By Carly Squires

The unique city centre café has received rave reviews!

Monks live on the outskirts of civilisation in isolation – completely dissociated from modern society, and instead engaged with spirituality and tranquility.

Right? Wrong – well not in this Cardiff café any way.

Even in a world with more than its fair share of niche hipster cafés, a vegetarian/vegan restaurant run by the Hare Krishna community is still something of a rarity.

But Atma Café, on Queen Street, has integrated head monk Tarakanatha Dasa slap bang into the beating heart of the city centre, and he has proven that business and spirituality can live comfortably side-by-side.

One look at their Facebook page shows a satisfaction score of 4.7 out of 5, while customers on TripAdvisor have rewarded them with a 4.5 mark.

Reviews describe the eatery as “an oasis of calm” providing “soul food”.

But he insists that they do not hide anything from the public about being Hare Krishna, in fact they encourage discussion about their faith.

“You don’t have to live in a monastery to be spiritual,” Tarakanatha explains, “This is a part of how we share our message. Salvation isn’t about isolation. For most people to speak to a monk they have had to climb up into the Himalayas or go to an island – but we are bringing our belief down into the city.

“We live in harmony with our surroundings. Everybody has problems, but people are looking for the solution in the wrong place.

“It’s a good way to introduce our culture in a non-threatening atmosphere, where people can have a meal or ask about why they suffer from stress or anxiety. If you really want to you can come and stay with the monks – some stay for a month, others, for years.”

Starting out life as a small business in 2000, the award-winning restaurant re-opened in July this year, moving from Church Street to the Capital Centre – proof that despite their faith, Atma is going from strength to strength.

I ask if this financially supports the Hare Krishnas in Cardiff.

“It’s certainly not about money making,” the 58-year-old laughs. “We don’t make any money here. We’re not business minded, our business is to share the Hare Krishna consciousness with people. Atma is about giving people access to spirituality and they can take as much or as little as they can digest.

“A lot of people come in and say it’s nice because there’s no hidden agenda, our purpose for being here is to serve people. Somebody came in yesterday and had the chai, she thanked me and said it was life changing. How can that be? A chai? Life changing? But it can be.

“We try to create an atmosphere where people can come in and relax. There’s no pressure, people can leave their problems at the door and come in and eat. We provide a spiritual, intellectual buzz. We want people to question, think about the finer points of life and discuss it amongst themselves.”

Everybody who works at Atma is of the Hare Krishna faith, but it’s not exclusive. Living in ashrams in Splott, believers follow traditional scriptures such as the Bhagavad-gītā and the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, and chant for two hours a day. Often they can be seen wearing orange and dancing through Cardiff city centre.

Tarakantha explains: “I’ve been chanting the same song for 30 years, so unless I am completely brainwashed, there has to be something to it.

“If you shout nasty thing at a plant it will start to wilt, but if you talk to it nicely and say it is beautiful it will grow. That’s what we do, and that’s what makes it special and scared. It affects our consciousness. The reason we wear paint on our face is to remind us that our body is scared, and a temple, and much like you would act respectfully if you walked in a church – we respect our bodies the same way. It reminds us that we don’t drink, or eat meat.”

Atma has won several food awards, including The Observer’s ‘Best ethical restaurant in Britain’ title, and it also provides space for healthy living activities such as yoga and meditation.

“We are called the kitchen religion, because we place a lot of emphasis on food. Everything we see, tough and smells affects our consciousness and how we think and feel. Everybody’s got to eat. You know you have come to the right religion when you have got a big plate of food in front of you.”

The cafe, which closed the doors at its previous Church Street location in April, advocates the principal of ahimsa – a belief, central to the religions of Hinduism and Buddhism, that all living beings have a spark of divine energy and that to hurt others is ultimately the same as hurting oneself.

As a result, all the dairy products sold in Atma come from cows that will never be slaughtered, making it first café of its kind in Europe.

“We have a farm in which the cows die naturally, are looked after and we ensure that all calves are kept with the cows. We have pictures of it on the walls of ATMA. I am concerned about the environment and how much demand we place upon it, a tree can only grow so high.”

“Our food is sacred. We chant mantras and use spiritual sounds at our food to achieve this.

“Our paneer burgers are too good. They are made from the milk of our cows – we make curd and turn it into cheese. And what is left of that is why, which is really nutritious. There are no colours or preservatives. Plus, it’s really tasty!”

Tarakanatha discovered Hare Krishna teachings 30 years ago in the town where he grew up in the Aber Valley. At the time, it was essentially unheard of – in his world at least.

“I met the man who originally brought Hare Krishna to the Valleys, he grew up in the 70s. All the old colliers would end up chasing him out of pubs telling him not to bring his ‘whacky backy’ up here.

“I read a book and it changed my life. It wasn’t all flashes of blinding lights but it filled a gap I had. It’s given me a purpose in life. When life is falling apart, which happens, it’s something for me to hold onto. That there is more than just this.

To read the original article and watch the relating video click here: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/food-drink-news/meet-hare-krishna-monk-running-13904631

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=53197

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