“In this Age of Kali there is no other means, no other means, no other means for selfrealization than chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name of Lord Hari.”
– Bṛhan-naradiya Purana
Srila Prabhupada’s great desire was that the chanting of the Lord’s holy names spread all over the world. To help fulfill that desire, in 1996, the year of the Srila Prabhupada Centennial, ISKCON’s Governing Body Commission established World Holy Name Day. In 2008, World Holy Name Day became World Holy Name Week.
This year, several observances on the Vaisnava calendar during World Holy Name Week relate directly to the spreading of the holy name. September 26 is the birth anniversary of Srila Bhaktivinoda Ṭhakura, the powerful nineteenth-century Gauḍiya Vaisnava who launched the first efforts to spread Krishna’s holy names outside India. September 27 marks the anniversary of the passing of Srila Haridasa Ṭhakura, whom Śri Caitanya Mahaprabhu designated namacarya – the primary teacher of the holy name, by example and precept. September 28 celebrates the day on which Srila Prabhupada accepted sannyasa, the renounced order of life, freeing him to prepare for and eventually embark on his momentous voyage to America. And on October 4, the last day of WHNW, we honor Srila Prabhupada’s arrival in America, from where he launched a movement that is carrying the holy names to every corner of the world.
To find out how you can take part in this year’s World Holy Name Week, please visit worldholynameweek.com.
