Who’s the guy chanting Hare Krishna at Trade & Tryon?

Charlotte’s Uptown Hare Krishna’s given name is David Willard but he refers to himself by his initiated name Devaprastha dasa. Deva grew up Christian with an Episcopalian preacher for a father but wanted more out of religion than he was getting and says he found it at a temple in Berkeley, California in 1996. It was there that he found his guru and eventually his way to India for initiation. He and his wife moved to Charlotte three years ago with the hope of opening their own Hare Krishna temple and he’s been chanting at Trade & Tryon since 2013.

But why?

“You know how when you take a pill and don’t know if it actually works until you feel better but you just take it anyway?” he asks, always with a smile. “All these people, I’m giving them that.”

You may not notice him or his chants or any change in your life, but according to Deva, the transcendental sound vibration of the constant repetition of three holy words–hare, krishna, rama–is a call to god and his divine energy. Deva believes strongly that religion should be embodied so chanting the Hare Krishna is a cornerstone of his own personal faith and could be a private practice, but by chanting it there in the middle of a crowded square, he’s calling on that energy for us all.

He says he tries to make it to the square about 20 days out of the month. That’s a whole lot of energy.

With that level of commitment I had to ask, “So… what’s your full-time job?” The answer, somehow not surprisingly, is this–this chanting. Deva and his wife live off of donations but he’s quick to point out, “We live very simply. Very simply. We don’t watch TV.”

Lest you think Deva leads a life of pure spiritual isolation, know that I left him my card and he did email me–from a Stanford University alumni email address, no less. I don’t know why (yes I do), but that validates his operation for me somehow. This is what he had to say:

“We’re opening a Hare Krishna temple here in Charlotte. Our vision is to create a space where people can come and learn about our spiritual practice, and then use the temple and community that we create to take their next step in spiritual life – whatever that may be, and to whatever extent they feel comfortable. We’re going to have meditation classes, spiritual discussions, classes on the Bhagavad-gita, kirtan and devotional chanting, vegetarian dinners, etc. We’ll also have an ashram where people who want to immerse themselves in the practice full-time can do so. We’ve been laying the groundwork for the temple since we arrived, and we’re looking to get started in the next few weeks or so. I’ll definitely let you know when we open.”

So that’s it. That’s your friendly neighborhood Hare Krishna. I’ll admit I was hesitant to approach him. He’s dressed in what appears to be religious attire. He has a stripe of yellow paint down his face. Am I interrupting a holy prayer? Will he even talk to me? If he does will he be a total whackjob? I stood there awkwardly taking pictures of the vegetable stand behind me before plopping down right there next to him and I’m really glad I did. Because I think what we have here is a highly intelligent, endlessly curious, surprisingly self aware man who sought something more for himself, found it and decided to share it. It doesn’t have to be your chosen faith to learn and appreciate something from that.