pure sAtvik vegetarian food - shuddha sAtvik - without onion garlic mushroom coffee etc.
Rule of thumb: Whatever you grew up eating and is in your diet culturally geographically regionally, pick the pure sAtvik vegetarian ingredients out of that and prepare naivedya with love.

BG 9.26, 9.27...

Millet, quinoa, barley, ragi... was listed in the examples I sent - as multigrain. Oats is perfect. All usually edible and non-intoxicant grains when well-cooked are sAttvic, see BG 17.8 below. Snigdha means you should add some fat to grain preparations - a drop of ghee or 1 tbsp oil, or milk product that has the fat.

Beyond the rule of thumb in post #17, if the question is

What is sAttvic food?

Yes, that can be a tricky question.

Bhagavad Geeta 17.8-10

BG 17.8 Ayuh: satva-balArogya-sukha-preetivivardhanAh: |
rasyAh: snigdhah: sthirA hrudyA AhArAh: sAtvikapriyAh: ||

Foods that increase or enhance (vivardhanAh:) the duration/quality of life(Ayushya), strength (bala), health (Arogya), happiness (sukh), peace (sukh) and love (preeti), that are nourishing and absorbed by the body (sthira), juicy (rasyAh:), have [some] fat (snigdha, not dry - ruksha) and are tasty or naturally appealing to the mind-heart (hrydyA), are dear to those in the mode of goodness.

BG 17.9 kaTvamlalavaNAtyushNateekshNarukshavidAhinah: |
AhArA rAjasasyeshTA du:kha-shokAmayapradAh: ||
Foods that are bitter (kaTu), sour (amla - acidic) , salty (lava), too hot (ati ushNa), pungent or spicy(teekshNa), dry (ruksha) and chilli-pepper-hot (dAhina - causes burning) , are appealing to people in the mode of passion (rAjasa). They cause pain (du:kha) and distress or anxiety (shoka). (Affect physically and mentally).

BG 17.10 yAtayAmam gatarasaM pUti paryush-itaM cha yat |
uchcHishTamapi chAmedhyaM bhojanaM tAmasapriyaM ||
Food that is [supposed to be well-cooked but is] raw, has lost its juiciness (gatarasaM), has a bad smell, is stale, half-eaten & touched by others' lips (uchcHishTa), inauspicious and unclean (amedhyaM - not appealing to intellect (medhA) - immorally prepared by one's standards), is dear to those in tamoguNa.

Since we are here, the best we can offer is vishuddha sattva (pure goodness) since food made of 5 mahabhutas cannot transcend that.
The VaishNav AchArya have given guidelines as to what is not acceptable as offering of naivedya for Shri Hari VishNu -- (and since you are a devotee of VishNu, I mention it here) :

- onions, garlic, mushrooms, caffeinated drinks, sodas, cocoa, tannin in teas (decaff teas or herbal teas are ok)
- non-vegetarian food - all including eggs
- intoxicants and alcohol
- inedible bad habits such as ciggarettes
- Anything in BG17.9 &10 that is not covered in the list above - such as too hot,sour,bitter,spicy,pungent -- too much of anything.

Imagine offering food with finely diced green chilli that cannot be removed, to baby KRshNa or the 2 yr old, even 10 year old KRshNa, or any form of the gentle mangalam BhagavAn VishNu. A no-no right?
So one has to go with their gut feeling, for what "overly/too much" is and go with BG 17.9 as guideline in that case.

KRshNa gave guidelines for spiritual well-being of the yogi, and the bhakta takes that guideline to offer the best to BhagavAn as naivedya, which is then shared as prasAd.

 

[ameyAtmA]

-------------------------------------
Funny story:
Once Vraj vAsis asked KRshNa why He always hushes them up when devotees try to explain how KRshNa is ParaBrahman. KRshNa replied "Shhh Don't tell them! If they find out, they will stop treating Me as their friend and immediately lock me up in a Temple behind those iron railings all day, and I will have to survive on only revaDi* everyday!"

*revaDi = hard sesame candy

This story was narrated by a BhAgvat KathAkAr during a BhAgvat saptAh in BadrinAth. It was hilarious.

*Please note this was purely in line with the bhAv of VrajavAsis and of KRshNa Himself in Vraja, and not meant as disrespect to any temples. In fact, the kathAkAr himself was a Temple pujAri and a devout worshipper of BhagavAn. obviously.

For those who are not aware -- in Vraj (VrundAvan, GokuL, Nandagaon) KRshNa is always the friend, child, etc. Informal.
In DwarkA and MathurA He is king, DwArakAdheesh, and earlier, the Yadav prince -- although He always gently declined the throne and said His grandfather Ugrasen was rightfully the king. Even so, the entire area and beyond, extended to east, north, south, considered and knew He is a lot more than even the actual king - a well-wishing Lord whose shelter they could take, even the thousands of kings trapped by Jarasandh took shelter of KRshNa as the Supreme Being, not even just Emperor , and this was before the Geeta was narrated and the 2 Vishwaroops were shown.

Somehow, despite destroying the powerful asuras and all the miracles, the Vraj residents never treat Him formally as "God" because that awe and reverence (which is packed in their love) becomes a hindrance to their love and KRshNa did not let that happen.

 

[bhakta!]

I mix freshly soaked (and drained) puffed rice with jaggery, add a few bits of cashewnuts and serve this as one prasadam to the deity, Kanhaji loves it (as we know from Kuchela story).

You can also offer just plain thick curd as naivedyam. It should be freshly made and not eaten from earlier.

I also make this recipe called 'Kozhukkattai' (which is not modak).

I am adding the link for this type of kozhukkattai (by the way, you can scroll through Yogambal Sundar ji's youtube page and find a variety of recipes for naivedya).

Thank you.

 

[JustGeorge]

I made coconut laddoos last night, to the best of my ability(I seem to struggle with laddoos).

 

[bhakta!]

Namaste Bhakta

No. They are also served with grains - breads chapatis , rotis made of non-gluten multigrain (for those who are allergic to gluten). Also, there is brown rice, wild rice...


For the line I have bolded, my response again, is , please read post #17 on this thread. The fact that you are worried about "uncustomary" means the msg of post#17 did not reach/ was not understood.


Millet, quinoa, barley, ragi... was listed in the examples I sent - as multigrain. Oats is perfect. All usually edible and non-intoxicant grains when well-cooked are sAttvic, see BG 17.8 below. Snigdha means you should add some fat to grain preparations - a drop of ghee or 1 tbsp oil, or milk product that has the fat.

Beyond the rule of thumb in post #17, if the question is

What is sAttvic food?

Yes, that can be a tricky question.

Bhagavad Geeta 17.8-10

BG 17.8 Ayuh: satva-balArogya-sukha-preetivivardhanAh: |
rasyAh: snigdhah: sthirA hrudyA AhArAh: sAtvikapriyAh: ||

Foods that increase or enhance (vivardhanAh:) the duration/quality of life(Ayushya), strength (bala), health (Arogya), happiness (sukh), peace (sukh) and love (preeti), that are nourishing and absorbed by the body (sthira), juicy (rasyAh:), have [some] fat (snigdha, not dry - ruksha) and are tasty or naturally appealing to the mind-heart (hrydyA), are dear to those in the mode of goodness.

BG 17.9 kaTvamlalavaNAtyushNateekshNarukshavidAhinah: |
AhArA rAjasasyeshTA du:kha-shokAmayapradAh: ||
Foods that are bitter (kaTu), sour (amla - acidic) , salty (lava), too hot (ati ushNa), pungent or spicy(teekshNa), dry (ruksha) and chilli-pepper-hot (dAhina - causes burning) , are appealing to people in the mode of passion (rAjasa). They cause pain (du:kha) and distress or anxiety (shoka). (Affect physically and mentally).

BG 17.10 yAtayAmam gatarasaM pUti paryush-itaM cha yat |
uchcHishTamapi chAmedhyaM bhojanaM tAmasapriyaM ||
Food that is [supposed to be well-cooked but is] raw, has lost its juiciness (gatarasaM), has a bad smell, is stale, half-eaten & touched by others' lips (uchcHishTa), inauspicious and unclean (amedhyaM - not appealing to intellect (medhA) - immorally prepared by one's standards), is dear to those in tamoguNa.

Since we are here, the best we can offer is vishuddha sattva (pure goodness) since food made of 5 mahabhutas cannot transcend that.
The VaishNav AchArya have given guidelines as to what is not acceptable as offering of naivedya for Shri Hari VishNu -- (and since you are a devotee of VishNu, I mention it here) :

- onions, garlic, mushrooms, caffeinated drinks, sodas, cocoa, tannin in teas (decaff teas or herbal teas are ok)
- non-vegetarian food - all including eggs
- intoxicants and alcohol
- inedible bad habits such as ciggarettes
- Anything in BG17.9 &10 that is not covered in the list above - such as too hot,sour,bitter,spicy,pungent -- too much of anything.

Imagine offering food with finely diced green chilli that cannot be removed, to baby KRshNa or the 2 yr old, even 10 year old KRshNa, or any form of the gentle mangalam BhagavAn VishNu. A no-no right?
So one has to go with their gut feeling, for what "overly/too much" is and go with BG 17.9 as guideline in that case.

KRshNa gave guidelines for spiritual well-being of the yogi, and the bhakta takes that guideline to offer the best to BhagavAn as naivedya, which is then shared as prasAd.

This story was narrated by a BhAgvat KathAkAr during a BhAgvat saptAh in BadrinAth. It was hilarious.

*Please note this was purely in line with the bhAv of VrajavAsis and of KRshNa Himself in Vraja, and not meant as disrespect to any temples. In fact, the kathAkAr himself was a Temple pujAri and a devout worshipper of BhagavAn. obviously.

For those who are not aware -- in Vraj (VrundAvan, GokuL, Nandagaon) KRshNa is always the friend, child, etc. Informal.
In DwarkA and MathurA He is king, DwArakAdheesh, and earlier, the Yadav prince -- although He always gently declined the throne and said His grandfather Ugrasen was rightfully the king. Even so, the entire area and beyond, extended to east, north, south, considered and knew He is a lot more than even the actual king - a well-wishing Lord whose shelter they could take, even the thousands of kings trapped by Jarasandh took shelter of KRshNa as the Supreme Being, not even just Emperor , and this was before the Geeta was narrated and the 2 Vishwaroops were shown.

Somehow, despite destroying the powerful asuras and all the miracles, the Vraj residents never treat Him formally as "God" because that awe and reverence (which is packed in their love) becomes a hindrance to their love and KRshNa did not let that happen.

Thank you for patiently explaining all this to me. I will keep these teachings in mind.

 

[Viraja]

High-calorie or not, from time to time, I am inclined to make savories like pakodas for Krishna. Recently I made this savory snack-time recipe called 'Karaaboondhi' and offered to lord. It lasted 4 subsequent days for tea-time!

 

[bhakta!]

High-calorie or not, from time to time, I am inclined to make savories like pakodas for Krishna. Recently I made this savory snack-time recipe called 'Karaaboondhi' and offered to lord. It lasted 4 subsequent days for tea-time!View attachment 59978View attachment 59978

That's nice!

 

[Viraja]

@bhakta! Here's the link for Karaboondhi recipe:

You just need any perforated spatula to make the boondhis, by the way. No need for any special utensil. I just made it with a larger perforated spatula.

 

[bhakta!]

@bhakta! Here's the link for Karaboondhi recipe:

You just need any perforated spatula to make the boondhis, by the way. No need for any special utensil. I just made it with a larger perforated spatula.

Thank you Viraja.
Can you type out the recipe in English when time permits.

 

[Viraja]

Thank you Viraja.
Can you type out the recipe in English when time permits.

kara boondi recipe, how to make kara boondi | masala boondi mixture

 

[bhakta!]

kara boondi recipe, how to make kara boondi | masala boondi mixture

Thank you.

 

[Viraja]

Thank you.

@bhakta! , try Krishna's Cuisine Youtube channel. They have really nice vegetarian recipes for naivedyam. A lot of new ideas even for a veteran cook like me.

 

[bhakta!]

@bhakta! , try Krishna's Cuisine Youtube channel. They have really nice vegetarian recipes for naivedyam. A lot of new ideas even for a veteran cook like me.

Thank you!

 

[Jainarayan]

Another of my dopey and stupid puja questions sort of kind of related to naivedya. I offer a tiny bit of akshata, turmeric colored raw rice:

oṁ srī kṛṣṇāya namaḥ akṣatam samarpayāmi
akṣatas taṇḍula śubhrā kumkumen virajīta
mayā nivedita bhavatya gṛhāṇa parameśwara (I bow to You, Lord Krishna, the white rice colored with kumkum I am devoutly offering to You O Parameshwara, please accept it).

The question... do I leave it in its little container (a tiny silver bowl) on the altar until the next puja, or remove it? I waver between leaving it until next puja, and accumulating it into another container to cook as prasad.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Leave it. At that time probably millions of people offer him naivedyam. Let him take his time.

 

[Jainarayan]

Thanks.

 

[mangalavara]

I didn’t exactly make it, but I offered a peach, naan, and water to Śiva recently.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Curries go well with naan, not peach; or even yogurt, salted or sweetened. But Shiva will not complain, someone else would have offered curry. Ganesha would not mind having a peach.

 

[mangalavara]

Curries go well with naan, not peach; or even yogurt, salted or sweetened.

The curries at my local supermarket contain beef, unfortunately.

But Shiva will not complain, someone else would have offered curry.

That’s just one thing that I like about him.

Ganesha would not mind having a peach.

We’ll see. I’m still waiting for a small mūrti of him to arrive.