Recently I had the unique opportunity to visit the ISKCON temple in Dallas, TX. The ISKCON organization was originally founded in the Americas in 1966 by Srila Prabhupada. Beginning in a small storefront temple in New York, Prabhupada worked tirelessly to bring the faith across the United States and the globe. Today, the group has 650 schools, colleges, temples, and centers worldwide. But what is worshiped at the ISKCON temples that has attracted such a following in just 50 years?

I was fortunate enough to be lead through the temple by a man named Prajapati. He has been a part of the community in Dallas for decades. He lead us down a hall first to a special room for our shoes, as they are not to be worn in the sanctuary itself. When we entered, there was a ceremony going on in the front of the room in front of a stature of Krishna. The idol, as well as others, was dressed in unique clothing which is changed often. The members of the congregation were chanting. Prajapati explained the history of the temple, as he had been there since the beginning of the movement and had actually worked with Prabhupada himself. Originally, the temple had much more of a counter-culture following, with people of all ethnicities joining in in search of understanding through the unique meditation of the Hare Krishna. However, as time has gone on, it has attracted much more of a following from immigrants from India. The temple is decorated with paintings depicting the life of Krishna, as well as a stature of Prabhupada. The paintings lining the wall depicted the life of the deity Krishna. As we looked around, Prajapati explained the beliefs of the Hare Krishna in more depth.

Krishna is thought by some to be an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. As a child he was a bit of a “rascal,” as Prajapati put it, at one point climbing on the back of his friend to get the ghee (clarified butter) from a pot hanging from the ceiling. In another story, Krishna is watching cattle with some other boys. As they eat, another deity steals all the cattle. The boys go off in search of the cattle to try to return them home. While they are gone, Krishna manifests himself as all the cattle and the boys so no-one notices anything is amiss. Another tale from his later years involves him manifesting as many duplicates of himself, so every maiden at a dance may dance with him. These were just a few of the tales of Krishna’s life.

As Prajapati explained these tales, a young girl brought a flower around for each of us to smell. This allows the sense of smell to be engaged in the worship of Krishna, along with the other senses. As the ceremony was brought to a close, curtains were drawn in front of the idols. As I departed, I was offered a cookie made of sanctified ingredients. Overall, it was a fascinating opportunity to see the beliefs of a faith so different from my own, and yet not as different as I had expected. It was a truly insightful experience.

 

Thomas Park

 

Sources: The Hare Krishna Movement – Forty Years of Chant and Change (Article)

The Hare Krishnas – Celebrating 50 years (Magazine given to us by the Hare Krishnas)