Srila Prabhupada Kirtana

Prabhupada: Hayagriva, come here. Come here. Now this should be lighted up, and when there is kirtana, one must be doing like this before the Deity. You see? Yes, with the kirtana. When he stops, he should hand over to another person, devotee. When he stops, he should another. So so long kirtana will go on, this will go on. You just, with the kirtana just now... You do not follow? You begin, and when you are tired, you hand over to other. It will go on. Hayagriva: Like this? Prabhupada: Yes, that's it, before the Deity. All right. Let us begin kirtana. (kirtana) Prabhupada: (recites jaya om prayers) Thank you very much. Hare Krsna. Bring that before me. Yes. Show everyone. Each and every one show. Whatever they contribute... Take, take the... Yes, like this. Show everyone. The Bhagavata has recommended hearing, chanting, thinking... Hearing, chanting, thinking and worshiping, the process which we just now introduced on the advent of Jagannatha Svami. Now this temple is now completely fixed. So the worshiping process, this is the worshiping process. By light... This is called aratrika. So at the end of kirtana this aratrika will go, and the worshiping process is to take the heat of the light, and whatever your condition is, pay something for the worship. So, this simple process, if you follow, you just see how you realize the Absolute Truth. Another, I request you, all the devotees, when you come to the temple, you bring one fruit and one flower. If you can bring more fruit, more flower, it is very good. If not, it is not very expensive. One fruit and one flower. And offer to the Deity. So I'll request you when you come to the temple you bring this. Whatever fruit it may be. It does not mean that you have to bring very costly fruit. Any fruit, whatever you can afford. One fruit and one flower. Yes. Now you can distribute prasada? (pause--guests take prasada) Very nice preparation. Mmmm. All glories to the cookers. Girl: Hare Krsna. Srila Prabhupada Instructing the Devotees, 03-23-67, San Francisco Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.

Shortly after arriving in America, Srila Prabhupada began teaching his followers the basics of sadhana practice and Deity worship. As we can see from the dialogue above, the devotees were beginning at 'square one' and Srila Prabhupada patiently taught them, step-by-step.

Just as Srila Prabhupada brought the philosophy of Krsna Consciousness to the West, following precisely in the footsteps of his Spiritual Master, he presented the process of Deity worship as a practical means of offering everything to Krsna. Srila Prabhupada wanted his disciples to engage in Deity worship according to an exacting process, and expected the highest standards to be kept in the temples:

"Regarding Deity worship, the standard of Deity worship must be kept very high in all our ISKCON centers. There should be no question of decrease, only how to increase in the quality and opulence of our arcana offerings."

Srila Prabhupada Letter, 11-18-71

In this section of the HareKrsna.com website, we will attempt to present in detail the daily program of worship instructed by Srila Prabhupada. Naturally, the sadhana practice followed by an individual or family in their home is very different from the daily program conducted in a temple, where elaborate offerings are made to the Deities numerous times throughout the day. Yet even in home practice, Srila Prabhupada recommended a sadhana schedule which, if following in its entirety, most devotees would find very rigorous! Fortunately, beginning with even a short daily program, one can begin to get a taste for the process of bhakti yoga and become increasingly enthusiastic about daily sadhana. As Krsna instructs in Bhagavad-gita, “That which in the beginning tastes like poison and later turns to nectar and awakens one to self realization is happiness in the mode of goodness”.

Daily Sadhana

Deity Worship in the Home