Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The kīrtana begins with the chanting of the mahāmantra, slowly at first and melodiously. Later the chant will speed up as the spirit of the devotion spreads. Often the most rapid and intense chanting is done by a hard-core knot of dhoti-ed men before the curtains of the shrine." The devotees get in one group and start... (laughter) Hard-core devotees. "The rhythm approaches that of an express train, and the atmosphere is apt to remind a lay visitor of an old-fashioned football rally. Some of the onlookers try to keep up with the central group, clapping their hands, swaying their bodies, throwing arms upwards and, among the younger, adapting modern dance steps to the rhythm. When the shrine curtains are drawn back, devotees kneel and press their foreheads..."
Prabhupāda: Who has introduced this peculiar dancing?
Hari-śauri: It just evolved. (laughs)
Rūpānuga: We were speaking about that the other day. It's changed from the original dancing that you showed us to something else. Too much like the modern dancing.
Prabhupāda: Hmm. I think this is not good.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Shall I read on? "The service has become..." What way should we dance, Śrīla Prabhupāda? With our hands outstretched? Sometimes the devotees like to jump around. Is that all right?
Prabhupāda: In ecstasy one can do anything, that is another... But artificially to do something is not good.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But if one feels like jumping, it is all right?
Prabhupāda: Anything artificial is not required.
Rūpānuga: So running back and forth is not...
Prabhupāda: No, no, that should not be an artificial.
Hari-śauri: We don't dance for show, we dance for the pleasure of the Deities.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, we're not professional dancers. "The service has become so frenetic that the almost folksy, matter of fact preaching of the Swami makes a stark contrast. 'Some people are against us because they say we teach children to smile. Well isn't that too bad. We make children smile—we are bad. We try to teach them that life should be a joyful thing, we're evil. Well that's too bad, isn't it? ' "
Devotees: Who's that? That's crazy.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This is theory.(?) (laughter)
Prabhupāda: So he has not returned with the key?
Hari-śauri: Who? Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa?
Prabhupāda: Hmm. Still more?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.