Customer Reviews (1)

More Than A Potboiler
This book is an overview of the Hare Krishna movement, written by an outsider in 1973. Faye Levine, a nondevotee, lived at the New York ISKCON Temple, interviewing devotees and participating in their activities.

It is written from a sympathetic and intelligent viewpoint, one willing to be open-minded but not naive. It addresses both the positive aspects(sankirtan and other aspects of bhakti) and the negative ones(the extreme asceticism and uncritical worship of Swami Prabhupada) of this new religious phenomenon.

It simultaneously clears the air about the alleged nefarious activities that nondevotees feared at the time and also raises an eyebrow at the limitations of thought that she perceived. Yet, in the end, the balances tip towards the positive, although not without personal reservations.

This book is balanced and well worth reading. If one is looking for a good introduction to the ISKCON Movement, this book is an excellent place to start. ... Read more

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The Hare Krishna movement is one of the most well-known new religious movements in the Western societies. It was founded in New York in 1966 by the Indian monk A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupda (1896-1977). ... Read more

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This is one volume of a series of brief books on contemporary religious movements, comparing what they believe with Christian doctrine and explaining effective ways of witnessing to their adherents. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

an excellent source
This is a tremendous book that explains hinduism for what it is. I saw the other reviews and realized that they were really misinformed about the beliefs and reality of Christendom. What was not understood is that we(Christians) do not hate Hindus, we love them and want to reach them for Christ because the reality is, that every single person(Hindu, Muslim, Jew, Pagan, ect) that dies with trusting Christ as their savior goes to a Godless hell. We do not wish for this to happen, therefore it is our duty, as believers in Christ to do our very best to reach these people for His glory.
The postmodernist may say that we shouldn't try to convert anyone because Christianity may be right for me, but Islam, Hinduism, etc, may be right for others. Well... postmodernism is complete and utter nonsense. I spoke with a Hindu once, I asked him if God(in all of his different manifestations) could ever contradict himself, the man's answer was obviously that God could do no such thing. He said that Jesus was God, so was Allah... and on and on. Then I brought up the fact that Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one gets to the Father but through me." Well, God cannot be wrong, the Hindu man acknowledged this, yet he could not explain how Jesus could have said such a thing. Newsflash... it's because Jesus is Jesus, the one and only Son of God, He isn't the same as Allah, or Buddha... He is not a Schizophrenic. He is one.
Also, the origins of John 1:1 go back to the Greek philosophers. It was known as the Logos Theory: "in the beginning was the word(logos), and the word(logos) was with God, and the word(logos) was God." John was writing to people throughout the Roman empire who no doubt barrowed much of their culture from the ancient Greeks and had some working knowledge of the Logos Theory.
In other news, Christianity is not some Jewish cult. Jesus came to fulfill the Jewish prophecies... He did so. The problem was that he was not accepted by most of His people.
Anyway... good book, worth buying.

Fundamentalist drivel - stay away
The previous review certainly says it all. There is no question that the authors are severely biased and their scholarship is rather non-existent. I was born and raised a Catholic, and later learned the protestant variant, so I am familiar with part of the christian spectrum. I have also read several of the classics of the Vedic literature, and they seemed quite reasonable and profound. In fact, they seemed better than anything produced by western thought. It is a pity that some christians criticize something that they don't understand. It seems that as a group, christians err on the side of being narrow-minded. Throughout history, people have been persecuted, tortured, and even executed in the name of religion. It should be simple to understand that religion (any religion) is for constructive, not destructive, purposes. Something that harms anyone or anything can't be classified as a religion anymore. We also must remember that human beings are highly individualistic. Everyone interprets his relationship with the Divine in a different way. The Bible, the Gita, the Koran... they have many different and contradictory interpretations. Who is right? Here is where we see that religion is not a matter of priests, doctrines, and books, but a personal relationship with whomever you think the Creator is. Ultimately, God must be One (however, you are free to challenge this presumption). If the Hindu people think that the One has many manifestations, what harm is there in it? What right or authority do you have to contradict such belief?. And as far as 'evangelizing'...have christians produced such a beatiful world? Have christians erased from their hearts, pettiness, envy, greed, arrogance, egotism, bigotry, and all others forms of ignorance? If yes, by all means, go and evangelize all and sundry. If not, then better worry about reforming yourselves, not others. Because others may be in much better shape than you. Now, wouldn't that be a kick?

Hinduism Exposed!
Shows the falsehoods of Hinduism! Great Book, Buy it. Yamamamoto is a first class author, his prose is unmatched by any contemporyauthor!

A booklet depicting Hinduism in a very negative tone
A veryfrail attempt to depict Hinduism as a religion of confusingdoctrines andChristianity as a very unified religion with all trueanswers.

This booklet[ 87 pages] has picked upfacts and figuresfromHindu scriptures [ writtenthousands of years apart] at random and triedvery hardto prove Hinduism asa religion of confusing concepts and ideas andChristianity as areligion of God and truth. . At the end ofeach chapter there is a column of "how to evangelize Hindus /Evangelistic suggestions". There are even sub chapters like WHAT ISWRONG WITH YOGA?even though AMA and other medical institutions have onlyfound positive results in people after practicing yoga.This book is veryscary, since it states on page-19 that "In 1923 the US Supreme Courtruled that "Hindus" were ineligible for U.S. citizenship"What exactly the author hinting making that statement??? I have no idea.With right wing fundamentalism taking grass roots every where in thiscountry, Indiansin fact anyone who comes from orient should be wary ofbooklets like this.

Author failed to explain the fact thatHINDUISMIS THE ONE AND ONLY CULTURE OF INDIANS IN INDIA and not an organizedreligion like Islam or Christianity. Since the Book was written to portray Hinduism in a "negative tone", book failedtodiscuss aboutHindu mathematics, Hindu astronomy, Hindu astrology, Hindu cosmology, Hinduclassical dances, Hindu music, Hindu moral codes, Hindu alchemy,etcBefore the onslaught of Moslems from North [7th century AD] as well as therule of British empire, India was abundant in material and spiritual wealthas reported by great Chinese travelers like HSUAN-TSANG.

LET US HAVE AREALITY CHECK. There are only two cultures in the world. One is Hinduismand other is Judaism. All modern religions like Islam and Christianity came out of Judaism. Similarly Buddhism,[ to some extent Jainism], Sikhism,and Zoroastrianism came from Hinduism. Hindu scriptures deal with theCULTURE and HISTORY of Indians in India like 66 books of the Holy Bibledeal with the CULTURE & HISTORY of Jews.

Hinduism is a very ancientCULTURE and soithas the GOOD, the BAD and UGLY things in it. SimilarlyJudaism has the GOOD, the BAD and the UGLY things in it. Naturally modernreligions like Christianity which has gone through manyperiodicalcleansing in its 2000 years history, do not have the baggage of those two ancient cultures. NEWER THE RELIGION IS, THE BETTER IT LOOK. That is whyreligions like BAHAISM, UNITY and A COURSE IN MIRACLES look far better thanIslam and Christianity.

By the way, Holy Bible does not deal with Chinesecivilization, Mayan Civilization, Greek Civilization or Indiancivilization. It only deals with the trials and tribulations of Jews. InHOLY BIBLE ONE CAN ONLYSTUDYABOUT JEWISH CULTURE AND JEWISH HISTORY.Holy Bible does not even mentions AMERICAN CONTINENT. Believe it or not,Holy Bible theologians as well as the west came to know about AMERICANcontinent only when a very devout Christian Christopher Columbusaccidentally stumbled upon it on his way to a very prosperous India!!! ForColumbus to beg Spanish queen for money to go to India,alone make uswonder about the greatness of India at that time.

Hinduism and Judaism donot believe in conversions since both are essentially cultures. Have youever heard of converting to a new culture? Whereas Christianity and Islamare cults of Judaism and that is why they are after forcible conversions ofevery one on earth to their religions. TRUE--Hindu scriptures werewritten by many authors and they arein thousands andhave many concepts. Authors failed to state that unlike in Christianity, where writings whichare different from churches teachings were burnt and authors killed,inHinduism not even one scripture is burnt nor any author is killed sincethey preached a wrong doctrine or wrote a wrong book. To start with, in thehistory of Christianity,Bishop Arius of Alexandriawas killed and hisbooks were burnt when he proclaimed that JESUS CHRIST IS A CREATED BEINGAND NOT APROCREATOR during the Council of Nicaea - 325 AD, in whichchurch under the Roman emperor Constantineelevated Jesus Christ to be the2nd person of Trinity.

There is no word TRINITY in the entire Holy Bibleand TRINITY DOCTRINE was added to Christianity [ during the Council ofNicaea -325 AD] after Roman emperor Constantine became a Christian. TheCouncil of Nicaea was called by Roman emperor Constantine who even tookpart in the discussions as per the Encyclopedia Britannica[ book 8 page675] Believe it or not emperor Constantine promoted TRINITY DOCTRINE tofuse pagan Romans worshiping many gods with Christians who were worshipingJesus ChristIf you look at SCHAFF-HERZOG ENCYCLOPEDIA, TRINITY was not established until 363 A.D. It says that TRINITY is the result of threecenturies of doctrinal development. The New Catholic Encyclopedia adds thatdevotion to Trinity had begun in monasteries at Aniane and Tours, in the8th century. The veryfirst author of English translation of the Holy Bible, WILLIAM TYNDALE waskilled at stake and his works wereburnt since church did not like histranslation!!!In 1536, after spendingmany months in prison, WILLIAMTYNDALE was burnt at stake crying, "LORD, OPEN THE EYES OF THE KING OFENGLAND."Justin Martyer [ 100-165 AD] founder of the very first thevery first Christian school ofTheology was very straight forward aboutreincarnation, when he wrote in hispopular book DIALOGUE WITH TRYPO, howthe souls inhibit a succession of bodies, but they could not remember theirprevious lives. But his ideas on reincarnationwere thrownwas thrown outby the church. Time and again Christian church expunged people anddoctrines.

In the interest of protecting truth as they see, Christianchurch for centuries have persecuted anyone who came with new theories. Anyone who study world history will know what happened to GALILEO, Copernicus,Martin Lutheretc in the hands of church.

GOD IN HINDUISM. On page 55,authors discuss about Hindu concept of God. But they failed to mentionabout BRAHMAN - the ONE and ONLY God of Hinduism. Author may not know thatJOHN 1:1 [70 A.D.] came from Hindu [ at least 5000 BC] Long before John 1:1was written Vedas wrote the same thing. "prajapathi vai agreasset" IN THE BEGINNING WAS PRAJAPTHI, THE BRAHMAN-THE GOD,"Tasya Vag dvitiya Aseet" WITH WHOM WAS THE WORD; "Vag vaiparama Brahman" AND THE WORD WAS VERILY THE SUPREMEBRAHMAN -THE GODJohn 1:1 states: IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD, AND THE WORD WASWITH GODAND THE WORD WAS GOD.

Hindu scriptures state THERE IS ONE AND ONLY GODWHICH EXPRESSES ITSELF IN TRILLIONS OF FORMS. In fact, they wrote confused between BRAHMAN [ the Absolute] and BRAHMA [ the creator]. Theywrote,Brahman or Krishna was the beginning of all things without stating thatKrishna is an avatar of Lord Vishnu.Of course, Vedas mention many gods,since Vedas are the every first books written. Old Testament similarlymentions many gods like BAAL and EL, until Moses killed every one whoworshiped any other god than Jehovah.

Authors quote so many scripturesto state that Jesus Christ is God.But failed to state thatJudaism[mother religion] does not see Jesus Christ as God or as Son of God. Islam [sister religion ] does not see Jesus Christ as God or Son of God, eventhough Koran mentions the name of Jesus Christ many times in the Koran. Jehovah Witnessdoesnot see Jesus Christ as God!!!!!!All of them readthe same Holy Bible!!!!!!!!!!Amazing!! JEALOUS GOD IN THE BIBLE---authorsforget to mention that God said I am a jealous God in the Bible since hewas fighting for territorial rights with BAAL [ horn god] and EL. God inthe Holy Bible was not fighting with Hindu gods!!! That concept did notoriginate against Hindus worshiping gods.Jews used to worship many godsuntil the time of Judges.Joshua 22:22states, GOD OF GODS IS YAHWEH,GOD; GOD OF GODS IS YAHWEH. SELF WORSHIP IS SELF-DECEPTIVE ANDIDOLATROUS [ page 58] authors fail to recognize the fact that a Hindu isnot worshiping body as God but the IMMORTAL SOUL WITHIN THE BODY AS GOD. It is stupid and egoistic to worship body as God and no Hindu scriptureadvocate that.Again, a Hindu is not worshiping SELF, but realizing thathe/she is not the body but the immortal soul. Since there is no wordIMMORTAL SOUL in the entire Holy Bible, author's attacking SELF-WORSHIP isunderstandable.Hindu salvation and Christian salvation concepts aretotally different. Hindu salvation is known as SELF REALIZATION.Hinduscriptures state that Man'sproblem is that he believes that he isthebody and not the immortal soul within. So a man has to realize that he isthe soul within, then automatically he achieve salvation. I really wishpeople who read this book also read books like AM I A HINDU? [ISBN 1-8799 ... Read more

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In 7 languages, this book explores the rich history and myriad uses of chanting the most powerful mantra for the modern age that has kindled the recent explosion of interest in this ancient art.The Vedas proclaim that chanting the Hare Krishna mantra is the maha-sadhana, the best and only yoga practice for this dark age of conflict, wherein terror and tension prevail. It is the most powerful way to open the heart and experience ecstatic divine love. There can be no peace or harmony in the world unless the people of all nations garland their hearts with the Hare Krishna mantra.Throughout the centuries, all divine masters have taught the same principle-praise the Lord by singing and chanting His holy names. Such praise will pacify the mind, cleanse the heart of lust, anger and greed, and surcharge the soul with joy. The Art of Chanting Hare Krishna reveals the science of Mantra Yoga and describes over 60 scientifically proven meditation techniques while chanting by giving practical suggestions for improving concentration and controlling the mind.Discover Spirit in Sound by accepting this sublime process and swim in the ocean of ever expanding bliss. ... Read more

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A detailed case study of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Britain. The book studies the particular development of a new religious movement within the context of Britain, and issues relating to minority religions' place within a multicultural but still hegemonically Christian society.

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A collection of ten essays written during of the author's award-winning years at Southern Methodist University. Contemporary Western thought is compared with the Chaitanya Vaishnava tradition, bringing the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) into conversation with the wider community of religions. ... Read more

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Mass Market Paperback with 156 pages. Black/White and Colored Photo's and Over 60 Hare Krishna Recipes. ... Read more

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Hare Rama Hare Krishna A daringly different treatment of the relationship between a brother and sister in Hindi films, the story deals with the strong bonds of love that exist between the subdued brother and the unconventional, bold, and strong willed sister. Separated in childhood, the parents being too self centered to care for their children, the brother returns to India with the mother, and the sister remaining with the father in Montreal. Years later when the brother tracks down his sister in Nepal he finds her with a band of hippies. The attempts of the brother to reclaim his sister from the grip of drugs form the gist of the story. TRIVIAThis was Zeenat Aman's debut film, and she picked up the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance. Initially Dev Anand had asked Zaheeda, his co-star in Prem Pujari to do the role. But she wanted nothing less than the heroine's role. But the role of the heroine went to Mumtaz. The song "Dum maro dum" by the sultry voiced Asha Bhosle, became the anthem song of the age.PLAYBACKR. D. Burman came up an absolute winner with this film. The following songs were super hits : "Phoolon ka taaron ka" - Lata Mangeshkar & R. D. Burman, and the soulful repeat of the song by Kishore Kumar; "Dum maro dum" - Asha Bhosle ; "Kanchi re kanchi re" - Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar; "Dekho o deewanon tum ye kam na karo" - Kishore Kumar. ... Read more

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Chapters: Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, Radhanath Swami, Kirtanananda Swami, Hayagriva Swami, Bhakti Tirtha Swami, Harikesa Swami, Suhotra Swami, Indradyumna Swami, Romapada Swami, Arthur Rhames, Tamala Krishna Goswami, Visnujana Swami, Radhika Ramana Dasa, Mukunda Goswami, Jayadvaita Swami, Giriraja Swami, Hridayananda Dasa Goswami, Hansadutta Swami, Jayatirtha Dasa, Ramesvara Swami, Urmila Devi Dasi, Ravindra Svarupa Dasa, Jayananda Dasa. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 108. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Satsvarupa das Goswami (IAST , Devanagari: ) (born December 6, 1939) is a senior disciple of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), better known in the West as the Hare Krishna movement. Serving as a writer, poet, and artist, Satsvarupa dasa Goswami is the author of Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada's authorized biography,Srila Prabhupada-lilamrta. After Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada's death, Satsvarupa dasa Goswami was one of eleven disciples selected to become an initiating guru in ISKCON. Satsvarupa dasa Goswami, (Sanskrit: ), is one of the first few westerners ordained by Prabhupada in September 1966. He has been since established as a prolific Vaishnava writer and poet. While traveling, lecturing on Krishna consciousness, and instructing disciples worldwide, he has published over 100 books including poems, memoirs, essays, novels, and studies based on the Vaishnava scriptures. In the recent years, he has created hundreds of paintings, drawings, and sculptures that attempt to capture and express his perspective on the culture of Krishna consciousness. He was born the eldest of two children to Roman Catholic parents in New York, Staten Island and named Steven. He was educated initially in public high school...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=2012172 ... Read more

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Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Soham, Gayatri Mantra, Hare Krishna, Pranava Yoga, Shanti Mantra, Vedic Chant, Aum Namah Shivaya, Shiva Mahimna Stotram, Neti Neti, Mahamrityunjaya Mantra, Saraswati Vandana Mantra, Om Tat Sat, Dwadashaakshar, Richa, Saraswathi Shloka, Mantra Shastra, Mangal Ashtaka. Excerpt:The Aum namah iv ya mantra written in Devanagari Aum Nama iv ya (IAST transliteration, refer to Sanskrit for pronunciation, Devanagari : , Kannada : , Malayalam : , Tamil : , Telugu : , Bengali : , Gujarati : , Punjabi : ) is among the foremost mantras . Its general translation is "adoration (namas ) to iva ", preceded by the mystical syllable Aum . It is called Panchakshara , or " having five syllables ". aivite mystics hold that within its celestial tones and hues resides all of the intuitive knowledge of aivism . The Aum namah iv ya mantra appears for the first time, still without the Aum , in a traditional Vedic prayer to Rudra called ri Rudram (Rudra is considered an earlier aspect and name of Lord iva). In this context, iva retains its original meaning as an adjective meaning "auspicious, benign, friendly", a euphemistic epithet of Rudra. A Hindu aivite view The meaning of the Nama iv ya mantra was explained by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami : Nama iv ya is the most holy name of God iva, recorded at the very center of the Vedas and elaborated in the aiva Agamas. Na is the Lord's concealing grace, Ma is the world, i stands for iva, Va is His revealing grace, Ya is the soul. The five elements, too, are embodied in this ancient formula for invocation. Na is earth, Ma is water, i is fire, V is air, and Ya is ether, or k a . Many are its meanings. Nama ivaya has such power, the mere intonation of these syllables reaps its own reward in salvaging the soul from bondage of the treacherous instinctive mind a... ... Read more