Hare Kṛṣṇa Mahā-Mantra From the Caitanya-vaiṣṇava perspective: Journal of Vaishnava Studies

Abstract

Although formerly confined to a limited number of individuals in traditional India, the sixteen-word mantra—Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare—has become widely known in recent decades. In fact, it has spread all over the world, particularly in the 1960-70s, due to the efforts of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (1896-1977), the founder of the International Society for Kṛṣṇa
Consciousness, who came to America with his mission in 1965. Many Vaishnavas, particularly the followers of Śrī Caitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534), consider this mantra to be the greatest and most effective among many other spiritual chants. Thus, it is usually called the “mahā-mantra,” literally meaning, “the great mantra.”