The Thirty-Two Sevaparadhas

The thirty-two sevaparadhas

Sevaparadha dvatrimsa prakara

One should not enter the temple of the Lord wearing shoes or, for the comfort of one’s body, in a vehicle.

One should not avoid engaging in service during a festival, nor should one avoid observing it. One should not enter the temple after eating or in an unclean state. One should not avoid offering prayers.

 

One should not offer pranama with one hand. One should not circumambulate before the Deity[1]. One should not spread one’s legs before the Deity. One should not sit before the Deity holding his knees or ankles.

One should not lie down before the Deity, nor eat in His presence. One should not tell lies or speak loudly before the Deity. One shouldn’t talk about trivial topics with other people.

One should not scold anyone or be kind before the Deity. There should be no discussion or argument. One should not cry for material reasons. One shouldn’t use harsh words or criticize others. One should not wear a blanket before the Deity.

One must not praise others, nor swear, nor speak of indecent things. No air should be passed in front of the Deity. One should not use cheap accessories for the Deity if one has the capacity to offer something better.

Nothing should be eaten that is not offered to the Deity. One should offer seasonal fruits and things like that to the Deity.

One should not offer someone else’s food scraps to the Deity. One should not sit with his back to the Deity.

One should not offer respect and worship to someone else in front of the Deity. One should not remain silent and not offer some praise to the Guru. One should not praise oneself[2].

There should be no disrespect to the Devas. These are the thirty-two types of sevaparadha described in the Maha Purana.

Other lists in other Sastras

Anya sastra mate prakara varnana

O Lord, according to Your desire, I will briefly describe another list of offenses from another source.

One should not eat opulently in front of the Deity or enter a dark room and touch the Deity.

One should not touch the Deity of Hari without proper rituals. One must not open the doors of the temple without making any noise[3].

One should not offer food to the Deity which has been seen by dogs and other animals. One should not break silence while doing service to the Deity.

During the puja one should not go outside. Scented garlands and incense should be offered.

One should not offer unscented flowers during puja to Krishna. One should clean his teeth before starting the worship of Krishna.

One should not enter the temple immediately after sexual union with one’s wife, nor after touching a woman during her menstrual cycle, a lamp or a corpse. One should not wear a dirty cloth.

One should not enter the temple after seeing a dead body, nor should one pass gas in the temple. One should not get angry before the Deity, nor enter the temple after visiting a crematorium.

One should not enter the temple until one’s food has been digested. One should not worship the Deity after eating safflower, asafoetida, tambula or betel nut.

One should not touch the Deity of Hari after taking an oil bath. One should not perform worship with flowers that have been placed on the leaves of the castor oil plant.

One should not do puja during an inauspicious time. One should not perform worship while sitting directly on the floor[4]. One should not touch the Deity with the left hand at the time of bathing It.

One should not worship the Deity with old flowers or flowers collected by begging. One should not show arrogance at the time of puja, nor should one spit.

One should not have tripundra[5], nor enter the temple to do puja with unwashed feet.

One should not offer food cooked by non-Vaishnavas to the Deity, nor perform puja in front of non-Vaishnavas.

One should not offer puja without first worshiping Visvaksena. One should not offer worship after seeing a Kapali[6]. One should not wet the Deity with water touched by one’s nails.

One should not serve Deities while sweating profusely. One should not take an oath in the Name of Krishna, nor step over the nirmalyas[7].

All these are sevaparadhas committed by a devotee which obstruct his bhakti.

One must avoid committing these offenses during Seva

Sevaparadha yahara pakse yaha, taha tini varjjana karibena

During bhajana or while serving the Deities, these seva offenses should not be committed.

Avoiding all offenses to the Name and sevaparadha, a Vaishnava loves to serve Lord Krishna.

Anyone who commits these offenses must not repeat them.

[1] Pradaksina.

[2] One should not offer praise to anyone in the temple in front of the Deity except one’s Guru.

[3] For example, you must ring a bell or knock gently before entering.

[4] You must sit on a cushion.

[5] Three horizontal lines on the forehead.

[6] A tantric beggar.

[7] Floral remains of the Deity.

 

This is a section of the book “Harinama Cintamani (English)”.

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