Realisations, Arrangements, and Ecstasies—Narratives of Religious Experience in the Hare Kṛṣṇa Movement

Abstract

Abstract In Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava emotional-aesthetic theology and practice, religious experience is understood as realisation or actualisation of the personal relationship with Kṛṣṇa, the original and the supreme form of God. Within such devotional framework, there are two distinct but not exclusive types of accounts of this realisation: ecstasies and arrangements. These two types of stories reflect one of the temporal ambiguities involved in the notion of experience: immediacy/reflection exemplified by the two words for experience in German Erlebnis and Erfahrung. Except for the differences in their temporality, these two types of stories differ in their intersubjectivity. Arrangements are more readily imparted in the public discourse, whereas ecstasy narratives are shared predominantly in private and confidential settings. The difference reflects Gauḍīya orthodoxy’s caution towards deviant ritual behaviour. Although ecstasies with their immediate and extraordinary affectivity are hoped for and cherished, Hare Kṛṣṇa devotees generally stress historical, reflected dimension of experience. Developing a devotional and moral character is valued over transient eudaimonian episodes. In this way, the article shows how temporal ambiguity of experience is culturally elaborated through distinct concepts and narrative types, enabling the intersubjective management of religious affections and articulations of personal religious identities.