Invisible Hare Krishnas
BY: GOVINDA DAS
May 25, 2011 — UK (SUN) — Book distribution and public harinam sankirtana are the two most important activities of ISKCON. Since the departure of Srila Prabhupada we have seen a drastic decline in street chanting. Thankfully book distribution has not declined to the same extent. However, it is not enough to just rely on book distribution for spreading Krishna consciousness. Prabhupada wrote to Brahmananda, "This Sankirtana Party and our Book Department are very, very important; they are our right and left hands…"
In the early days of ISKCON it was normal for devotees to blissfully chant and dance on the street eight hours a day. The Hare Krishna Movement was well known in the seventies. Now we are practically invisible. Quite often members of the public will make comments like, "Where have you guys been? I remember you from the seventies."
Seminars, home programs, retreats etc. are currently very popular amongst devotees, but they don't put us in the public eye. We need to get our priorities right. The essence of Lord Caitanya's movement is to freely give Krishna consciousness to everyone, not just keep it to ourselves.
When are we going to give public chanting the importance that it deserves?
