ISKCON is ISKCON’s Devotees

Hare Krishna! Greetings from Sridhama Mayapur, the world headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and a sacred place of pilgrimage for all followers of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

As the Minister of Communications, I am often asked “What is ISKCON?” There are, of course, many ways of answering that question, and how I respond would depend on the context. Recently, though, I have been reflecting on one answer that I find particularly exciting: ISKCON is ISKCON devotees. Each devotee who commits to the path of Krishna consciousness as taught by Srila Prabhupada is an irreplaceable piece of the ISKCON jig-saw puzzle, and each individual personality contributes something needed to assemble the “big picture” of the Hare Krishna movement. Or, said another way, when these unique devotees of Krishna come together to cooperatively serve Srila Prabhupada’s mission, that is ISKCON. The whole may indeed be greater than the sum of its parts, but in Krishna consciousness each and every one of those parts is as important as the whole.

Being in Mayapur during festival season makes it easy to think of ISKCON in this way. Devotees with diverse ethnicities and nationalities, from a variety of backgrounds and walks of life, with services and occupations that run the gamut, pour in to the holy town from everywhere on the globe to join together in worship and fellowship. Disciples of Prabhupada link arms with second-generation devotees. Women in colorful saris offer their respects alongside their male counterparts. Renounced monks and pious families occupy the same campus. The entire place is alive with the energy of “unity in diversity.”

Srila Prabhupada seemed to also equate ISKCON with ISKCON devotees. In Nectar of Instruction he writes of devotees sharing loving exchanges and notes that the “International Society for Krishna Consciousness has been established to facilitate these six kinds of loving exchanges between devotees.” To me, this means that as important as the physical temple structures may be, we must never forget that the people coming together inside those temples are the reason that they were built in the first place.

As ISKCON Communications develops our new website, we want to try to reflect this idea in our design. As soon as we can work out the kinks (web 2.0!), we will feature a slideshow of pictures depicting Krishna devotees from around the world. We think that this sampling of smiling faces offers the best snapshot of what ISKCON is all about.

ISKCON has many wonderful resources. Impressive temple buildings, rich artwork and beautiful music, unparalleled worship of the deity form of the Lord. But the greatest assets our movement can claim are the more than one million men, women, and children around the world who make ISKCON their spiritual home.

Your servant,
Anuttama Dasa

Scholars with Expertise on the Hare Krishna Movement

This is a brief list of scholars of religion and sociology qualified as experts in the study of the Hare Krishna Movement. To respect their privacy, we are not listing their contact information.  However, if you would like to schedule an opportunity to consult with them, please contact us.

List of Scholars with Expertise on the Hare Krishna Movement

Dr. Diana L. Eck
Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies, Harvard University

Dr. Ravi M. Gupta
Professor of Religion, The College of William & Mary

Dr. Burke E. Rochford
Professor, Department of Sociology, Middlebury College (Vermont)

Dr. Graham Schweig
Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Christopher Newport University (Virginia)

Dr. Larry D. Shinn
Office of the President, Berea College (Kentucky)

Dr. Kenneth J. Valpey
Professor, Indian Religions and Culture, Chinese University of Hong Kong

Academic Resources

Here are some great resources for those in the academic community, or anyone who wants to get a snap-shot of ISKCON’s relationship with the academic world.

Two great projects that ISKCON devotees participate in:

• Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies
• Harvard University Pluralism Project

Articles, originally published in the ISKCON Communications Journal, on ISKCON and Academia:

• Analysing ISKCON for Twenty-five Years: A Personal Reflection (Vol. 8, No. 1) – E. Burke Rochford, Jr.
• Contemporary Theological Trends in the Hare Krishna Movement: A Theology of Religions (Vol. 1, No. 1) – Dr Kim Knott
• Education and ISKCON: Some Reflections from an Interested Observer (Vol. 5, No. 1) – Sefton Davies
• The First Indologists (Vol. 3, No. 1) – Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami
• The Future of ISKCON (Vol. 1, No. 2) – Satyaraja Dasa and E. Burke Rochford, Jr.
• ISKCON at the Crossroads? (Vol. 2, No. 1) – Prof. Larry Shinn
• Krishna Culture Kids: Exploring the ISKCON Childhood Experience (Vol. 9, No. 1) – Norma M. McCaig
• NRM is a Four-letter Word: The Language of Oppression (Vol. 3, No. 2) – Mukunda Goswami
• Observations on ISKCON’s Communication (Vol. 3, No. 1) – Br. Aelred/Caitanya Dasa
• The Sampradaya of Sri Caitanya (Vol. 4, No. 1) – Steven Rosen & William Deadwyler III
• Understanding ISKCON (Vol. 3, No. 2) – Charles Brooks
• Why Should ISKCON Study its own History? (Vol. 6, No. 2) – Thomas J. Hopkins
• Why Should ISKCON Study Its Own History? (Addendum) (Vol. 7, No. 1) – Thomas J.  Hopkins

Academia

ISKCON Communications works with the academic community by providing them with case studies to explore and write about, and by offering the practitioner’s view to their study of the faith.  We attend academic conferences and provide guest speakers in University classes.  In addition, we help to connect others (such as the media) with scholars who are experts on the Hare Krishna movement and the Caitanya Vaisnava tradition that it is rooted in.

Srila Prabhupada

To say that the teachings of the ancient ones come to us through a series of teachers does not mean that the teachers are themselves interchangeable. If they were so faceless, there would be little point in writing a biography of any of them. But this life of Srila Prabhupada is pointed proof that one can be a transmitter of truth and still be a vital and singular person, even—in a sense I now feel safe to use—in some ways “original.” . . . At what almost anyone would consider a very advanced age, when most people would be resting on their laurels, he harkened to the mandate of his own spiritual teacher and set out on the difficult voyage to America. Srila Prabhupada is, of course, only one of thousands of teachers. But in another sense, he is one in a thousand, maybe one in a million.

- Dr. Harvey Cox, Harvard Divinity

When His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada entered the port of New York City on September 17, 1965, few Americans took notice — but he was not merely another immigrant.  He was on a mission to introduce an ancient religion, which originated in India, into mainstream America.  Before Srila Prabhupada passed away on November 14, 1977, at the age of 81, his mission proved successful.  He had founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and saw it grow into a worldwide confederation of more than 100 temples, ashrams and cultural centers.

Srila Prabhupada was born Abhay Charan De on September 1, 1896, to a pious Hindu family in Calcutta.  As a youth growing up in British-controlled India, Abhay became involved with Mahatma Gandhi’s civil disobedience movement to secure independence for his nation. It was, however, a 1922 meeting with a prominent scholar and religious leader, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, which proved most influential on Abhay’s future calling. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta was a leader in the Gaudiya Vaishnava denomination, a monotheistic tradition within the broad Hindu culture, and asked Abhay to bring the teachings of Lord Krishna to the English-speaking world. Abhay became a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta in 1933, and resolved to carry out his mentor’s request. Abhay, later known by the honorific A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, spent the next 32 years preparing for his journey west.

In 1965, at the age of sixty-nine, Srila Prabhupada traveled to New York City aboard a cargo ship.  The journey was treacherous, and the elderly spiritual teacher suffered two heart attacks aboard ship. Arriving in the United States with just seven dollars in Indian rupees and his translations of sacred Sanskrit texts, Srila Prabhupada began to share the timeless wisdom of Krishna consciousness.  His message of peace and goodwill resonated with many young people, some of whom came forward to become serious students of the Krishna tradition.  With the help of these students, Srila Prabhupada rented a small storefront on New York’s Lower East Side to use as a temple.  On July 11, 1966, he officially registered his organization in the state of New York, formally founding the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

In the eleven years that followed, Srila Prabhupada circled the globe 14 times on lecture tours, bringing the teachings of Lord Krishna to thousands of people on six continents.  Men and women from all backgrounds and walks of life came forward to accept his message, and with their help, Srila Prabhupada established ISKCON centers and projects throughout the world.  Under his inspiration, Krishna devotees established temples, rural communities, educational institutions, and started what would become the world’s largest vegetarian food relief program.    With the desire to nourish the roots of Krishna consciousness in its home, Srila Prabhupada returned to India several times, where he sparked a revival in the Vaishnava tradition.  In India, he opened dozens of temples, including large centers in the holy towns of Vrindavana and Mayapur.

Srila Prabhupada’s most significant contributions, perhaps, are his books.  He authored over 70 volumes on the Krishna tradition, which are highly respected by scholars for their authority, depth, fidelity to the tradition, and clarity.  Several of his works are used as textbooks in numerous college courses.  His writings have been translated into 76 languages. His most prominent works include:  Bhagavad-gita As It Is, the 30-volume Srimad-Bhagavatam, and the 17-volume Sri Caitanya-caritamrita.

ISKCON Communications is

… the communications department of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), popularly known as the Hare Krishna Movement.

We work with the media, givernment, scholars, the Hindu community, interfaith groups and other religious organizations, and other internal and external audiences to help ISKCON better serve its mission.

Enjoy your visit here, and please keep checking in…