Teachings
Hare Krishna devotees often express that religion without philosophy is merely sentimental, while philosophy without religion is dry speculation. Religion manifests itself through culture, which includes various codes of behavior that help us recognize that we are not just temporary material bodies but eternal spirit souls, servants of God.
Our state of mind is reflected in our activities—how we dress, eat, and communicate. Conversely, the nature of our activities influences our state of mind. This means that we can elevate our consciousness by engaging in higher-quality activities. All spiritual practices assist in purifying our consciousness and directing it toward God.
For this reason, a Vaishnava (a devotee of Krishna) views the regulations of spiritual life not as restrictions, but as “regulative principles of freedom”—tools for enhancing personal character development and spiritual consciousness.
The four basic principles are as follows:
1. Cleanliness: This applies to the body, mind, and soul. It involves daily washing of the body and refraining from illicit sex (allowing sexual relations only for procreation within marriage). Practices such as celibacy, the recitation of God’s (Krishna’s) holy names, and studying the holy Scriptures help maintain a clean and balanced mind and soul.
2. Mercy: We should strive to help all living entities, both materially and spiritually. True followers of the Vedic (or any) Scriptures are strict vegetarians. It is entirely possible to live healthily and happily without needlessly taking the lives of innocent animals. Killing our fellow living beings instead of protecting them is against God’s laws.
3. Austerity: We should take only what we truly need, without greed or violence. Intoxicants such as alcohol, drugs (both hard and soft), tobacco, and caffeine diminish our capacity for mercy and friendliness. Addictions are not only unnecessary but also harmful to our bodies, minds, and to others. The best way to overcome addictions is to awaken our eternal relationship with God (Krishna) by living by His teachings.
4. Truthfulness: This principle emphasizes that we should not lie or gamble. Gambling undermines truthfulness since it attempts to bypass the laws of nature to gain material profit without honest effort. An honest deed is the best gamble in the world and a sure winner.
Many rules and regulations in life help us to be healthy, happy, and successful. The most important principle of all is:
Always remember Krishna (God) and never forget Him.
Yoga is the practice of connecting oneself with God (Krishna) by focusing the mind on Him and controlling the often-disruptive senses. Through yoga, individuals gradually free themselves from materialistic attachments, which is a fundamental aspect of the yoga process. When one is free from these attachments, interest in the physical body diminishes, and a desire for spiritual perfection grows.
By perfecting one’s yoga practice, a person can achieve complete happiness in this life and, after death, attain a state of eternal bliss known as liberation. In the perfected state of yoga, individuals are released from the cycle of material suffering (as discussed in the concepts of Karma and Reincarnation) and can enter the spiritual world to serve God in purity.
Yoga encompasses various practices tailored to one’s level of spiritual advancement and can be compared to a ladder leading to the highest spiritual realization. This comprehensive approach can be divided into three main parts: 1) Karma, 2) Jnana, and 3) Bhakti.
1) Karma-yoga: This involves working towards material comforts while understanding that the ultimate goal of life is Krishna (God).
2) Jnana-yoga: In this stage, an individual recognizes that Krishna is the goal but takes pleasure in intellectual speculation.
3) Bhakti-yoga: This represents the highest perfection of yoga, where a person knows that Krishna is the goal and remains unattached to any material possessions, whether gross or subtle, focusing solely on serving Krishna for His pleasure.
For yoga practice to be truly effective, it requires self-restraint. The type of yoga that devotees of Krishna strive to perfect is centered on bhakti-yoga.
In the Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krishna outlines the yoga process within Krishna consciousness, stating: “Always chanting my glories, endeavoring with great determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me with devotion.” (Bhagavad-gita 9.14) This emphasizes that practicing bhakti-yoga (Krishna consciousness) involves chanting the glories of God.
“Karma” refers to “activity,” and the law of karma governs the reactions to our actions. It is the natural law of action and reaction. In physics, this concept is expressed by Newton’s third law: “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Similarly, in Christian theology, it is said, “As ye sow, so shall ye reap.”
Practically speaking, this means that good actions yield positive results, while bad or destructive actions lead to negative outcomes. It’s important to note that all souls are essentially good. Therefore, experiencing a bad reaction does not necessarily define someone as a bad person.
Another key point is that karma is temporary. Although we may be facing a particular set of circumstances right now, those circumstances can change in the future, either in this life or in future lives. Moreover, it is possible to change one’s karma or even eliminate it entirely by engaging in spiritual actions in the service of God.
Good reactions may include wealth, beauty, intelligence, and happiness, while bad reactions could manifest as poverty or disease. To truly understand how karma operates, we should also consider the concept of reincarnation.
Karma, whether good or bad, creates a cycle in which individuals become entangled in repeated actions and their subsequent reactions. As long as one remains in this cycle, they will inevitably experience both happiness and distress. The philosophy of the devotees of Krishna teaches ways to break free from this cycle and achieve a state of eternal happiness known as liberation in a pure relationship with Krishna (God).
From a spiritual perspective, which considers eternity, it is not crucial whether one has “good” or “bad” karma. This is because past material karma does not hinder spiritual advancement.
“Holy Cow!” We’ve all heard that exclamation many times, but what exactly is holy about a cow? To understand this, we need to look at India.
In the agrarian lifestyle of Indian villagers, conserving natural resources is an essential part of daily life. Villagers rely on nature’s resources to produce all their necessities, from their mud huts to their home-spun clothes. The most significant aspect of village conservation is the protection of cows. Each household typically keeps at least one cow, which is considered the most useful of all domestic animals. In fact, both cows and bulls are essential to 90% of the Indian population. Cows eat only grass, which is free to produce, and in return, they produce milk that supplies nearly all the nutrients we need. One cow can produce more milk than an entire family can drink in a single day. Any surplus milk is transformed into yogurt, cheese, butter, and ghee (butterfat), which are crucial for many exquisite Indian sweets and savory dishes.
Because cows provide milk, they are culturally seen as mothers in India and are thus deserving of reverence. Many babies are raised on cow’s milk.
In India, it is well-known that cow dung has antiseptic properties. In any Indian village, you will see cow pats drying in the sun, ready to be used as fuel for cooking. Cow urine is also prescribed in Ayurveda as a medicinal remedy. When a cow finally passes away, her skin can be used for shoes and bags, and her horns can be fashioned into various tools.
The majestic bull can be seen in Indian fields, pulling the plow. While slower than tractors, he does not compact the soil or reduce its productivity, unlike mechanical methods. Additionally, using working animals like oxen avoids harming many earth-dwelling creatures. The more we depend on machinery instead of traditional working animals, the more we create a need for numerous subsidiary industries for manufacturing and maintaining those machines.
The bull continues to play a vital role in rural India and is regarded as a father figure, diligently working to produce food for humans. Like the cow, he is also considered deserving of respect.
There is a symbiotic relationship between humans and cows. When we take good care of them—ensuring they are sheltered, fed, and protected—they happily produce more than enough milk for their calves, allowing us to take the excess without causing them any harm.
Mantra meditation is a spiritual and religious practice found in nearly all religious traditions, although the methods of practice may vary. In the Vaishnava tradition, which includes the followers of Krishna, there are two primary forms of this meditation: individual practice and congregational practice.
In individual practice, devotees of Krishna follow a daily schedule of personal prayer and meditation. This practice centers around the recitation of Krishna’s names using prayer beads to keep track of the number of names chanted. The mantra that they repeat is known as the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra:
Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama
Rama Rama, Hare Hare
The second form, congregational practice, involves the use of musical instruments. Instead of chanting on beads, the mantra is sung. One person leads the singing, while others in the group respond. This religious performance can take place either in Krishna temples or in public settings. In India, such public performances have been common for many centuries.
The names “Hare,” “Krishna,” and “Rama” all refer to God and His energies within the Vaishnava tradition. Because God is spiritual and all-powerful, chanting His name leads to purification, both materially and spiritually. This chanting is also viewed as a form of prayer, where the devotee appeals to the Lord to engage them in His service.
Reincarnation is the process by which the spiritual essence of an individual, commonly referred to as “the soul,” passes from one body to another in a continuous cycle of birth and death.
In the Bhagavad-gita, this process is illustrated with the following analogy: “As the embodied soul passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change.” (Bhagavad-gita 2.13)
Because the soul exists eternally, this process can also go on indefinitely. In everyday life, there is always some degree of distress and suffering. Since the soul is eternal, as long as it remains trapped in the cycle of reincarnation, it will continue to experience suffering. The Hare Krishna philosophy offers insights into how one can break this cycle of repeated suffering. This guidance is exemplified in the Bhagavad-gita, which, at its core, explains how to attain liberation and escape from this cycle.
Hare Krishna philosophy is founded on two key principles that are practically expressed through the practice of vegetarianism:
1) Non-violence
2) Service to God (Krishna)
Non-violence refers to the idea of not interrupting the progressive life—whether materially or spiritually—of any living being. According to the laws of karma and reincarnation, if an animal is killed before its allotted time in that particular body has ended, it must be reborn in the same type of body to complete its remaining days. This limits its evolution to the next species. Therefore, killing animals merely to satisfy human appetites is an act of both material and spiritual violence.
Regarding service to God, the Bhagavad-gita states: “If one offers Me (Krishna) with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, I will accept it” (Bhagavad-gita 9.26).
Before consuming any food, devotees of Krishna perform a ceremony in which they offer their food to God. This ritual sanctifies the food and frees the individual from the karma associated with the collection and preparation of the ingredients.
Since the Bhagavad-gita specifies that Krishna will only accept vegetarian offerings, Hare Krishnas practice vegetarianism as an act of service to please God (Krishna).
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) was incorporated in New York in 1966, but it is not a new religion. Its founder, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, represents a tradition that traces back to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who lived in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Chaitanya himself is part of a lineage of teachers that dates back thousands of years in India. This lineage, known as the Brahma-Madhva Gaudiya sampradaya, is one of the four principal traditions of Vaishnavism, which worships Lord Krishna or Lord Vishnu as the supreme deity.
Vaishnavism is one of the main theological schools within what is broadly referred to as Hinduism. However, the terms “Hindu” and “Hinduism” do not appear in any of the scriptures. They were coined by Persian invaders to describe the religion and culture of the people living beyond the River Sindhu, which is now called the Indus in modern-day Pakistan. The term “Hinduism” encompasses the entirety of India’s religious culture, excluding faiths that originated outside of India, such as Christianity. It also includes those religions that developed within this context but later defined themselves as distinct traditions, such as Buddhism and Sikhism.
Many followers of this tradition prefer the term sanatan-dharma, which means “eternal duty.” This term refers to the fundamental purpose of living beings, understood as service to God. It suggests that true religion transcends temporary designations of faith, gender, color, nationality, and species. The principles of Sanatan Dharma are outlined in the sacred texts known as the Vedas.