Radha Krishna Temple (London)
| Radha Krishna Temple (London) | |
|---|---|
| Origin | London, England |
| Genres | Devotional music, Indian music |
| Years active | 1969–71 |
| Labels | Apple |
| Associated acts | George Harrison |
| Past members |
Principal: Mukunda Yamuna Shyamsundar Gurudas Janaki Malati Other: Harivilas Isham Tamal Krishna Yogesvara |
This article discusses the London Radha Krsna Temple, or more commonly Radha Krishna Temple, the headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in the United Kingdom from the late 1960s. It was founded by six devotees from San Francisco's Radha Krishna Temple, who were sent by ISKCON leader A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to establish a UK branch of the movement in 1968. The Temple came to prominence through George Harrison of the Beatles publicly aligning himself with Krishna consciousness. Among the six initial representatives in London, devotees Mukunda, Shyamsundar and Malati all went on to hold senior positions in the rapidly growing ISKCON organisation.
As Radha Krishna Temple (London), the Temple devotees recorded an album of devotional music with Harrison, which was issued on the Beatles' Apple record label in 1971. Among these recordings was "Hare Krishna Mantra", an international hit single in 1969 that helped popularise the Maha Mantra in the West. With Harrison's financial support, the Radha Krishna Temple secured its first permanent premises, at Bury Place in central London, before acquiring a country property in Hertfordshire, known as Bhaktivedanta Manor.
As founder and acharya (leader) of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada established the first Radha Krishna Temple in New York in 1966, followed by a branch in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. In 1968, as the movement continued to expand in North America, he asked three married couples who had served at the San Francisco temple to establish a base in England. One of the devotees, Shyamsundar Das, later explained that "The scene, the centre of activity, was shifting from San Francisco to London [in 1968]", and that the 72-year-old Prabhupada was drawn to having a base in the United Kingdom due to his upbringing as "an Indian in the British Empire".
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