User:Titodutta/store/Krishna: Difference between revisions

Krishna’s childhood reinforces the Hindu concept of [[lila]], playing for fun and enjoyment and not for sport or gain. His interaction with the [[gopis]] at the rasa dance or [[Rasa-lila]] is a great example of this. Krishna played his flute and the gopis came immediately from whatever they were doing, to the banks of the [[Yamuna River]], and joined him in singing and dancing. Even those who could not physically be there joined him through meditation. <ref> Largen, Kristin Johnston. ” God at Play: Seeing God Through the Lens of the Young Krishna”. Wiley-Blackwell. September 1, 2011. p. 256. </ref>The story of Krishna’s battle with [[Kāliyā]] also supports this idea in the sense of him dancing on Kāliyā’s many hoods. Even though he is doing battle with the serpent, he is in no real danger and treats it like a game. He is a protector, but he only appears to be a young boy having fun. <ref> Largen, Kristin Johnston. ” God at Play: Seeing God Through the Lens of the Young Krishna”. Wiley-Blackwell. September 1, 2011. p. 255. </ref> This idea of having a playful god is very important in Hinduism. The playfulness of Krishna has inspired many celebrations like the Rasa-lila and the Janmashtami : where they make human pyramids to break open handis (clay pots) hung high in the air that spill buttermilk all over the group after being broken by the person at the top. This is meant to be a fun celebration and it gives the participants a sense of unity. Many believe that lila being connected with Krishna gives Hindus a deeper connection to him and thus a deeper connection to Vishnu also; seeing as Krishna is an incarnation of Vishnu. Theologists, like Kristin Johnston Largen, believe that Krishna’s childhood can even inspire other religions to look for lila in deities so that they have a chance to experience a part of their faith that they may not have previously seen. <ref> Largen, Kristin Johnston. ” God at Play: Seeing God Through the Lens of the Young Krishna”. Wiley-Blackwell. September 1, 2011. p. 253-261. </ref>

In 1965, the Krishna-bhakti movement had spread outside India when its founder,[[Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada]], (who was instructed by his [[guru]], [[Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura]]) traveled from his homeland in West Bengal to New York City. A year later in 1966, after gaining many followers, he was able to form the [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness]] (ISKCON), popularly known as the Hare Krishna movement. The purpose of this movement was to write about Krishna in English and to share the [[Gaudiya Vaishnava]] philosophy with people in the Western world  by spreading the teachings of [[Chaitanya Mahaprabhu|Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu]] (an incarnation of Lord Sri Krishna according to the [[Bhavishya Purana]]). In an effort to gain attention, followers chanted the names of God in public locations. This chanting was known as hari-nama sankirtana and helped spread the teaching. Additionally, the practice of distributing prasadam or “sanctified food” worked as a catalyst in the dissemination of his works. In the Hare Krishna movement, [[Prasad]] was a vegetarian dish that would be first offered to Krishna. The food’s proximity to Krishna added a “spiritual effect,” and was seen to “counteract material contamination affecting the soul.” Sharing this sanctified food with the public, in turn, enabled the movement to gain new recruits and further spread these teachings.<ref>''Srila Prabhupada - He Built a House in which the whole world can live in peace, Satsvarupa dasa Goswami, Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, 1984, ISBN 0-89213-133-0'' page xv</ref><ref name="bare_url" /><ref name=”dwyer”>”Dwyer, G. (2010). Krishna prasadam: the transformative power of sanctified food in the Krishna Consciousness Movement. Religions Of South Asia, 4(1), 89-104. doi:10.1558/rosa.v4i1.89”</ref>