You'll recognize a Krishna by his garb and shaven head

This article, "You'll recognize a Krishna by his garb and shaven head" was published in Courier Post, October 9, 1975, in Camden, New Jersey.

Hare Krishna! The words are a greeting from a young woman in a flowing white sari, sitting in a pickup truck outside a Hare Krishna temple. 

Inside, an odor of incense fills the air as a young man in jeans and a light-colored shirt kneels and touches his head to the bare, tiled floor. 

"Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna…" 

THE WORDS are also a mantra, required to be chanted by devotees of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness 1,728 times a day. 

But the unusual clothing and shaven heads of some members are not requirements of the religion, said a temple official, Mathuranath das, 25. 

They are worn much of the time by those living in the temple because "it's a practical type of dress for the type of life we live," he said. 

"Also, people notice us," added Mathuranath, in white dhoti with pouch to match, along with strings of beads on a clay-daubed neck and a thin topknot of hair. "We want to be noticeable because we are trying to remind people of Krishna."

PART OF the reason for the Krishna attire is to mark those who are teaching, those to whom the public may turn with questions about Krishna, much as a policeman wears an identifying uniform, Mathuranath explained. 

However, those in the group have discovered that many people "are taken aback by the way we dress," he said. 

So they sometimes wear ordinary clothing to make it easier to approach people. he said - for example, when they are distributing literature and seeking donations.

"It's not a trick or anything," Mathuranath said. "but a way of getting to know people easier so they can find out we're really nice people."