Wednesday, Apr 02, 2008

Hare-Who?

Download this episode (4 min)  
If you open up your heart
You will know what I mean
We've been polluted so long
But here's a way for you to get clean
By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free
The Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see.
-George Harrison
“Awaiting On You All" from the album All things Must Pass
http://www.harekrishna.com/

Isn’t that interesting?

So was Thursday night at SLO Farmer’s Market last week. My seed-sow’n buddy Nolan came into town from Lompoc. Sawyer and I met him at McDonnals and drove to SLO together from there. Just after Farmer’s Market closed, we were walking back towards my vehicle when we heard a strange sound. Listen to the podcast and you’ll hear the same droning tones that I’m talking about.

The music was nauseating! For one, it’s so repetitive! But what really drives me nuts is that it is “worship music.” Yep! It was the music of a Hare Krishna threesome.

There were maybe 6-8 people standing around watching/listening to these guys play. Sawyer, Nolan and I observed for a few seconds before deciding to move on. Just as we turned around and began to walk away, the cymbal player stopped playing and handed one of the couples standing there a small booklet. My discerning buddy Nolan said, “Allen, look, that guy is evangelizing.”

We stood and watched this HK gent talk to couple. I had my handy recorder so I walked up to them and tried to record a bit of their conversation. I regret that it wasn’t a good enough recording to include in the podcast. However, you can hear a few seconds of it before I was able to ask the HK guy a question.

I didn’t have any specific questions prepared. Actually I didn’t know what I was going to ask him until I opened my mouth. The guy I was talking is in the photo on the bottom. Asking loud enough for everyone else to hear I said, “How is your sin removed?” I didn’t realize the significance of the way I phrased the question but when I got home I jumped on the information super-highway and found out some trippy things about this religion – specifically about how they believe “the grievous sins are removed.” Listen to this quote, "All the grievous sins are removed for one who worships Lord Sri Hari, the Lord of all lords, and chants the holy name, the Maha-mantra."—Padma Purana; Svarga Khanda 50.6

Isn’t that crazy? They believe that the Hare Krishna worshiper’s “grievous sins are removed” when the worshiper “chants the holy name.” This is so sad!

What’s the deal with the “chant” or “mantra?” Below is an excerpt from Wikipedia:

“The Hare Krishna mantra, also referred to reverentially as the Maha Mantra ("Great Mantra"), is a sixteen-word Vaishnava mantra made well known outside of India by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (commonly known as 'the Hare Krishnas'). It appears within many traditions of Hinduism and is believed by practitioners to bring about a higher state of consciousness when heard, spoken, meditated upon, or sung out loud. According to Gaudiya Vaishnava theology, this higher consciousness ultimately takes the form of pure love of God (Krishna).

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare

The mantra is repeated, either out loud (kirtan), softly to oneself (japa), or internally within the mind. Srila Prabhupada describes the process of chanting the Maha Mantra as follows:

Krishna consciousness is not an artificial imposition on the mind; this consciousness is the original energy of the living entity. When we hear the transcendental vibration, this consciousness is revived. This chanting of 'Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare' is directly enacted from the spiritual platform, and thus this sound vibration surpasses all lower strata of consciousness - namely sensual, mental, and intellectual. As such anyone can take part in the chanting without any previous qualification.
The practice of chanting the Hare Krishna mantra is recommended in the Puranas, the Pañcaratra, and throughout Vaishnava literature in general. For example:

-> "All the grievous sins are removed for one who worships Lord Sri Hari, the Lord of all lords, and chants the holy name, the Maha-mantra."—Padma Purana; Svarga Khanda 50.6
-> "Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare: Whoever chants this mantra, even neglectfully, will attain the supreme goal of life. Of this there is no doubt."— Agni Purana
-> "This sixteen-name, thirty-two-syllable mantra is the Maha-mantra in the Age of Kali, by which all living beings can be delivered. One should never abandon chanting this maha-mantra."—Ananta-samhita
-> "About this divinely spiritual Maha-mantra, which delivers one from material existence, the original guru, Lord Brahma, has said: 'The srutis have declared this mantra to be the best means of deliverance in the Age of Kali.' Having heard this from Brahma, all the sons and disciples of Brahma, beginning with Narada, accepted the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra and, having meditated on it, attained perfection."—Ananta-samhita
-> "When the sixteen names and thirty-two syllables of the Hare Krishna mantra are loudly vibrated, Krishna dances on one's tongue"—Stava-mala-vidyabhusana-bhasya; Baladeva Vidyabhusana in Bhaktisiddhanta's Gaudiya Kanthahara 17:30””

Unbelievable! Talk about a man-made religion. As my pastor would say, it’s a “do-do” religion. The Hare Krishna believes they have to DO the work to have their sins removed. They are trusting in themselves – a self-made-savior (an idol). Only a depraved mind could come up with a religion like this. What does God say?

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Eph. 2:1-10

It’s by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone that we can be made right before God.

There is a way that seems right to man but the end of that way leads to death. My heart breaks for these poor guys. They are working so hard to attempt to please some “god” that doesn’t even exist. Christian, if no body tells them the Good News, that forgiveness of sins is granted through the finished WORK of Jesus Christ on the Cross, in the end, they will perish. Doesn’t that break your heart? Come out to Farmer’s Market some afternoon and ask God to use you as His instrument. Don’t Waste Your Life!

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