I’ve uploaded some pictures of the New Year’s Eve Harinam in Brisbane, Australia.

Over the Christmas / New Year period I participated in Harinam in Sydney, Brisbane, and Byron Bay.

I’ve had some further realizations about Harinam lately. Mainly just re-emphasis of the principles that I wrote about in the booklet “Harinam Sankirtan Yajna”.

I remember reading somewhere the opinions of some people (it’s a bit of a meme in some circles) that Harinam is not good preaching in Western cities anymore because times and people have changed. I could never understand what they were talking about. I’ve been going out on Harinam regularly since 1997 and my experience has been of an overwhelmingly positive reception.

I’ve gone on Harinam with His Holiness Indradyumna Swami and seen him go down on one knee to serenade an elderly lady sitting on a bench, and accompanied him as the Harinam party swooped into a beer garden of a pub in a festival. I’ve gone on Harinam with two people, with twenty, and with two hundred; with Kukudmi das on Sunset Boulevard and Jaya Govinda das brahmacari on Venice Beach; in the pouring rain and freezing cold of the Ecuadorian Andes and the dust-choked heat of Peruvian coastal villages. I’ve been on Harinam in downtown Tokyo where you can’t even see or hear the others in the party if you take two steps to the left, and on Christmas Eve in Brisbane where the shops are closed up and everyone’s gone home for the night.

My realization is that Harinam is as all-attractive as it ever has been. Harinam doesn’t offend people. People offend people (to borrow a slogan from the NRA). Boorish and inconsiderate behaviour, sloppy dressing, loud and uncouth “musical” instrument playing, unconscious mob mentality, lack of consciousness and intentionality - these are what offend people, not the Harinam.

When Harinam is nicely executed people appreciate it on so many levels. It’s festive, it’s fun, it’s colorful, it’s a wonderful cultural presentation that adds to the vibrancy and multicultural nature of a city. In a city where Harinam is considerately and consciously performed the residents become proud of “their” Hare Krishnas. They enjoy the humble nature of the devotees and their gentlemanly and ladylike interactions with their fellow citizens. They build relationships of trust and respect.

Everything rises and falls on leadership. When I went out with Indradyumna Swami on Harinam at the Sweetwaters festival in 1999 Maharaja began the kirtan with a briefing for all the devotees. I’ll never forget it:

“Stay in two lines, be considerate of the other road users. Remember to keep smiling. Especially at the end of the harinam when we’re getting tired it’s harder to smile, but we have to keep smiling.”

It just takes some casting of vision. When you take a group of people out on the street, without leadership you just have a mob. Someone has to take charge, and the others in the party have to follow that person. It’s that simple. Otherwise you will have oncoming traffic having to negotiate with a milling bunch of people - a stressful experience. With a leader who is conscious of the overall situation and directing the group as a cohesive unit, interaction with the public is smooth and effective.

Anyway, that’s one point among many. I’ve written a book about it, called “Harinam Sankirtan Yajna”. It’s not perfect, of course, but it represents a starting point. If people want to say that Harinam is not as effective as it used to be, then I call for reformation, not renunciation. Let this book be the starting point.

I’m working on getting this book back into an electronic form (I lost the only copy when my laptop was stolen in Peru). I’ve put the Preface online, and I will put sections up from time to time. So there’s a new category in town, and it’s called “Harinam Kirtan”.

You can also check out the Kirtan page on this site.