Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.81.3
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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aṇu api
—
even an infinitesimal thing
aṇu = atom, the smallest unit. With api (even) it makes the doctrinal point: scale collapses before bhāva. The four palmfuls of chipped rice in Sudāmā's bundle are the aṇu being magnified into bhūri.
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premṇā
—
with pure love
The decisive instrumental. Not bhaktyā (with devotional service) but premṇā — the developed stage. Gauḍīya rasa-śāstra distinguishes śraddhā → bhāva → prema; Kṛṣṇa names the highest as the measure.
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bhaktaiḥ
—
by devotees
Plural instrumental of bhakta. The marker that selects which offerings register on Kṛṣṇa's scale at all. Without bhakta-status, even bhūri (immense) offerings do not move Him.
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abhakta-upahṛtam
—
presented by non-devotees
Compound: a-bhakta (non-devotee) + upahṛtam (offered). A pointed mirror-term to bhakti-upahṛtam in verse 4. The same physical act becomes a different metaphysical event depending on the offerer.
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toṣāya
—
is not competent for satisfying
kalpate (from √kḷp) = is fit, is competent. A surprisingly strong negation: such offerings are structurally incapable of pleasing Him. The verse is not saying Kṛṣṇa is offended; it is saying the offering misses Him entirely.
‘Have you brought anything from your house? I surmise that you having such affectionate for me would not come emptied coming so far from your house, to see me who have such affection for you." "But I am very embarrassed to show it because it is meager." "Even if my devotee offers only a little (anu) with devotion, it becomes plenty for me."
What have you brought? Please tell me, or please give it. O brāhmaṇa! Since you know the Vedas, it is not proper to keep for yourself what you have brought for me. This is his joking intention in addressing Sudāmā as a brāhmaṇa. You have brought it from your house, from your wife. You are not acting like a friend. Though the gift was sent by your devoted wife, you hesitate to give it to me. He then encourages him, giving up joking. I will accept what is given, since I have proper behavior. Even a small gift like rice, if offered by persons with respect (bhaktaiḥ) and prema, or which is offered with prema, becomes very satisfying to me. What is offered by persons without respect or without devotion will not satisfy me. I am not pleased with those persons.
What have you brought? Please tell me, or please give it. O brāhmaṇa! Since you know the Vedas, it is not proper to keep for yourself what you have brought for me, since brāhmaṇas are naturally generous. This is his joking intention in addressing Sudāmā as a brāhmaṇa. I give great regard to what is offered to me by devotees, and with prema. Or what is offered by my devotees becomes filled with prema for me. What is offered by persons without respect or without devotion will not satisfy me. I am not pleased with those persons.
- What small gift of mine, dismissed as too little, might be exactly right?
- Where do I overestimate the size and underestimate the love?
A mother weighs not the bowl but the hand that holds it: the half-eaten sweet brought by her own child outweighs a tray of golden ladoos sent by a stranger. Kṛṣṇa's scale is the same — premṇā tips it, not quantity.
In SB 10.48 (parallel to this chapter), when Kṛṣṇa visited Vidura, his wife was so overwhelmed that she peeled bananas and absent-mindedly offered Him the skins while throwing the fruit away. Kṛṣṇa ate the skins with relish. The Bhāgavatam itself draws the line we are reading here: Bhagavān measures the bhāva, not the bhojana.
Duryodhana laid out a royal feast for Kṛṣṇa and was insulted when the Lord refused. Kṛṣṇa explained He eats only where He is loved. The doctrine of verse 3 is the doctrine of that refusal: bhūri offerings from non-bhaktas do not satisfy Him, but aṇu offered in premā do.
My note
Source: vedabase.io