Question: What is the meaning of sanctified food?
Sanctified food refers to food that is prepared as an offering for the Lord. Generally people cook food for the satisfaction of their tongue. Instead we should develop the habit of cooking for the satisfaction of the Lord. Everything we eat should first be offered to the Lord. In this way the food becomes sanctified and spiritually charged.
The procedure for offering one’s food to the Lord is simple. The food must first of all be pure (as defined in the next answer). Second, it must be prepared primarily for the Lord, and thus no one should taste it before it is offered to Him. Third, it should be cooked or prepared with a pure consciousness of devotion.
Once the food is prepared, it should be placed before a picture of Lord Krishna, and one should request the Lord to accept the offering. The following mantra should then be recited three time while ringing a bell:
namo brahmanya devaaya
go braahmana hitaaya cha
jagad-hitaaya krishnaaya
govindaaya namo namah
If one has a guru pranama mantra, the mantra may be recited three times before this mantra.
After this one may then eat the food that has been offered to the Lord. In this way the food one eats becomes prasadam, and it acts on one internally – not just physically.
