Hare Krishna

Today was Krishna’s Birthday and it was about time we did something devotional.  Been here 8 months and so far we have avoided the crowds and observed festivities from afar.  It was time to get up close and personal with the locals.  So, along with about a billion other people, we went to the temple.  Advice was to go to ISKCON Temple in East Delhi.  Why?  We didn't ask, we just thought we’d turn up and see what was going on.

As we got within about a mile of the Temple, our car came to a standstill and we found that we were not alone in our quest.  We had chosen to attend India’s largest Krishna Temple, run by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness the Hare Krishna movement that inspires westerners to wear saffron robes, dance along Oxford Street and Bondi Beach and to chant like George Harrison.  About a million other people had made the same choice.

At this point we could see the hill top temple in the distance lit up with a zillion fairy lights and we could hear the chanting relayed over loud speakers.  So, with positive expectations and good will in the air we joined the queue.  After two hours of very orderly queuing and friendly conversation in broken Hinglish with those around us, we arrived at the various security check points, the shoe depository and finally the entrance to the temple.

Here, we were greeted by devotees who printed white patterns on our foreheads with marigolds and everyone was singing and chanting “hare Krishna, hare Krishna, hare Rama, hare Rama".  I’m sure you know the tune.  We just got swept along with the friendly tide.  The temple was so full it was hard to see our way around so we just shuffled through, chanting and singing, past the statues, the fountains, the musicians, the book sellers, the donation boxes and finally through the Prasad (free food) hall.

Another hour later, we re-emerged into the street rejuvenated, inspired and spiritually lifted affirming that we “must come back another time to take a better look around”.  Then we got back in the car and went for out for Chinese.

(Sorry, no photography was allowed so please use imagination with lots of colour and movement)

Namaste