Kāli Dāsa was a great devotee who constantly chanted the Holy Names of Kṛṣṇa. No matter what he was doing, he was always uttering “Hare Kṛṣṇa”. His devotion to eating the remnants of the Vaiṣṇavas resulted in his receiving extraordinary blessings from Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. The Lord gives so much mercy to anyone who has faith in the Vaiṣṇavas and honors their remnants that nothing else remains to be given.

Therefore, set aside your shame and disgust and eat the Vaiṣṇavas’ remnants, for by so doing you will be able to fulfil all your desires. The remnants of Kṛṣṇa’s food are called mahā-prasāda, but the remnants of the devotee are termed mahā-mahā-prasāda. The dust of a devotee’s feet, the water that has washed his feet, and the remnants of his food are three very powerful aids to spiritual practice. All revealed scriptures loudly declare again and again that one can attain the supreme goal of ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa through the grace of these three substances. So, my dear devotees, please listen to me, for I insist on this point: keep faith in these three substances and render service to them with complete faith. Through these three substances, you will taste the joy of sacred love that is found in the Holy Name of Kṛṣṇa and you will win Kṛṣṇa’s pleasure. This has been proved by the experience of Kāli Dāsa. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.16.58-63)

While living in Bengal, Kāli Dāsa ate the remnants of all devotees, without considering their caste status. He would go to their houses with gifts of the finest foodstuffs. After they had finished eating, he would ask for their remnants. If any of them were unwilling to give him their remnants, he would take them without their knowledge. He would hide and wait for them to throw away the leaf-plates on which they had eaten and lick them clean.

All Vaiṣṇavas are worshipable, regardless of the caste in which they have been born. A Vaiṣṇava is beyond the material qualities and thus is not to be identified with his nationality or caste. Anyone who makes a judgment of a devotee on the basis of caste is said to have a hellish mentality. Though Jhaḍu Ṭhākura was born into the bhuñi-mālī caste, he was a great devotee.

One day, Kāli Dāsa went to Jhaḍu Ṭhākura’s house and paid obeisances to him and his wife. He then made them a gift of ripe, sweet mangoes. Jhaḍu Ṭhākura recognized Kāli Dāsa to be a guest of the highest order. He showed him the appropriate respect and said, “Dear sir, I am of a low caste. Please let me know how I can serve you. Just say the word and I will arrange for food to be cooked for you in a brāhmaṇa’s house. If you take prasāda there, I will consider myself most fortunate.”

Kāli Dāsa recognized Jhaḍu Ṭhākura’s humility as being appropriate to a Vaiṣṇava and said, “I am extremely fallen. It is only as a result of great good fortune that I have been able to meet you today. If you would only be so kind as to place the dust of your feet on my head.”

Jhaḍu Ṭhākura was embarrassed and felt uneasy. Kāli Dāsa recited a few verses that glorify the devotees of the Lord:

na me ’bhaktaś caturvedī
madbhaktaḥ śvapacaḥ priyaḥ
tasmai deyaṁ tato grāhyaṁ
sa ca pūjyo yathā hy aham

A scholar learned in the four Vedas is not dear to Me if he is not My devotee, whereas someone born as a dog-eater who is devoted to Me is very dear to Me. All respect should be given to such a person, and one should accept his gifts, for such devotees are as worshipable as I am. (Hari-bhakti-vilāsa 10.29, Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.16.25)

viprād dvi-ṣaḍ-guṇa-yutād aravinda-nābha-
pādāravinda-vimukhāt śva-pacaṁ variṣṭham
manye tad-arpita-mano-vacanehitārtha-
prāṇaṁ punāti sa kulaṁ na tu bhūri-mānaḥ

A person born in a brāhmaṇa family and possessing all twelve brahminical qualities, but adverse to the lotus-naveled Lord Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, is inferior to a dog-eater who has dedicated his mind, words, activities, wealth and life to the service of the Lord. Such a person purifies not only his own being but that of his entire family, whereas one who is proud of his qualifications cannot purify anything. (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 7.9.10, Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.16.26)

aho bata śva-paco ’to garīyān
yaj-jihvāgre vartate nāma tubhyam
tepus tapas te juhuvuḥ sasnur āryā
brahmānūcur nāma gṛṇanti ye te

How wonderful it is! Even a dog-eater who always keeps Your Holy Name on his tongue is greater than a brāhmaṇa! Despite his low caste, anyone who chants Your Names is understood to have performed all kinds of austerities and the great Vedic sacrifices, to have studied all the Vedas, and to have bathed in all the holy places of pilgrimage. Such people belong to the truly noble class of man. (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.33.7, Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.16.27)

Though Jhaḍu Ṭhākura accepted the truth of these scriptural statements, he humbly stated that they were not applicable to him. Kāli Dāsa respectfully paid his obeisances and withdrew, and Jhaḍu Ṭhākura politely followed him a short distance before returning to his home. Kāli Dāsa took this opportunity to take the dust from the Jhaḍu Ṭhākura’s footprints and smeared it over his entire body. Desiring to take the Ṭhākura’s remnants, he then hid not far from his house.

When Jhaḍu Ṭhākura entered his house, he placed the mangoes in a banana-bark bowl and mentally offered them to Kṛṣṇa. His wife then took the mango prasāda from the bowl and gave them to him. Jhaḍu Ṭhākura ate the mango, and after sucking the seed, placed it back in the bowl. She, being a chaste and devoted wife took his remnants and then took the mango seeds and skins and threw the bowl into the refuse pit. When she had gone, Kāli Dāsa came and sucked on the seeds and even licked the outside of the skins. As he tasted the remnants of the Vaiṣṇavas, Kāli Dāsa was overwhelmed with ecstatic symptoms.

This, then, was Kāli Dāsa’s procedure as he paid obeisances to all the Vaiṣṇavas in Bengal and ate their food remnants.

Every year, the Bengali devotees went to Purī to visit Mahāprabhu. Kāli Dāsa went in the second year of this institution. As the Supersoul, the Lord knew of Kāli Dāsa’s dedication to the devotees’ remnants and so He bestowed profuse blessings upon him. When Mahāprabhu went on His daily visit to the Lord Jagannātha Temple, he would be accompanied by Govinda, who carried His kamaṇḍalu (water pot). Mahāprabhu would wash His feet before entering the temple and the water would run off into a pool at the bottom of the twenty-two steps at the northern entrance at the Siṁha Dvāra. Mahāprabhu gave Govinda the strict order not allow anyone to touch the water that had washed His feet. Everyone knew this, so no one dared to make the attempt. Only a few intimate devotees found ways to get some of this holy liquid.

One day, as Mahāprabhu was washing His feet, as usual, Kāli Dāsa came there and stretched out his hand to take some of the water. He drank not once, not twice, but three times as Mahāprabhu looked on. The Lord only stopped him when he cupped his hands for the fourth time.

The all-knowing Supreme Lord, Caitanya Mahāprabhu, knew of the faith that Kali Dāsa had in the Vaiṣṇavas. Happy with him for this great virtue, He allowed him to win a blessing unavailable to anyone else. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.16.48-9)

After visiting Lord Jagannātha, Mahāprabhu returned to Kāśī Miśra’s house to take His midday meal. Kāli Dāsa sat outside the door, hoping to receive some of the Lord’s remnants. The Lord knew of his desire and, after He had finished eating, He signalled Govinda to bring him prasāda.

This is the wonderful result of eating Vaiṣṇavas’ remnants: through so doing, Kāli Dāsa attained Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s supreme mercy. Therefore, set aside your shame and disgust and eat the Vaiṣṇavas’ remnants, for by so doing you will be able to fulfil all your desires. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.16.57-8)