Swami Kriyananda explains: “Master never played Indian chants for group singing. He could easily have sung the Maha Mantra – Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna hare hare! – or one of the other simple chants. I do know that in recounting the life of Sri Chaitanya he once sang Radhe, Radhe, Radhe Govinda Jai! Spirit and Nature dancing together. But it was usually in the context of that story, and by his translation he gave it a spiritual meaning.
Even in India, the only story I heard of his chanting in a group was of one night when he sang and danced all night. It was in Calcutta. A huge crowd joined him. They filled the house, then the street outside the house, then covered the surrounding roofs. They all danced joyfully the whole night. And the chant he sang on that occasion – in Bengali – was ‘Door of My Heart.’ In fact, he brought to the world a whole new style of singing to God. His chants are not like traditional Indian chanting.
Master’s mission was to spiritualize America and the West, not to ‘indianize’ us. He himself loved Indian music and was exceptionally well versed in the Indian style of playing and singing. Even so, he didn’t involve Western audiences in it, and from all I can tell he even sought to inspire the audiences in India with his new style of chanting.
So does this mean we should give up the Indian chants altogether? No, I don’t think so. There is much more exposure to Indian culture nowadays than there was in his time. He himself would sometimes sing Indian songs for us, in the Indian manner—Tagore’s songs, and others.
But Master didn’t sing those chants that recite all those names of deities. Even when singing to Radha and Krishna, he universalized the concept by his translation: Spirit and Nature dancing together!
Still, some of the Indian chants are beautiful. I’d be sorry to give them all up, and I don’t think I’m intruding a merely personal preference in saying so. I simply don’t think that, basically, this is what we either want or need…. I really think we shouldn’t sing so many of them. We are disciples of a new ray, and within that ray a new kind of music has been produced. I think we should honor this fact, and emphasize it more.”
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A note…
Swami Kriyananda almost exclusively chanted his Guru’s Cosmic Chants (constantly “Door of my Heart”) and his own chants. In rare moments, however, he sang traditional Indian chants. Here is one inspiring example: “He Bhagavan”.