30/07/2026
Another good man has left us yesterday, but has been promoted onto a better situation. Our thoughts are with his wife, young son, other family members and close friends. Glen Hansard RIP. Hare Krishna.
In 2009, Glen got chatting to some Colombia University journalism students on board a Dublin-New York flight in March.
"Hansard, shoeless and sipping tea comfortably in coach, had just attended his fatherโs funeral in Ireland and wasnโt interested in talking about his career. (โThatโs boring,โ he dismissed.) But he was eager to share his thoughts on spirituality.....
Hansard, 39, dropped out of school at age 13 to devote himself to his music career, which started with busking in the streets of Dublin. One day, he befriended a group of Hare Krishnas, who had asked him to take care of their instruments and sweets while they distributed Krishna literature. His spiritual mind was immediately taken by the chants and the beliefs of Krishna.....
Hansard admired the lives of the sadhus, the holy men in Hinduism who wear saffron robes and take vows of celibacy, and even contemplated joining the monastic order.
โWhat struck me about the monastic Hare Krishna life is that they were waking up early, praying, eating vegetarian food and singing,โ he said. โWhen you're young, you want the needle to hit the record, you know?โ
But he decided against becoming a monk to focus on his music career instead. While playing with the Irish band, The Frames, he continued looking for ways to reconcile his different journeys, spiritual and musical.
Although he identifies himself as a Hare Krishna, Hansard said he still feels a strong connection with the culture of mysticism that is so powerful in Celtic traditions.
โIt's written in our history books,โ he said. โI make art and that's great, but digging in the hole and growing potatoes is a higher calling. In Ireland, the land is pulsing.โ
https://www.lakeisleretreats.com/glen-hansard-hare-krishna.html
