The Hare Krsna Maha Mantra

The city is full of religious artifacts; and it normally doesn't take too much effort to find them. They can take any form. In this encounter of mine, it takes the form of music. Music is something that is heard everyday in every part of New York (and the world). The emotional responses it elicits from people is what makes music such an intricate art. Obviously music can be sacred, this can be heard in every religion, but I don't think I have seen music act as a religious artifact itself like this.

Back in January, I was walking through the underground passages from the Time Square subway station to the Port Authority Bus Terminal subway station. While passing through, I came across a large group of monks who were playing music while two other monks were dancing to it.

After recording their performance, I went to talk to the man who was giving out free books on their religion and their practices. He explained that they were chanting something called the Hare Krsna Maha Mantra (the title of the mantra translates to something along the lines of "To Access the Reservoir of Pleasure"). The idea is that the vibrations from the music cleanses the heart and mind from any spiritual contamination. The monk also said that it elevates the consciousness to a spiritual platform. This all comes from the Bhagavad Gita, a narrative that teaches how to obtain pure consciousness through meditation and proper motivation in life.

What I loved about this philosophy is that it places music in a position that it normally doesn't take in religious practices. This is what I was talking about earlier. Normally, music accompanies or embellishes rituals. The music is sacred, but the ritual is normally more focused on another religious artifact. Here though, the music is the artifact. The music is the thing that this ritual focuses on. It is the music that is having an effect on people and promoting spiritual health. It is also a beautiful way of public preaching. There are no signs being pushed in your face, or even a preacher screaming at you. Music is a common language that connects everyone. Anyone is allowed to enjoy this music and to be affected by it, religiously or not. It encourages curiosity that originates from the onlookers and it opens the floor for friendlier discussions.

I would like to consider this as a form of sacramentality, like what we read about while learning about Dorothy Day. The idea of sacramentality is that the grace and power of God can be seen in everything. Although we spoke about it in terms of Christianity, I feel that it can certainly apply to any other religion. In this case, the religious grace and spiritual power is embedded in the music and directly cleanses your body and soul.

I have to say, the music definitely lifted my spirits for the rest of the day. I left the station with a pamphlet on their religion and an interesting look into the sacramentality of other faiths. Music can truly impact people in beautiful ways.