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Hare Rama Hare Krishna Mahamantra

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Evening aarti in a temple: a priest holds a five-wick brass lamp before the decorated deities, with devotees’ hands folded
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  1. Mantra

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

    Hare raama hare raama raama raama hare hare | Hare krishna hare krishna krishna krishna hare hare ||

    Word by word: hare, O Hari (the Lord)! In the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition it is also taken as calling on ‘Hara’, that is, Radha; rama, Shri Rama; krishna, Shri Krishna. Meaning: it is a loving, repeated calling of the Lord’s names. ‘Hare’ comes eight times, ‘Rama’ four times and ‘Krishna’ four times: sixteen names in all.

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Meaning, sources and more prayers: sanatanbodh.in/en/prayers/hare-rama-hare-krishna/

In short

“Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare; Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare” is a mantra of sixteen names, known as the mahamantra. It comes from the Kali-Santarana Upanishad, where Brahma gives it to Narada as the way to cross the Kali age. Through the bhakti tradition of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) it spread far and wide as a kirtan.

On the text: in the Kali-Santarana Upanishad the ‘Hare Rama’ line comes first, and the Upanishad calls it the mantra of sixteen names. In the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, including ISKCON, the ‘Hare Krishna’ line is usually sung first; the words stay the same. The Upanishad says there is no special rule for chanting it, and that it may be chanted in any state, pure or impure. The Kali-Santarana is a short, late Upanishad, associated with the Krishna Yajurveda.

Frequently asked questions

Which scripture is this mahamantra from?

The Kali-Santarana Upanishad. In it, at the end of the Dvapara age, Narada asks Brahma how to cross the Kali age, and Brahma answers with this mantra of sixteen names.

Should ‘Hare Rama’ or ‘Hare Krishna’ come first?

In the Upanishad the ‘Hare Rama’ line comes first, and many kirtans keep this order. In ISKCON and the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition ‘Hare Krishna’ is sung first. The words are the same in both.

What does ‘Hare’ mean?

In Sanskrit ‘Hare’ is the vocative of ‘Hari’: ‘O Hari’. Gaudiya Vaishnavas also take it as the vocative of ‘Hara’, that is, Radha.

How is it chanted?

The Upanishad says there is no special rule for it. People sing it in kirtan or chant it on a mala; many chant it 108 times on a tulsi mala, a customary number.

Sources

  1. Kali-Santarana Upanishad (texts on sanskritdocuments.org and Sanskrit Wikisource)
  2. For the order and tradition: Wikipedia, Hare Krishna (mantra)

Something wrong? Report a mistake

Text checked against: sanskritdocuments.org, sa.wikisource.org, en.wikipedia.org