It is said that around 525 years ago, Lord Krishna, the supreme God, appeared on earth in the form of a devotee named Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to educate people of the Kaliyuga how to become devotees and recite God's holy name. He established Gaudiya Vaishnavism, a kind of passionate devotion in the Gauda district of West Bengal that has spread throughout India over the past 500 years. Saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu also founded Sankirtan, a place where devotees can publicly show their devotion to Lord Krishna through dancing and singing. He created the famous sacred Mahamantra “Hare Krishna, Hare Rama”.
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada established the name ISKCON (The International Society for Krishna Consciousness), which is associated with faith, in New York City in 1966. George Harrison and other well-known individuals began supporting the Hare Krishna Movement as it expanded throughout England. Following the founding of the first Hare Krishna Commune in West Virginia by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in 1968, the ISKCON organization expanded to major cities throughout the world, including Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, Santa Fe, Montreal, and New Mexico. To oversee the global expansion of the ISKCON temples and society, a supervisory body was established in 1970. ISKCON set up several pilgrimage sites in Mayapur and Vrindavan, India, between 1970 and 1977.
Also referred to as the Hare Krishna Movement, ISKCON includes more than 500 ISKCON temples, important hubs, rural settlements, vegetarian eateries, neighborhood gathering places, and community service initiatives. Millions of congregational members worldwide are committed to the teachings of Lord Krishna and are part of this movement. Promoting Bhakti yoga, the art of loving God, in which followers dedicate their thoughts and deeds to appease Lord Krishna, the greatest God, is the main goal of the ISKCON organization. Sincere adherents of the ISKCON society are expected to uphold the four tenets of austerity, cleanliness, truthfulness, and compassion. The ISKCON is one of the most significant religious organizations in the world and has grown significantly since its founding more than 50 years ago.