Preaching and Book Distribution

Education Through Spiritual Literature

The main business of the Hare Krishna movement is to bring people to the platform of understanding their original, constitutional position as an eternal servant of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krishna. Therefore the devotees are primarily engaged in educating the public in spiritual values.

Srila Prabhupada has written 51 books, which are translations and commentaries of the ancient Vedic scriptures. These books give the highest form of spiritual knowledge, and Srila Prabhupada's purports make the meaning clear and concise.

The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT), the world's largest publisher of Vedic texts, has produced all of Srila Prabhupada's books in editions praised by scholars throughout the world. The BBT is translating and printing books in all modern languages in order to make this knowledge available to all people.

Devotees buy these books from the BBT and distribute large quantities of them in most countries of the world. Hundreds of millions of his books have been distributed in the years since Prabhupada came to the United States. These books are considered Srila Prabhupada's crowning achievement and the most important means of educating humanity in the science of God consciousness.

Harinam Sankirtan

Sankirtan is congregational chanting of the holy names of the Lord and distributing the books of Srila Prabhupada. Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu introduced the sankirtan movement 500 years ago and it is the spiritual process recommended in the Vedas for the age of Kali, the age we now find ourselves in. From the beginning of the Krishna consciousness movement in the West, Srila Prabhupada directed the devotees to chant congregationally in the temple as well as in the parks and streets of the towns and cities. Soon, devotees began selling Back To Godhead magazines alongside the chanting party, and when book distribution started, it was also called "going out on sankirtan." Srila Prabhupada said that book distribution is the most important form of sankirtan, because it spreads transcendental knowledge and engages people in devotional service. It is the Brhat Mrdanga "the big drum". Therefore the production and distribution of transcendental literature is very pleasing to Srila Prabhupada and the entire disciplic succession.

Public Programs

Every center holds public programs, in which initiated devotees, Vaishnava brahmanas, speak on spiritual philosophy and answer any questions which the audience may have. In the Sunday program, the devotees chant mantras congregationally, give lectures, provide some spiritual entertainment, and offer a grand feast to the guests.

On specific holy days of the year, festivals are celebrated in prominent places. In the famous Rathayatra Festival, the Lord rides through the streets on a chariot pulled by thousands of enthusiastic followers. Millions of people take part in the great festival at Jagannatha Puri each year, and Ratha-yatras are now held in cities all over the world.

Each major temple holds festivals on the appearance days of Lord Krishna, called Janmastami; Lord Caitanya, called Gaura Purnima; Lord Ramacandra, called Ramanavani; and Lord Nrsimhadeva, called Nrsimha Caturdasi. The appearance days of these incarnations of Krishna are celebrated with a big festival, shows, displays, chanting and feasting. Everyone is welcome to attend.

On every continent, the Padayatra program's enthusiasts walk hundreds of miles throughout the countryside, usually with a bullock-drawn chariot upon which the Deity form of the Lord stands. Most people are fascinated by the bulls and their mild behaviour (they are devotees too!) and the dedication of the devotees who walk and chant every day from town to town, village to village, and hold a public program and distribute prasadam (spiritual food) at night.

Sometimes devotees put on a Festival of India, where they have free prasadam, exhibits of Vedic culture and philosophy, Bharat Natyam dancers, plays and musical entertainment. People of all kinds come for the spiritual fun.

Restaurants

Restaurants (usually named Govinda's or Gopal's) are popular all over the world because one can be satisfied with the tasty dishes they offer at a modest price. Such dishes are designed to convince even a determined meat-eater that vegetarian food is healthy and delicious. Beyond that, the food is prasadam, or spiritualized food that has been offered to Govinda, Krishna, the satisfier of senses. Therefore Govinda's Restaurants are also designed to convince the determined restaurant-goer that prasadam is worth eating all the time.

School Preaching

Educational institutions train children to function in society, and because society is in constant flux, schools constantly modify their teaching programs. But real knowledge doesn't change. Therefore the Krishna Consciousness movement presents the absolute knowledge of the Vedas in classrooms to show that Krishna Consciousness is based on science and not blind faith, sentimentalism, or speculation. The science of Krishna Consciousness includes also the means to directly experience absolute knowledge and a sublime goal by which everyone can become happy. When a devotee is invited to give a classroom presentation, he begins with kirtan, chanting the holy names of the Lord, and all the students can participate. Then he speaks for about thirty minutes on the philosophy of Krishna Consciousness and then answers the students' questions. Before he leaves, everyone gets prasadam, spiritual food, an invitation to a Sunday feast, and a chance to buy books at a reduced rate for students. The teachers often write letters of appreciation and usually invite us to return year after year.

Food for Life: The World's Largest Vegetarian Food-Relief

The International charity program Hare Krishna Food for Life is doing its part to combat world hunger by providing free meals to the needy. Since then Food for Life volunteers have served hundreds of millions of hot, nutritious vegetarian meals across every continent. Srila Prabhupada, founder of Food for Life, began the program in 1972, stating that "No one within ten miles of our kitchens should go hungry." It has become the world's largest vegetarian food-relief service.

The meticulous preparation and vast distribution of vegetarian foods has always been an essential part of the 5000-year-old cultural tradition that Food for Life represents. In Vedic times, whenever a householder made prasadam, he would call out into the street, "Prasadam," 3 times and offer the food to others before he would eat. Today the program distributes free meals every day from vans and free food restaurants, as well as to homeless shelters, orphanages, mental hospitals, schools, and disaster areas.

Food for Life volunteers have also fed victims of war and natural disaster, at the risk of their own lives, in Sarajevo, Grozny, and many other places.

Started in the early 70's personally by Srila Prabhupada, the goal of this program is to feed needy people, wherever they may be, with spiritually and materially nutritious food. To date, tens of millions of plates of prasadam have been distributed throughout the world.

In India today, the Hare Krishna temple in Bangalore and the Akshaya Patra program it founded serve a hot lunch of prasadam every school day to more than a million children. There are hundreds of examples of the good work done by dedicated volunteers who take nothing in the way of salary for their charitable work.