People don’t say hello, they say Hare Krishna.
People don’t say thank you, they say Hare Krishna.
People don’t say you’re welcome, they say Hare Krishna.
Welcome to Krishna Valley.
The place was created fifteen years ago. Today it is home to 150 Krishna devotees who live completely off the grid and produce all of their food.
We’re talking to Nitai.
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How old are you?
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| I’m 17 months.
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What makes you happy?
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| Eating, meeting with the babies of the community, singing Kirtan in the temple [Kirtan is a form of chanting practiced by Krishna devotees]
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What do you most like to eat?
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| I eat anything and I eat a lot. I like olives the most.
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What do you like most about singing Kirtan?
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| I clap and raise my hands, and my mum is turning and dancing while I’m on her back.
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Do you have a best friend?
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| I’m too small to have a best friend.
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What job will you choose when you’re older?
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| I will drive a car. I will also drive oxen carts.
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| Oxen are helping grind wheat. |
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| Every cow has a name, this is Radha |
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What’s the best thing about living in Krishna Valley?
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| The cows.
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And what else?
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| There is space to run everywhere, there are lots of other children, and we sing Kirtan.
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That's all, thank you Nitai. Is there another important question that I should have asked you?
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| You could have asked my what is the sound of the duck.
It’s hap hap hap.
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A big Hare Krishna to Nitai's mum Nisanta-lila for doing the interpretation and the translation.
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| Nitai’s father is a cook for the community
kitchen. |
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| Nitai's mother is halfway through the three years off-service that she
was given when he was born. Washing clothes by hand is what she finds most tedious. Clothes are washed after a single day of use. |
A deer runs by.
We’re meeting with Loka near the temple, a 32 year old monk. He is getting married to his fiancée in three days.
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What is the best thing about living here?
And the toughest?
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| The best thing is the goodness of the people. The most difficult thing is to keep the high level of harmony we have created between us.
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How did you choose your wife?
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| We met in India while we were both traveling. I was attracted to her kindness and her happiness.
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Who took the first step?
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| She took the first step. When it became clear that we were falling in love we checked our astrology with my spiritual master. This gave confirmation that our love was wanted by God.
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What exactly will it mean to get married this Sunday?
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| We will promise to take care of each other for the rest of our lives and to take care of each other’s spiritual lives.
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Will you have children?
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| I think we will have two. My wife is 40 so we can not plan to have many more.
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What kind of physical touch is possible within a couple in Krishna consciousness? What is licit and illicit?
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| We can touch each other’s faces. If we’re not trying to conceive a child, we avoid all other physical contact. We can hug each other when the intention is pure, which means not for the physical enjoyment of the hug. There is the ideal, but there is also the reality.
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With so little physical contact, is it still important that your wife be beautiful?
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| Yes it is. When I look at trees my eyes spend more time on the beautiful ones than on the less pretty ones. Beauty is nice but it’s not the goal. The goal of marriage is spiritual progress. Marriage is not made to enjoy sex life but to support each other spiritually.
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In your job as a guide around the temple, is it difficult to see beautiful women among the tourists?
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| Today I feel complete. I don’t have difficulty with this anymore. I used to find it hard when my service was to sell books in the streets and young women would show interest in me.
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[Update: Loka is now married.]
A big part of the spiritual practice of Krishna devotees, around 2 hours each day, is reciting this mantra:
Hare Krishna
Hare Krishna
Krishna Krisha
Hare Hare
Hare Rama
Hare Rama
Rama Rama
Hare Hare
They will say this mantra a minimum of 1728 times a day.
In the kitchen, Krishna devotees will not taste food from a dish before it has been presented to Krishna. They will not drink from each other's cups because an exchange of saliva creates an exchange of karma.
Sulalita also is getting married on Sunday. She is a teacher at the village school. She introduces us to Sudam, a new pupil whose family has just joined Krishna Valley from the capital Budapest.
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Do you think that Koda Nitai, [her fiancé] will say yes tomorrow?
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| Oh absolutely he will say yes!
[Update: he said yes.]
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| Some devotees are returning home from the temple. |
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Is getting married more stress or more happiness?
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| Right now it is more stress. Koda Nitai is really stressed because he is responsible for the organization of the ceremony and the 6000 guests that are expected to visit our ecovillage this weekend. |
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What makes you happiest in the ecovillage?
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| The presence of Krishna in the Murti. [A murti is a representation of a deity.]
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| Murtis of the deities on the main altar. |
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| A monk in prayer is walking by a murti of the founder of Krishna Valley, Srila Prabhupada. |
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| Children of Krishna Valley prepare bags of lavender in their classroom. |
Krishna Valley has made me a better person. I'm leaving this ecovillage with a feeling of peace and awe, and a new understanding of Krishna counsciousness. Never have I seen such a concentration of intelligent, happy people. They own nothing. They have possibly the lowest ecological footprint humanly possible in the Western world. They take the time to do things well. They are open to any and all questions. They will make you feel accepted as you are, however far away from Krishna you may be. After two weeks I’m leaving a home.
Read on for more on the newly weds.
In the kitchen, Krishna devotees will not taste food from a dish before it has been presented to Krishna. They will not drink from each other's cups because an exchange of saliva creates an exchange of karma.
