Hare Krishna Devotees Chanting


Chicago - State and Wacker

"For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge."

- Romans 10:2

I'm in Chicago on business for a couple of days. As I walked back to my hotel the rush hour crowd and traffic noises were interrupted for a moment by the sound of chanting:

"Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare."

I had flirted with the Hare Krishna Movement in the early '70's, and again briefly in 2002 after the death of George Harrison, its most famous member.

The group I'd met in the 70's were mostly young people who were either recovering from drug addiction or running away from homes that were either broken or unloving. In 2002 I met a somewhat different group, generally much older, but still either disenchanted with life in the "material" world, or seeking a deeper meaning to their lives. Both groups of devotees shared something in common with each other and me. We had all experienced a fleeting glimpse of another reality that we believed came from God. An experience of feeling at one and at peace with the world. For some, the experience had come through hallucinogenic drugs, for others from exposure to eastern mystical philosophy. But the experience primes a thirst that cannot be quenched - it creates a zeal that is relentless in some of us and causes us to seek God, sometimes, as St. Paul says, without knowledge.

When I saw the Hare Krishna devotees chanting in the middle of a busy city intersection I "heard" the voice of the Holy Spirit challenging my attitude toward worship. Whether I agree with what the Hare Krishna movement says about God - their worship is fervent, fearless and joyful. They chant their hearts out in honor of their god.

Don't worry, I'm not going to shave my head, beat a Mrdanga drum, and chant on street corners. But I am going to try to be more mindful and joyful about my worship from now on.