Hare Krishna Kirtan

Congregational singing of the Mahamantra — the tradition of naam-sankirtan spread by Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

In the 16th century Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu spread the congregational chanting of the holy name from house to house and street to street in Bengal and Odisha. Even today the Mahamantra is sung with mridanga, kartals and harmonium in temples, in street processions (nagar-kirtan) and in homes.

In kirtan one person sings a line of the mantra and everyone repeats it in the same tune. The rhythm slowly rises and devotees often dance in joy. The understanding is that the Lord and His name are not different, so the Lord Himself is present where His name is sung.

The meaning of the Mahamantra and how to chant it on a mala are given in the Mantras section.

Author

Kali-Santarana Upanishad; kirtan tradition of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Note

In the Kali-Santarana Upanishad the mantra is given with the Hare Rama line first; the Chaitanya tradition sings the Hare Krishna line first, as here.