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Vijay Krsna of the KirtaniyasInterviewed by Daniel Tucker | January 19, 2012
Heart and SoulAlbum review by Daniel Tucker | December 29, 2011Kirtan in the West is a rapidly evolving sacred music. It's roots stretch back to ancient Indian chanting of sanskrit mantras containing the names of God. And yet it's branches reach out with fresh growth each year, as new generations of musicians employ their creativity in the service of the divine vibrations of kirtan.It was only recently that mantras began to grace western recordings. In the 70's and 80's, George Harrison planted seeds of kirtan by incorporating mantras into his songwriting, most famously with his song of devotion "My Sweet Lord" culminating in the joyous repetition of the Hare Krishna mantra. In the 90's, chant music really took root when Krishna Das began recording albums of entirely kirtan music, with rhythmic underpinnings from rock and world music. In the 2000's, kirtan blossomed into a substantial...
Annual Holiday Sweepstakes!Enter drawing by January 1st, 2012It's that time of year again! Round these parts, Santa's sleigh is packed with mantras and musical instruments. And you can hold onto your cookies and milk - he'd rather score some prasad from your Radha Krishna altar.Last year, we teamed up with Santa for a harmonium give-away sweepstakes. It was so much fun, and the winner is making such good use of her harmonium, we decided to make it an annual event! Except this year, we super-sized the grand prize, and made it extra easy to enter.
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Daniel Tucker: In the upcoming February 5th 
Vijay Krsna: This particular chant is quite a traditional favorite, and you can find as many variations of it as there are temples and asrams in India. "Krsna" is the name of the Divine Beloved, the male aspect of the Divine. "Govinda" and "Gopala" means he who protects and loves the cows, which is one of Krsna's favorite things to do. Another interpretation is he who gives bliss to the senses. ("Go" in the ancient sanskrt language means both "cow" and "senses"). Then the next line of the song goes "bhaja Murali Manohara Nandalala"...
