Professional eaters 2

Feel free to check these (1, 2) out for some background on today's couplet.

Devanagari text:

अग्र्यो भुक्तिमतां प्रयोगसमये मन्त्रेषु पृष्ठं गतः
पाकागारगतस्तु पाचकमनस्तोषाय वाचस्पतिः|
उच्चायां निरतो रतोऽर्भकगणे पिण्डेषु दत्तादरो
नानाश्राद्धगणैकचालितमना भट्टोत्तमो राजते||

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

agryo bhuktimatAM prayogasamaye mantreSu pRSThaM gataH
pAkAgAragatastu pAcakamanastoSAya vAcaspatiH| 

uccAyAM nirato rato(a)rbhakagaNe piNDeSu dattAdaro
nAnAzrAddhagaNaikacAlitamanA bhaTTottamo rAjate||

– Anonymous

A. A. Ramanathan's translation, as quoted in the Mahasubhashitasangraha: The foremost among the eaters, but lagging behind in the use of mantra-s at the proper time, when in the kitchen he is the lord of speech to please the cooks[;] taking delight in the fee, interested in the children (of the donor) and careful in the balls of rice, the best of priests shines with his mind drawn to the various items of the sraddha.

Source: Subhashita Ratnakara Verse 3 of Chapter 109 entited bhikSukaguNAH (भिक्षुकगुणाः), "the qualities of beggars"; Subhashita Sudha Ratna Bhandagara, (सुभाषितसुधारत्नभाण्डागार) Verse 382.3; Subhashita Ratna Bhandagara Verse 3 of Chapter 96 entitled bhikSuka (भिक्षुक), "the beggar";  Mahasubhasitasangraha Verse 246.

Notes: Showing an interest in the patrons' children is perhaps just a ploy to ingratiate oneself with the parents -- I do not think the poet is insinuating anything more sinister than that.

Some of the words used in this verse deserve special comments.

• vAcaspati (वाचस्पति), translated above as "the lord of speech": This is, in fact, the literal meaning of the word which occurs as a name repeatedly in the Rigveda. And, as is the case with most Rigvedic names, it is difficult to ascertain whom or what this word actually refers to. But, since the Puranic age, it has mostly been used as an appellation of Brihaspati.
• uccA (उच्चा), translated above as "fee": It literally means "high / tall", "loud" or "intense" (feminine), and its occurrence in this context would be utterly baffling in the absence of a gloss. Fortunately, the editors of Subhashita Ratnakara and Subhashita Ratna Bhandagara both comment that उच्चा is a code word (सांकेतिकः शब्दः) for dakSiNA (दक्षिणा), "a priest's remuneration", that is used and understood exclusively by vaidikas (वैदिक), i.e. priests adept in Vedic ceremonies. I have no way of verifying this claim.
• bhaTTottama (भट्टोत्तम), translated above as "the best of priests": Obviously, it is used sarcastically here. For a detailed exposition of the honorific bhaTTa (भट्ट), see this post.