Among the throngs of eccentric members of the Berkeley community, one can often see — and certainly hear — bands of instrumented followers of the Hare Krishna movement. Their telltale sign is that they repeatedly chant variations of the words “Hare Krishna, Hare Rama.” Last Monday, one such devotee “fliered” me on Telegraph Avenue, and I was more than delighted to accept his invitation to the “World Famous Hare Krishna Chariot Parade & Festival” that took place last Sunday.
Early Sunday morning — well, early for me — I was merrily on my way to join the festivities, but when I arrived, I encountered one small problem: The Hare Krishnas were nowhere to be found. Eventually, I stumbled upon the stalls of vendors who were participating in the event on Haste Street, but even they could not tell me what was going on with the alleged parade.
The delayed parade proved to be a fortunate occurrence. I was promptly greeted by David and Lalita Oster, who were running the very first stand on Haste and who were in fact themselves members of the Hare Krishna movement.
This chatty and endearing couple not only illuminated some of the complexities of the movement for me, but I found their story to also be an intriguing insight into the people who join this type of group. After a mere two hours, I learned that Hare Krishnas, although decidedly conspicuous and quirky, are only trying to simplify a life that is often overwhelming and unsatisfying.
Lalita was the first to approach me. Her stature is unassuming, to say the least — she couldn’t be more than five feet tall — but her bright eyes instantly caught my attention, and she quickly proceeded to delve into the mysteries of the Bhagavad Gita, a sacred Hindu text. Within minutes, she had already broached the topics of reincarnation, divinity and the shortcomings of physical desires — referencing specifically the fleeting satisfaction of the chai tea latte I held.
But I sensed no judgment on her part. On the contrary, it seemed to me that her aim was purely to inform me, and any other passers-by, of this path that she found made her life better.
So I continued to listen. She told me that the Hare Krishna movement used mantra meditation in order to focus the soul on God by quieting the demands of the physical body. Additionally, the Hare Krishnas distribute the Bhagavad Gita, which Lalita said has “all the answers” in a handy, portable form.
At one point, her husband, David, took over the conversation. David, a UC Berkeley alumnus and former Jew, is much newer to the movement than Lalita — his involvement dates back only eight years, while Lalita has closer to 40 years under her belt. Despite his initial hesitation to join this seemingly “wacko” movement, he discovered that the transcendental “reverberations” felt by way of chanting had, over time, fundamentally changed the quality of his life.
With this perception and my shiny, new Bhagavad Gita in hand, I headed toward the parade that finally arrived on the block. Although I did not understand all that was happening around me, I can say that it was noisy, colorful and joyful for all involved. Fruit flew through the crowd, but it wasn’t your run-of-the-mill type of fruit. As David explained to me, this fruit was sacrificed to the deities earlier, and the devotees were now getting to literally taste Krishna’s mercy infused in the apple or banana. The eating was accompanied by chanting, and it seemed to me that the crowd was getting worked up into some sort of divine frenzy.
As an outsider, this was a shock for me — even though I had learned about Hindu practices in the past. But being uncomfortable forced me to engage in some personal reflection. This religious practice was expressive and intense, and that bothered me. I think that oftentimes mainstream Americans, myself included, struggle to understand other religions that do not necessarily engage the divine in a Protestant — read: personal and private — manner.
My time on Haste with the Hare Krishnas was poignant because I had to turn inward while everyone around me was involved in extreme outward expression. I may not want to chant “Hare Krishna,” but I should double-check my willingness to label such followers as “crazy.” Lovely people like the Oster’s who find meaning and fulfillment in a few simple words are the counterargument.
And who knows? Maybe in a moment of turmoil, I may someday find myself comforted by the sound of the divine names of Krishna and Rama. Would that really be so strange?
Contact Hannah Brady at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter: @brady_hm.
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As someone who spent the past year in ISKCON as a woman, I’ve come to find that the movement really does harbor misogyny that is very hurtful, and that Bhaktivedanta Swami was a bigot.
I don’t disagree that my time with the Hare Krishnas was good for my faith. Chanting “Hari Krishna, Hari Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hari Hari, Hari Ram, Hari Ram, Ram Ram Hari Hari” is a very purifying experience and I recommend mantra meditation to anyone who feels drawn to it and to anyone who wants a calmer mind. However, ISKCON uses this mantra to force people into following the movement inside, and it becomes a tricky, sticky labyrinth for newcomers involved.
I was faced with the ridiculousness of all the swamis of the cult and how their power simply came about because they were accepted by the GBC to represent ISKCON appropriately. I can’t say that ISKCON is completely unfaithful, because there are many pious, Indian Hindus involved with the temples, so the swamis must go around and preach. It is when one discovers that many of the donations to the temples are being used to support gurus to travel lavishly and supposedly preach Krishna consciousness when there is proof of previous misdoings by these same gurus.
Many of their views in classes are flawed, especially that of comparing Christianity to ISKCON. The point is that the name of the religion doesn’t matter, but it is engrained in everyone that the only way to Heaven is by chanting Hare Krishna everyday so that when you die, the word “Krishna” is literally on your mind. The way I see it, if you remember any form of God when you die, you will be taken to the spiritual world. They are close minded on which forms of God you are able to worship (Only Chaitanya, Krishna and Radha, Jagannath, i.e. only forms of Krishna. Little emphasis is placed on Vishnu, who is the Supreme deity of Vaishnavism, which Krishna comes from).
However, they are pure pujaris and the pujas are definitely pure. The prasadam is pure, you can tell the difference between ordinary food and prasadam. But here’s the thing: prasadam is mercy of God, so any prasadam offered outside ISKCON would be the same.
They are close-minded, all-in-all, misogynistic, and obsessed with money. Forgive me for offending anyone that is dedicated to ISKCON, but I’ve found that it’s not the way of worship for me due to the pain I’ve received after only one year inside.
I also recommend http://www.b-i-f.com to anyone interested in researching ISKCON’s faults as well as http://www.breaking-free.info to encourage people inside to see the bubble that the Hare Krishna’s are trapped in.
The Hare Krishna’s give the Sanatana Dharma a bad name through their actions, but remember, we’re all imperfect souls here and our actions are not perfect.
Adam B, I don’t want to sound confrontational but maybe Nunya Beeswax has a point. Iskcon looks worse than a ‘perversion of Hinduism’. It looks more like a dangerous criminal cult . http://www.b-i-f.com.
http://breaking-free.info/
Sorry Justine, but I read the attempts of the b-i-f.com website you cited to slander ISKCON and its saintly preceptors such as its Founder-Acarya His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada, and the great 19th century exponent of Caitanya Vaisnavism, Kedarnath Datta Bhaktivinode Thakur. I found it to be a misguided hatchet job from someone who was clearly not open minded or sypathetic to ISKCON or Gaudiya Vaisnavism.
Both these two great religious leaders wrote volumes of devotional literature which is sufficient in and of itself to establish their great stature as devotees and as theologians. The author of your website splits hairs, finding faults that
(1) Srila Prabhupada said that Bhaktivinode Thakur was a magistrate when his highest rank was 2d class magistrate (So what? Is a 2d class magistrate not a magistrate? Moreover, Bhaktivinode Thakur wrote thousands of pages of spiritual masterpieces. His literary output is more important than his career as a judicial officer in the British Raj. The truth is, he wanted to relocate to the birthplace of Sri Krishna Caitanya (from Puri in Orissa), and the government did not want him to do so, but because he insisted his government career was not as externally “successful” as it might of been. He is not famous for his work as a magistrate, but for his work in glorifying the Caitanya school of Vaisnavism
(2) Srila Prabhupada said that the word “Hindu” is a corruption of the word “Sindhu” or “Sind”. (Again, so what? The author does not even try to refute the claim, but is simply outraged at this affront to Hindu nationalism. The actual fact is that the word Hindu is not found in Vedic texts. It appears Srila Prabhupada was not misinformed about the origin of the word, but even if he were wrong about that, what of it?)
(3) Bhaktivinode Thakur ate fish and goat meat in his early life before conversion to Vaisnavism. (So what? The caste-conscious author is trying to shock readers by this sacrilege, but misses the point that even though the Thakur’s family were not pure vegetarians, and even if he read Kant and Hegel and Schopenhauer in his youth — what is wrong with that? — he became a fully committed and strict Vaisnava with pure habits later in life.)
(4) Bhaktivinode Thakur’s guru Bipin Bihari Goswami smoked tobacco. (As I understand it, Bhaktivinode Thakur was more devoted to his siksa-guru Srila Jagannatha Das Babaji. Srila Prabhupada does not include Bipin Bihari Goswami in the line of disciplic succession from Lord Caitanya through Bhaktivinode Thakur and his own guru, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Prabhupada.)
Have Hare Krishna devotees sometimes behaved badly or even anti-socially? Of course! So have Catholics. So have atheists. So have Jews. Name me any substantial social or ethnic group and I am sure someone could find examples of misbehavior by some of its members.
I have lived in and around ISKCON for most of my life (I will be 54 years old next month). I would say that in the 1960s and 1970s as a very demanding discipline organized on the strength of Srila Prabhupada’s considerable personal charisma, it had a lot of characteristics of what sociologists call a “cult” (or in Europe a “sect”). After Srila Prabhupada passed away in 1977, ISKCON went through a rocky decade as his initial successor gurus, many of whom were not quite spiritually up to the task, faced the challenge of moving ISKCON into a post-charismatic phase (and yes, there were excesses).
I would say that for the last 25 years or so ISKCON has amply demonstrated that it will continue to be a positive and effective exponent of Vedic and Vaisnava culture, without some of the “cultiness” that it displayed as a sort of communal, intensely religious subculture within the broader hippie counterculture of the 1960s. As ISKCON becomes broader and more mature, and as it recruits more of its followers from well-educated Hindu middle and upper classes, it is becoming more capable of interacting responsibly with the “outside world”. And yet there is a trade-off: many old ISKCON devotees wistfully and nostalgically look back to the days where practically all the members lived in communal asrams as full-time, completely “surrendered” members.
Personally, I love ISKCON and find that Hare Krishna devotees are among the nicest and best people I know.
Of course one may meet some Hare Krishna devotee who is not a perfect saint. There is no bar on who may become a follower or consider themselves members (though to become an initiated disciple usually requires some discipline and dedication). Naturally, there are some rough-hewn elements in and around ISKCON, as there would be around any group seeking to canvass adherents from the general population. And this would be true not only of religious movements but political and cultural movements, too. Still, if you want to meet some of the greatest people in the world and learn about a fascinating culture, literature, philosophy and theology, I think you could not do better than to contact your local Hare Krishna center.
Adam! Slander means ‘the action or crime of making a false spoken
statement damaging to a person’s reputation.’ There are no false
statements against any of those ‘preceptors’ you mentioned on the BIF website. Everything is researched. But if you feel
there is something incorrect you should write to BIF.
Bhaktivinoda has already been researched and exposed as a cheat. References are on the BIF website.
“…The
Thakur was trying to promote Mahaprabhu’s birthplace and he did it in a fashion
time-honored in India. He simply wrote the material he needed and attributed it
to someone who had historical credibility.”
His own guru BBG rejected him because of
falsehoods that are common knowledge for anyone researching outside the Iskcon
cult.
As
for Prabhupada’s being an ‘effective exponent’ of
“Vedic”
knowledge or culture Prabhupada said himself he hadn’t read the Vedas, he had
only read interpolated Gaudiya literature by his own
confession.
‘So what’ and ‘what if’ are words that
Mushrooms would say if they could speak.
It
is a good idea for those thinking about entering the Hare Krishna cult to look
carefully at the teachings, history and the devotees experience’s (not just the
sales propaganda) before they commit themselves. Only a small portion of people that join the
Hare Krishna’s, stay with the society.
Here
are some educational links from BIF http://www.b-i-f.com:
5th on the
5th
http://www.b-i-f.com/5th%20on%20the%205th.html
Elephant
in the Room
http://www.b-i-f.com/ELEPHANT%20in%20the%20ROOM.html
acBSp
v. Vedas
http://www.b-i-f.com/acBSp%20v.%20Vedas.html
Although as an atheist, I lump most religions together under the rubric of “cults,” I don’t mind their members’ beliefs so long as they keep said beliefs to themselves. Among those I call cults are those believers in the supernatural such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and their off shoots.
What I find outrageous are devotees who impose themselves upon others via proselytizing. The Hairy Crochners are among the worst of these, with their obnoxious, repetitious loud chanting and cymbal clanking.
Of course, it could be worse. In the Muslim world and its neighbors, those who don’t agree with their brand of lunacy are often tortured and murdered. And as codified by their interpretation of the Quran, there is terrible discrimination practiced toward women, gays and dissidents (Palestinian society stands out in this regard.
In sum, Islamofascism is representative of religious cultism at its most barbaric. And as ridiculous as the Hariy Crochners are, they are benign relative to so many who practice the cult of Islam.
Nunya Beeswax, I do not want to sound too confrontational, but I request you to reconsider whether you are really qualified to speak for “most Hindus”. Actually, ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness, or the “Hare Krishna Movement”) is very popular in India and among Hindu populations around the world.
As “Krishna Lover” points out, the world’s Hindus, numbering well over a billion, are not unified under a single guru, church, creed, liturgy or serious of rituals. The Vedic scriptures themselves (including the Epics and Puranas) are vast, and there are wide varieties of interpretations and emphasis among different Hindu traditions. (See, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism)
The Hare Krishnas represent the Vaisnavite Bhakti tradition, which is probably the most popular within Hinduism. However, you might be surprised to know we do not present our ISKCON as a sectarian branch of Hinduism, but as one that teaches the natural, eternal, universal dharma of all jivas (souls), which is, simply put, to reawaken our pure love for God and His energies (or, as the Christians put it, to “love God with all your heart and soul and love your neighbor as yourself”).
As our great 16th century authority Sri Rupa Goswami pointed out in his treatise “Bhaktirasamrta-sidhu”, there are universal or essential principles, and there are details. While we revere all Vedic literature, we respect knowledge from any source. ISKCON’s founder Srila Prabhupada taught (as did Lord Sri Krishna Caitanya) that you need not change your external religion, and that you should chant whatever names of God you accept, such as Allah, Jehovah, Christ, Buddha. (Serious ISKCON members almost universally accept the names of Krishna, however)
Also, in this day and age, where a vegetarian diet is practical, we should not slaughter the poor animals to satisfy our taste buds. How can that be “loving our neighbor”? This is not a matter of sectarianism, but common sense.
I loved the article, Hannah.
Jellybelly, I think you may be conflating two meanings of the word “personal”. Yes, the Vaisnava tradition (unlike some Hindu traditions) emphasizes the personal aspect of Godhead as most complete. Lord Krishna is a person — with spiritual form, names, qualities, associates, senses, feelings, preferences — and we should develop an eternal personal relationship with Him on the spiritual platform (as many Christians seek to do with Jesus). We do not seek to extinguish our personal identity by merging in an impersonal “brahmajyoti” or inactive, quality-less, variety-less transcendence. We seek to enter the Kingdom of God (Vaikuntha, the “Spiritual Sky” or “paravyoma”) which is full of activity and variety which, being devoid of false ego and mundane qualities, exists in a realm of pure consciousness beyond time.
Hannah meant “personal and private” in the sense of keeping one’s feelings to one’s self. I agree with you that though Hare Krishna’s dance and chant in public and distribute books and explain Vaisnava doctrines, Krishna’s teachings, to everyone they meet, most Hare Krishnas have intimate, private or confidential realizations and feelings that they do not share with all and sundry. But many of us, being former hippies, have fewer boundaries and are more “open books”. There are all kinds of Hare Krishnas.
Actually, Hinduism is not a religion at all. There is no such word as Hinduism mentioned in Vedic scriptures. And ISKCON is NOT a Hindu cult, but a part of the Vaisnava line which goes back thousands of years. This is expressed by the founder Acharya, AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, in many of his books. Hare Krishna’s practice Bhakti Yoga. Bhakti is a sanskrit word for devotion, and yoga means to link or connect. So to connect to God, or Krishna, through devotion. That is their goal and the purpose for the parade of the chariots, Ratha Yatra. The Ratha Yatra is another one of the many festivals the Hare Krishna’s have each year to show their devotion to Krishna and share this practice with the rest of the world. If you have a misconception about them, they hold a Sunday Feast Festival every Sunday at their temple. It starts at 5pm and ends with a great and free vegetarian feast. The address is 2334 Stuart st, Berkeley. There are always enthusiastic people there who you can ask questions to. And just as a reminder, a fool is only recognized once they open their mouth.
Nice, honest article
Did she get Prasadam?
http://www.dailycal.org/2012/10/25/hare-krishnas-on-haste/
It is, however, worth pointing out that for most Hindus ISKCON is viewed as a perversion of Hinduism, a revision and simplification of that religion. Hare Krishnas resemble Hindus in the same way that Jehovah’s Witnesses resemble Christians, or Black Muslims resemble Muslims–take a closer look, though, and the differences are apparent.
Sorry, Have to disagree. Most Hindus who take the time to find out about ISKCON will realise it has a long parampara (disiciplic succession) from the brahma-madhva-gaudiya-vaishnava sampradaya. Most hindus don’t know that real legitimacy comes from parampara and there is nothing more simple or more complex in “it” (ISKCON) than prescribed by the Supreme Lord Himself as given by Guru, Sadhu and Sastra. There is nothing ‘new’ about it. The only difference is that it has been given a different ‘title’ outside of India to make it accessible to others (non-hindu aka non-sanatana dharmam) and that A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada has been the only Guru successful at promulgating it outside of India (about time too). This is culminating in the fulfillment is Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s prediction (a golden avatara [ref srimad bhagavatam 11.5.32 and vishnu sahasranamam], circo 500yrs ago) of spreading Hari Nama in every town and every village which is ushering in the 10,000 yrs of respite from Kali yuga [ref Brahma Vaivarta Purana]. This in keeping with the Yuga dharma of this age “hare nama, hare nama, hare namaiva kevalam, kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha”(ref Brhan-naradiya Purana) which is why it may appear simple to those not familiar with the prescribed method for this yuga. The title of “Hare Krishna Mahamantra” is not a party policy it is given by Kali-Santarana Upanisad. In short there is no ‘revision’ it. It is backed up by praman (evidence). Modern hindu-ism practised by most hindus outside of India and in most urbanised communities in India, sorry to have to say this, is fluff and is nothing more than a social convention (when we need mantras for wedding, births and death etc) vis-a-vis ISKCON’s Bhagavad dharma. I polled the majority of hindu relatives in the US (who barely know two verses from the Bhagavad Gita and are festival practitioners of hinduism) and those in India are worse, they know even less and are all too eager to throw away what treasures they have. They are too busy trying to get to the US and are for the most part ‘wanna be western’ apologetic hindus! They are happy just to keep the color of Holi and the lights of deepawali but no meaning behind it.
Finally, a genuinely interesting column with evidence of intelligence and introspection. Well done, Hannah.
As others have noted, Hinduism can be considered more private than the western mainstream religions. Most devout Hindus have some sort of dedicated spiritual/holy area within the home, where regular meditation and/or worship takes place. The relationship with God is taken very personally, and is quite intimate and private. It’s quite different from the “I just go to Church on Sunday” mentality; much more intricately woven into the fabric of daily life and culture.
Actually, this movement heralds God in a VERY personal manner, with direct bhakti to him. I believe that you’ve gotten the wrong meaning from the parade. While the chanting may seem very expressive, Hinduism in its modern form is more about meditating on God inwards.
It doesn’t matter if you can’t splash thousands of dollars on a puja. As long as God remains in your heart, it’s all fine.
Great column. I found a web site that lists some of the similarities and differences between Krishna and Jesus Christ:
http://www.sherdog.net/forums/f54/hare-krishna-jesus-christ-375269/