Hare krishnas?

Yes, I am a member of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, which has a 5,000 year old chain of disciplic succession. Although we are colloquially known as the "Hare Krishna's", officially we are Gaudiya Vaisnavas.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness draws its authenticity and potency from a long succession of spiritual teachers and disciples (parampara). There are four major disciplic successions (sampradayas), ISKCON belongs to the Brahma Sampradaya, founded by Lord Krishna Himself. There are many branches to this sampradaya. Our society belongs to the branch founded by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the 16th century.

The principle is that Vaisnava teachings should be passed on, unchanged, from guru to disciple. The most prominent devotees in this lineage are accepted as acaryas: those who teach by example, who carry the line forward. Listed below are the acaryas since, and including, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu

The Six Goswamis of Vrindavana

· Srila Rupa Goswami

· Srila Sanatana Goswami

· Gopal Bhatta Goswami

· Ragunatha dasa Goswami

· Ragunatha Batta Goswami

· Jiva Goswami

Krsnadasa Kaviraj Goswami

Narottama Dasa Thakura

Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura

Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana

Jagannatha Dasa Babaji

Bhaktivinoda Thakura

Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji

Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Our spiritual master HDG A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

gave a clear mission statement for ISKCON which is outlined in the following seven points.

1)To systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society at large and to educate all people in the techniques of spiritual life in order to check the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.

2)To propagate a consciousness of Krishna (God), as it is revealed in the great scriptures of India, Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam.

3)To bring the members of the Society together with each other and nearer to Krishna, the prime entity, thus developing the idea within the members, and humanity at large, that each soul is part and parcel of the quality of Godhead (Krishna).

4)To teach and encourage the sankirtana movement, congregational chanting of the holy name of God, as revealed in the teachings of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

5)To erect for the members and for society at large a holy place of transcendental pastimes dedicated to the personality of Krishna.

6)To bring the members closer together for the purpose of teaching a simpler, more natural way of life.

7)To publish and distribute periodicals, magazines, books and other writings on transcendental topics.

Most ISKCON members practise Krishna consciousness in their homes and live and work in the general community. They also congregate in temples for worship.

Most temple-based members are in training, or serve as clergy engaged in ministerial and missionary work. Some members also help maintain ISKCON rural communities throughout the world.

In 1970 Srila Prabhupada formed a Governing Body Commission (GBC) to help manage an expanding ISKCON. Before Srila Prabhupada passed away in 1977, he requested that executive authority for ISKCON be passed to this Commission. The GBC decides ISKCON's major strategies and guidelines by democratic voting and in consultation with Temple Presidents and other leaders.

Working tirelessy over 12 years, Srila Prabhupada managed to write over 70 volumes of books - translations of Vedic scriptures into English and extensive commentaries on them.

Established in 1972 for publishing Srila Prabhupada's works, The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) has become the world's largest publisher and distributor of books on Indian philosophy and religion.

To date, the BBT has published over 500 million books and magazines in more than 60 languages.

Our philosophy is based on the Vedic scriptures, which state that spiritual life begins when one inquires into the nature of the absolute truth, the Supreme Godhead.

Gaudiya Vaisnavas are monotheists and know the personality of Godhead as Krishna, the All-attractive. But it is also recognised that the Supreme has unlimited names such as Rama, Buddha, Vishnu, Jehovah, Allah, etc. The ultimate goal of Gaudiya Vaisnavism is to develop a loving relationship with the Supreme Godhead.

The Vedas also tell us that the understanding of the self, as being non-material or spiritual by nature, is the preliminary stage of realisation of the absolute truth. To understand knowledge of self-realisation one must approach a genuine spiritual master, just as one learns the essence of any subject from a perfected practitioner.

The congregational chanting of the maha-mantra, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, as promoted by Sri Caitanya, is accepted by the Vedas as the most effective means of self-purification in this age. The Vedas describe the mantra as a prayer to the Lord, "Please Lord, engage me in Your service".

Devotees may accept formal initiation into the chanting of the Holy Name vowing to abstain from intoxication, gambling, illicit sexual connections and the eating of meat, fish or eggs. ISKCON members believe indulgence in the aforementioned activities disrupts physical, mental and spiritual well-being, and increases anxiety and conflict in society. At the time of initiation devotees also agree to chant a prescribed number of mantras each day.

To discuss any aspect of Krishna Consciousness further:-Sriman Sankarshan Das Adhikari (sda@backtohome.com)

I am not a "Hare Krishna". Krishna is depicted with the peacock feathers, and sitting by the lake under the full moon with his arm around the deer.

Represents connection with Nature.

The ISKCON has a membership of over one million followers worldwide, with its head quarters in Los Angeles. It is a monotheistic faith group, which regards Krishna as the eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Unlike mainline Hinduism, ISKCON regards Krishna as the supreme Lord over all deities. The symbol of the Hare Krishna faith consists of two stripes representing Krishan's feet, and a "Tulsi" or basil leaf in the center. The followers "believe — 'We are not this body, but spirit souls who are temporarily trapped in a material body and worldly woes, the ultimate goal being to break away from samsara (endless births) and return to the abode of God."

If you open up your heart

You will know what I mean

We've been polluted so long

But here's a way for you to get clean

By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free

The Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see.

~ "Awaiting On You All"

From the Beatles album All Things Must Pass

"The Hare Krishna Mantra", in 1969, the Beatles, perhaps the most popular music group of all time, produced a hit single, performed by George Harrison and the devotees of the Radha-Krishna Temple, London.

The song soon topped the 10 best-selling record charts throughout UK, Europe, and Asia. Soon after the BBC featured the 'Hare Krishna Chanters', four times on the popular television program Top of the Pops. And the Hare Krishna chant became a household word, especially in parts of Europe and Asia.

Swami Prabhupada, believed to be a pure devotee of Lord Krishna, laid the foundations of the Hare Krishna Movement by coming to the USA at the advanced age of seventy in order to fulfill the desire of his own spiritual master who wanted him to spread Krishna consiousness in the Western countries. It was 1965 — the beginning of the "mid-twentieth century phenomenon" called the "Krishna Consciousness Movement". The "saffron-robed, dance-happy, book-hawking" Krishna followers burst upon the world with the refrain —

Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Hare, Hare,

Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama, Rama, Hare, Hare

— the mantra of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).

However, the origin of this faith dates back to 5000 years ago when Lord Krishna was born in Vrindavan to save the citizens from the tyrant King Kansa. Later in the 16th century Chaitanya Mahaprabhu revived the Hare Krishna Movement and preached that all can gain a personal relationship with the Lord through sankirtana, ie, a collective chanting of the name of Krishna. Many religious leaders kept alive the faith of "leading the people towards god through devotional songs and selfless Bhakti" — the way of devotion. Swami Prabhupada, the founder of ISKCON is one of the most notable among them.

Ex-Beatle George Harrison, who is a prominent member of the ISKCON has great faith in chanting the name of the Lord. He says: "I always felt at home with Krishna. I think it's something that's been with me from my previous birth…Once I chanted the Hare Krishna mantra all the way from France to Portugal, nonstop. I drove for about twenty-three hours and chanted all the way. It gets you feeling a bit invincible…I couldn't speak French, Spanish, or Portuguese. But none of that seemed to matter. You know, once you get chanting, then things start to happen transcendentally."

The Hare Krishna movement has always been a favorite religion of pop musicians, including Bob Dylan and Stevie Wonder. The latter had put the Hare Krishna chant in one of his songs "Pastimes Paradise". The other ex-Beatle John Lennon was also an ardent follower of the Krishna Consciousness. Several years ago, Lennon and Yoko Ono, along with a chorus of Krishna devotes recorded the hit song "Give Peace a Chance" in their room at Montreal's Queen Elizabeth Hotel, which helped identify ISKCON as the harbinger of world peace, and promoter of a joyful way of life. But in recent times, the ISKCON has been tormented by regrettable incidents of sexual and child abuse that have put a question mark after the six-letter word! However, its good deeds far outnumber the sporadic scandals.