Can you imagine a rock star giving in to the spiritual charm of India and singing traditional kirtans making millions of his fans spread all across the world take a holy spiritual dip?
This man is no divine person but is a familiar name known all across! Any guess?
Yes, if you are thinking of Krishna Das, you are right. He is the same man who makes you forget yourself in his kirtans which chant the holy names of Ram and Krishna.
His soulful voice singing bhajans, hymns and mantras touches the deepest chord of the listener taking him altogether to a different world which is serene, calm and peaceful.
Those listening or attending to his kirtans soak spiritualism and can be seen swaying to his melodies flowing all across.
You will be surprise to know that Krishna Das was born as Jeffrey Kagel on May 31, 1947 in Long Island, New York in United States.
However, his spiral sojourn started in late 60s after meeting spiritual seeker Ram Dass with whom he toured all across India. Fortunately, he met the legendary guru Neem Karoli Baba, known to most as Maharaj-ji during his trip.
Soon after, he has had an inspiration to become a remarkable Being and he eventually left his dreams of being a rock star behind and emerged as chant master of American Yoga.
Basking in the love of Maharaj-ji in the three years that followed, KD’s heart was drawn to the practice of Bhakti Yoga – the yoga of devotion and after two and a half years with Maharaj-ji, he returned to USA. However, six months after his return, word came that Maharaj-ji had died.
At the same time, he promised his beloved Guru in his own heart saying “I will sing for you in the west.”
However, this did not come easily.
In fact, KD, in his book ‘Chants of a Life Time’, confirms that it took him almost 20 years to sing with people around the USA.
KD has released many albums since 1996 and has also performed at the 2013 Grammy Awards, where his album Live Ananda was nominated for the 2013 Grammy Award for Best New Age Album
Over all these years, KD has inspired many nations teaching its people how to heal their souls via music meditation and practice.
Knowing no barriers, Krishna Das’ song to song steadiness is both striking and soothing, and is as emotionally impactful as ever.
The man simply says that “The chanting just hits you and you want to be a part of it,”. “That’s the point of this whole thing and that’s what cuts through all the ‘stuff’. You get lit up. You don’t have to know what it means,” he sums up the entire experience.
