Good Day!
I attended and greatly enjoyed Govardhan Puja at a local Hare Krishna temple yesterday. As a registered nurse I am interested in learning more about the faith and practices of the Hare Krishna devotees, in order to care for my patients and truly appreciate them and their culture. I am hoping to find guidance here! Will you help me? :)
I can see how important chanting is to your daily practice. If I were to care for a Hare Krishna devotee the way I would like to be cared for, I would like to be able to find a special clean, light-filled space for this chanting, one that would minimize distraction. I would want to ask the devotee for specific diet restrictions, assist with appropriate food choice and ask for a nutritionist to consult… Perhaps special meals could be made.
Also, what is important to appreciating the devotees faith and practice? I read that cleanliness is very important, how can I assist with this in the hospital? From the message boards, I have also learned that there is an interest in Holistic Health/Ayurveda medicine. Can you tell me more, so that I can do my job better and help other nurses to do the same?
Namaste,
Anne
Hare Krishna, First of all
Hare Krishna,
First of all can i say how wonderfull it is that you are being so considerate and thoughtfull !!
I always find it very moving when people who are not of my beliefs want to try to help those of differant beliefs feel more comfortable in places like hospitals without any motive except the genuine and pure desire to help others..
I would say that every devotee is differant in the way that they practise to some degree although we all will share the same basic beliefs and practises - such as chanting..
for most devotees finding the 2 or so hours to chant the required 16 rounds a day may be very important - even during serious illness..
others may preffer to have pictures of deities by their bedside so that they can make daily offerings to Krishna etc.
aside from chanting, for many devotees its quite important that all their food is first offered to lord krishna so that it becomes spiritualised or Prasadam as we call it... a small picture is usually enough for this to happen...
many devotees often wear small wooden beads around their neck called ''tulsi'' - these are a sign of being a devotee and many believers may be unwilling to take them off - even during operations etc.
If you can find a small room or space for devotees then that will be extremely appreciated. It doesnt have to be any thing amazing either.. a table with pictures of our deities,with fresh flowers ( although im sure you could find families of patients willing to contribute to this ) and a place to sit will be enough...
The best thing to do is to speak with the temple you went to and ask them for advice. Krishna temples are very big on out reach, and im sure it wouldnt be too much trouble for you to arrange for a program of donations ( flowers, deity pics, even food ) to anything special you want to do in the hospital for devotees to minimise the cost and burden to the hospital...
also - im sure you could arrange for some kind of regular visit by more devotees to the hospital so that they could chant with them, offer prayers, maybe do a small arati or puja..
all of these things are important to devotees and many people believe that chanting alone helps healing and overcoming problems...
if you go to the temple and explain what you are doing and maybe ask to speak with the temple president, im sure you will be very warmly recieved - even more so since you are not a devotee yourself...
please feel free to ask for any more advice here if you need it...
All glories to you for this wonderfull thing you are doing for devotees of krishna ! :)
Hare harebol !
re Hare Krishna, First of all
Kimimela, Thank you for the wealth of knowledge that you provided me with. I appreciate the time that it took to write a very comprehensive overview. I am blessed to have found such a loving community of people who share in such a beautiful way. I will not forget how the Hare Krsna devotees touched my heart. In my life I know this will make me a better person.
Namaste,
Anne
contact
Hare Krsna Anne, my advice is to get in touch with devotee nurses at http://vaisnavascare.com/
ys Jan
re: contact
Thank You Jan, I will use this resource!
-Anne
hospital
You're welcome. That was for a hospice. This is a devotee-run hospital: http://bhaktivedantahospital.com/
ys Jan
re hospital
Jan, Thank you for another wonderful link! I really like the Spiritual Care section. It is nice to see a hospital that understands the importance of this aspect of care. Here in the US, technology seems to be more important for doctors and nurses. I think this hospital looks like a great model for holistic care.
Namaste,
Anne
Hare Krsna
In what environment would you be providing care?
re: Hare Krsna
I work in Hospice, in the Home care setting, but I would also be interested in advice for nurses working in the hospital setting as well as primary care areas. In other words, what is unique to the devotees beliefs and how can care be provided in a way that shows respect for the culture.
Thank you kindly for your reply!
-Anne
Gaudiya Vaishnava Nurse
Humble Pranams. I am new to Krishna Consciousness but a longtime meditator, yoga practitioner, and practicing Hindu. I am even newer to nursing, as I have been in my first nursing job less than a year. I have a very small real population where I live who practice Hinduism. Your continued committment to serving in such a loving way may surprise some, but nurses know that we are known as angels in many arenas! Thank you for your TLC, it makes a big difference.
Little Radha