Is Hare Krishna a Cult?

[r0ckyreed]

Hello guys.  I am a university student and I have come across Hare Krishna's on my campus who hand out books on spirituality (Self-realization, Bhagavad Gita, etc.).  I watched Cult Psychology, and Leo mentions them as a cult and I see them as a cult.  But the main reason why I wrote this discussion is because I want to learn more about this group from you guys and the best way to interact/avoid this group.  I hope this discussion will help others from falling into the same trap I almost fell into.

 

Thanks!

Rocky

[assx95]

Yes, they are a cult as in, they have dogmas that they will indoctrinate you with, if you attend their lectures. Their Book is called " Bhagavad Gita as it is" which is heavily skewed with their founder Srila Prabhupuda's beliefs. 

The good thing is that they offer healthy vegetarian food to whoever needs it. Mostly without any charge. 

I was a born a Hindu, and I can attest that the mainstream version of the religion is polytheism and sometimes animism - We worship the Indigenous Basil plant and so on. It is not strictly monotheistic as these guys claim. 

[Forestluv]

42 minutes ago, r0ckyreed said:

 I want to learn more about this group from you guys and the best way to interact/avoid this group.  

Avoiding them seems pretty strict-forward - just don’t engage. Walk on the other side of the street if needed. Hare Krishnas are not aggressive at all. It’s not like they will come to your home and stalk you.

Iteracting with them is a different dynamic. There are Hare Krishnas that swing by my area occasionally and are visible on a University campus when the weather is nice. Although they probably have some unhealthy aspects, there is an energy I like. They often have beautiful clothing and I like the music and dancing. Sometimes I’ll sit under a nearby tree and just watch and listen. Sometimes a leader will walk up to me and engage. They seem caring and nice - yet there is an underlying intention to recruit. I may converse a bit out of curiosity - yet I’m careful to not debate or give the impression my interested In joining. I may ask about if they travel around a lot and what there life is like. They will often talk about their beliefs and I may ask a couple questions out of curiosity. Yet after a while, they pick up on a vibe that I’ve been to a few rodeos and ask “what do you believe?”. I usually say “Nothing” and let there be silence. I don’t need to convince me or them of anything. There is usually an energy shift with a little groundlessness and they re-engage with their beliefs with a little more urgency to convince me (now themselves). I may start asking questions that deconstruct their framework, which throws them off because I’m not taking the position of another religion or a position of science. I’m just deconstructing to Nothing. At this point, they usually think I’m an oddball they can’t make sense of and give up. They aren’t interested in introspecting their beliefs and they realize I’m not recruitment material.

[Apparition of Jack]

To me, I think there's a spectrum of whether something is a cult or not, rather than just a cut-and-dry "they are" or "they aren't." To that end, I would say that Hare Krishnas display some cult-like behaviours, and depending on how deep you go with them these behavious can either become stronger or weaker. As with any organisation, it will seek to sustain itself in the face of things thats threaten its identity, which is when the cult-like behaviours can become stronger.

I would say that overall they're relatively harmless at this point in history, and compared to some other religious/spiritual groups out there they're a lot more affable to people not wanting to be involved with them. Also, there is obviously inklings of truth to their message, otherwise no one would join them in the first place. But if you're serious about self-inquiry / self-actualisation / enlightenment work, there's probably not a whole lot you could gain from them that you couldn't gain way more succinctly from say, a non-sectarian yoga or vipassana retreat instead (that come without all the human baggage.)

Edited November 20, 2019 by Apparition of Jack

[Aeris]

3 hours ago, Serotoninluv said:

Avoiding them seems pretty strict-forward - just don’t engage. Walk on the other side of the street if needed. Hare Krishnas are not aggressive at all. It’s not like they will come to your home and stalk you.

Iteracting with them is a different dynamic. There are Hare Krishnas that swing by my area occasionally and are visible on a University campus when the weather is nice. Although they probably have some unhealthy aspects, there is an energy I like. They often have beautiful clothing and I like the music and dancing. Sometimes I’ll sit under a nearby tree and just watch and listen. Sometimes a leader will walk up to me and engage. They seem caring and nice - yet there is an underlying intention to recruit. I may converse a bit out of curiosity - yet I’m careful to not debate or give the impression my interested In joining. I may ask about if they travel around a lot and what there life is like. They will often talk about their beliefs and I may ask a couple questions out of curiosity. Yet after a while, they pick up on a vibe that I’ve been to a few rodeos and ask “what do you believe?”. I usually say “Nothing” and let there be silence. I don’t need to convince me or them of anything. There is usually an energy shift with a little groundlessness and they re-engage with their beliefs with a little more urgency to convince me (now themselves). I may start asking questions that deconstruct their framework, which throws them off because I’m not taking the position of another religion or a position of science. I’m just deconstructing to Nothing. At this point, they usually think I’m an oddball they can’t make sense of and give up. They aren’t interested in introspecting their beliefs and they realize I’m not recruitment material.

Your reactions to life are a lot like mine in many aspects haha.

In this case. You were the real danger !