East Meets West in Hare Krishna Fete

This article, "East Meets West in Hare Krishna Fete," was published in The New York Times, July 19, 1976, in New York, New York, U.S.A.

In size, it was dwarfed by Operation Sail. In popular concern, it was outweighed by the Democratic National Convention. 

But for hundreds of Hare Krishna followers - including many Indian immigrants to New York - yesterday's Ratha Yana festival was by far the most important event in an eventful month. 

Pulling three brightly colored chariots down Fifth Avenue from Central Park to Washington Square, the religious group's adherents were celebrating one of the oldest holy days of the Indian calendar, the feast of Jagannatha, the Lord of the Universe, according to Krishna doctrines. 

Most of the participants in the parade were young Western followers from as far away as Caracas and Montreal, but the crowd included hundreds of Indians who brought the basic Krishna faith with them from Bombay and Calcutta. 

Like many other immigrant groups who preserved their forms of worship once they came to America, the Indians who watched or participated in the parade were pleased to see that they could keep the faith even in New York City. 

While Hare Krishna propounds doctrines of world renunciation common to other varieties of the Hindu faith, the sect - officially known as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness - was founded in 1965 by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, whose fame as a guru came only after he arrived in the United States in the same year. 

For most of the Indians watching the parade, however, Hare Krishna was close enough to their brand of Hinduism to make them feel at home. 

Hecklers Are Vocal 

"It's surprising that you find this right in New York City. It's our way of life," said Nagin Patel, a civil engineer from Jersey City who emigrated from Bombay. "We love New York City and America. It's the most beautiful place in the world. No other country will give such freedom for our own ceremony." 

But the Krishna people were not entirely free of harassment. 

Along the parade route, three men - including one who said he was an evangelical Christian minister - jeered at the parade and called on parade watchers to become Christians. 

"Idol worship! This is absolutely ridiculous! Read the Bible!" cried one man who would identify himself only as "Normal Christian." 

There was a brief scuffle when an Indian immigrant tried to tear a large placard out of the hands of another heckler. The placard read, "Turn or Burn." The police broke things up, but made no arrests. 

"They are insulting us," said the Krishna follower, who declined to identify himself. "I'm a devote of Krishna and Christ. These people who are doing this in the name of Christ are criminals." 

Except for the hecklers, however, the parade was generally well received by passers-by, who enjoyed the three multi-hued floats, the sun, and the chanting and dancing of the young Krishna marchers. 

"I think it's great," said Tyrone Adams of Philadelphia who was paying a visit to his home town of Englewood, N.J. "I'm not religious. But they're all happy, and dancing, and that's what life's all about." 

In Washington Square, a crowd of about 3,000 - many of whom were there as part of a normal Sunday afternoon's activities - heard Swami Prabhupada deliver a lecture. 

Later, the crowd was served a free "vegetarian feast." Along the side, Krishna followers sold Indian sweets, Krishna scriptures, and what one speaker described as "transcendental paraphernalia." 

Photo: Chariots being pulled down Fifth Avenue by Hare Krishna devotees (The New York Times / Dan Goodrich)