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हरे कृष्ण महामन्त्र

The Hare Krishna mahamantra

Sixteen words, three names, chanted in Vrindavan’s temples, on the streets of London and New York, and on beads in millions of homes. This is the mantra that plays across this site.

हरे कृष्ण हरे कृष्ण कृष्ण कृष्ण हरे हरे।
हरे राम हरे राम राम राम हरे हरे॥

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare

What the words mean

The mantra uses three names, each repeated: Hare, Krishna and Rama.

  • Krishna means "the all-attractive one", and also "dark".
  • Rama means "the source of delight". Devotees understand it as Krishna himself, or as Balarama; others hear Lord Ramachandra.
  • Hare is the address form of Hara, Krishna's divine energy, understood in the Gaudiya tradition as Radha. Some read it as the address form of Hari, who takes away sorrow.

So the mantra is a call: O Radha, O Krishna, please engage me in your service. There is no request for anything else.

Where does it come from?

The mantra appears in the Kali-Santarana Upanishad, where Brahma tells the sage Narada that these sixteen names destroy the faults of the age of Kali and that no better method is found in all the Vedas. In that text the mantra begins with Hare Rama; the tradition of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu chants it beginning with Hare Krishna.

In the 16th century, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu made the congregational chanting of these names, sankirtan, the centre of a great devotional movement in Bengal and Odisha, and sent his followers to Vrindavan. In 1966, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada founded ISKCON in New York and took the mantra around the world. The Beatles' George Harrison produced a recording of it in 1969.

How to chant: japa and kirtan

Japa is quiet, personal chanting, usually on a string of 108 tulsi beads (a mala).

  1. Hold the mala in your right hand and start at the bead next to the larger "head" bead (the Krishna or Sumeru bead).
  2. Chant the full mantra once on each bead, rolling it between thumb and middle finger.
  3. After 108 mantras you reach the head bead again. Don't cross it: turn the mala around and go back the other way.
  4. ISKCON devotees chant 16 rounds a day; many begin with one or four.

Kirtan is chanting together, out loud, with harmonium, mridanga and kartals, usually call and response: a lead singer sings a line and everyone answers. Turn on the kirtan button at the top of this page to hear one.

Chant a round nowOur online japa counter counts 108 beads and remembers your daily rounds.

What chanting is said to do

Practitioners describe calm, focus and joy, and the bhakti traditions teach that the name of God is not different from God, so chanting is meeting him. Scripture promises that chanting purifies the heart. Most practitioners simply suggest: try a round a day for a month and see.

Questions people ask

What is the meaning of the Hare Krishna mantra?

It is a call to God by his names: Hare (Radha, or Hari), Krishna and Rama. Devotees understand it as “O Radha, O Krishna, please let me serve you.”

Where does the Hare Krishna mahamantra come from?

From the Kali-Santarana Upanishad. It was spread by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the 16th century and around the world by ISKCON from 1966.

How many times should I chant Hare Krishna?

Any amount is good. ISKCON’s standard is 16 rounds of 108 a day; many people start with one round.

Can anyone chant the Hare Krishna mantra?

Yes. There are no rules of caste, gender or initiation for chanting the names, and it can be chanted at any time.

Sources

Keep exploring

Japa counterTap a 108-bead mala. Rounds and streaks saved on your device.ISKCON VrindavanPrabhupada’s Krishna Balaram Mandir, where the kirtan never stops.108 names of KrishnaThe Ashtottara Shatanamavali, in Sanskrit, transliteration and English.Famous Gita versesKarmanye vadhikaraste, yada yada hi dharmasya and more.