Bede Griffiths and the Gîtå: Journal of Vaishnava Studies

Abstract

As a lanky college graduate volunteering in India many years ago, I had the opportunity to spend some time in retreat at Shantivanam, the ashram of Bede Griffiths. There I was struck, as many have been, by the rich eclecticism of the ashram, but one nonetheless grounded in Christian values and sensibilities. The chapel adopted Hindu temple motifs, with the tabernacle, for example, set in a deep black holy of holies, clearly suggestive of the garbha griha. The evocative symbolism, even then, was not lost to me: God is found in the dark. Elsewhere, a vimana over the ashram’s gateway was adorned with Christian images carved according to Hindu artistic patterns,
and an open hall was centered by an image of a four-fold Christ sitting in meditation, facing the cardinal directions, a transparent evocation of caturmukhi Brahma. The ritual prayer in the evening included the chanting or singing of bhajans and poems from great Hindu saints as well as readings from sacred texts including the Tao Te Ching, Dhammapada, and the Bhagavad Gita. At meals, the community modified the great mantra of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, “Hare Krishna,” to “Hare Christa.”