Temple as a sacred space
Visit of a temple should not be just a regular activity. We should approach a temple as a sacred place, not as a regular place as our home, workplace or a shopping mall.
Many people visit temples in clothes they wear anywhere else. In this age especially in jeans, leggings or skirts. Just as they visit another regular place, no sacredness.
Just as we may change our clothes before going to a wedding, funeral, important ceremony or formal event, changing our dress for a temple visit can communicate to our own mind that we are entering a different kind of space.
The question, therefore, is not simply whether a devotee can wear Western clothes in a temple. The more interesting question is: What kind of atmosphere do we want to create when we enter a temple, and how can our clothing contribute to that atmosphere?
The view of some devotees
Many devotees advocate wearing Western-style clothing in temples. They have no problem wearing pants, leggings or skirts when visiting a temple, and they may not feel comfortable wearing a dhoti or sari.
Some also argue that traditional Vedic clothing can make Western visitors feel uncomfortable or shocked, whereas Western clothing makes devotees appear more approachable and familiar.
Another common argument is that Srila Prabhupāda did not force everyone to wear a dhoti or sari and allowed devotees to decide for themselves. This is true and valid. Srila Prabhupāda himself emphasized that dress is not the most important thing.
But this does not necessarily settle the question.
If dress is not the essence of spiritual life, does that mean that dress has no significance? If devotees are free to choose what they wear, what should they consider when making that choice?
Let's look at some of the reasons why traditional Vedic dress may have a valuable role in temple life.
Certain dress creates certain atmosphere
It's a psychological fact that clothing can influence how we feel and how other people perceive us. We experience this in ordinary life. We dress differently for a wedding, a funeral, a job interview, a sporting event, a celebration, or a religious ceremony. The clothes themselves do not create the significance of the event, but they can reinforce the mood and communicate that the occasion is different from ordinary life.
If everyone enters a temple wearing exactly the same type of clothing they wear while shopping, working, or relaxing, the external environment may feel much closer to ordinary life. But when devotees wear traditional dhoti and sari, the visual environment immediately becomes different.
The difference is not merely aesthetic. It can serve as a reminder that we have entered a sacred environment and are participating in a spiritual tradition.
If people wear ordinary dress as everybody else, it does not create a special atmosphere. But if people wear dhoti or sari, it certainly creates different impression on our mind and mind of others. Srila Prabhupāda pointed at this fact by saying:
Reporter: Swāmījī, your movement has received a great deal of attention for, at least one reason, because many of your followers dress in what for the West is an odd fashion, and relate to the world in what for the West is an odd fashion. Can you respond to that? Why have you asked your followers to dress in this fashion and to play drums on the streets?
Prabhupāda: This is our preaching method, some way or other to draw their attention. [laughter]
Devotees: Jaya! Haribol!
Reporter: I'm sure that you're aware that to many people in the West, in America, in New York City specifically, that your disciples seem strange because of the way they act on the streets. What about that?
Prabhupāda: Yes, they must be strange, because they are spiritual. You are all material. [laughter] So for the material persons, we are surely strange people.
Type: Interview Dated: March 5th 1975 Location: New York
The same interview continues:
Reporter: Swami, that isn't the thrust of my question. Yes, I have. The thrust of my question very simply is this = Can't people be spiritual without dressing in this fashion and dancing in the street?
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes, oh, yes. You can become spiritual in your this dress. Simply you have to learn what it is from the books. The dress... Dress is not very important thing, but still, in the material field, this girl is dressed in a different way, you are dressed in a different way.
Reporter: The way we dress lets us move in all circles.
Prabhupāda: No, the thing is, dress is not very important.
Reporter: But you have your disciples dress in this way...
Prabhupāda: But just to draw a particular... Just like the policeman, he is differently dressed. One can understand that he is policeman. Similarly, we are also differently dressed so that people may understand we are Hare Kṛṣṇa people.
Some devotees understandably focus on Srila Prabhupāda's statement, "Dress is not very important." But the rest of the conversation provides important context.
Srila Prabhupāda did not say that dress was completely meaningless. He explained why his disciples dressed differently: to draw attention and to make it possible for people to recognize them as Hare Krishna devotees.
This is an important distinction. Dress was not the essence of spiritual life, but it had a practical purpose. It communicated something externally.
A policeman does not become a policeman because of his uniform, but the uniform allows people to recognize him as a policeman. Similarly, a devotee does not become spiritually advanced merely by wearing a dhoti or sari, but traditional devotional dress can communicate that he or she belongs to a spiritual tradition.
Srila Prabhupāda didn't directly instruct or force devotees to wear sari or dhoti, but he was pleased when they wanted to wear it. He was proud and happy when hippies started wearing dhoti and sari and looked different from other hippies and materialistic people.
Spiritual dress?
Does wearing a dhoti or sari make clothing "spiritual"? Not by itself.
A dhoti is simply cloth, and a sari is simply cloth. The spiritual significance comes from the culture, purpose, consciousness, and activities associated with them.
We should also understand that clothing can create a particular feeling and atmosphere. The clothes we wear are not spiritually powerful in themselves, but they can influence how we perceive ourselves, how others perceive us, and how we perceive the environment around us.
Some devotees may object: "But non-devotees also wear dhoti and sari in India. Why should we consider these clothes spiritual or special?"
The answer is that the value of traditional Vedic dress does not come simply from the fabric or from the geographical place where it is worn. A dhoti or sari is not automatically spiritual just because it is traditional Indian clothing. Its significance comes from what it represents and the context in which it is worn.
In the context of Krishna consciousness, traditional Vedic dress can remind us of the culture in which many devotional practices, values, and traditions have been preserved. It can therefore become a visible connection to that culture and to a way of life centered around spiritual values rather than ordinary material pursuits.
This distinction is especially noticeable in the West, where dhoti and sari are not the normal everyday clothing. When devotees wear them, they immediately communicate that they are connected with a different tradition and way of life. The same distinction is increasingly relevant even in India, where Western-style clothing has become widespread and many people no longer regularly wear traditional clothing.
Therefore, the point is not that a dhoti is inherently more spiritual than a pair of pants, or that a sari automatically makes someone more Krishna conscious. Rather, traditional dress can represent and reinforce a devotional culture.
When we put on traditional Vedic clothing before entering the temple, it can remind us: I am not simply going somewhere as I do every day. I am entering a sacred environment and participating in a spiritual tradition.
Traditional Vedic dress is not what makes us devotees. But it can help us remember that we are devotees or that we aspire to be devotees. It can help create the atmosphere of a temple, preserve our spiritual culture, and even open doors for preaching.
In this way, clothing can become more than a matter of fashion. It can become a visible reminder of our values, our identity, and the purpose for which we have come to the temple.
External appearance and preaching
A devotee wearing traditional Vedic clothing is immediately recognizable as someone connected with Krishna consciousness. That can have several effects:
it creates a distinct temple atmosphere;
it reminds other devotees why they are there;
newcomers understand that this is not simply another social club;
it preserves and visibly expresses Vaishnava/Vedic culture;
it can stimulate curiosity and questions;
it gives the temple a distinctive spiritual identity.
How many times devotees had opportunity to preach just because they were easily recognisable by their dress? People were curious, asked questions and received valuable information from devotees, including Prabhupāda's books, Prasadam etc. When devotees look like other people, this aspect of immediate difference is missing.
Dress is not the essence, but it influences the atmosphere
We should not misunderstand this point. Wearing a dhoti or sari does not make someone spiritually advanced, just as wearing pants does not make someone spiritually immature. Krishna consciousness is ultimately a matter of consciousness, not clothing.
But this does not mean that clothing is irrelevant.
There is a difference between saying that dress is not the essence of spiritual life and saying that dress has no influence whatsoever. The first is true; the second is difficult to maintain.
Everything around us influences our mind to some degree—the music we hear, the architecture we see, the people around us, the activities taking place, and also the way we dress. A temple is deliberately different from an ordinary building for the same reason. We create a particular environment to help the mind turn toward Krishna.
Traditional Vedic dress can therefore serve as an external reminder: I am entering a sacred place, I am participating in a spiritual culture, and my ordinary activities and mentality are being left behind.
The dress itself is not the spirituality. Rather, it can help create an atmosphere in which spiritual consciousness is easier to cultivate.
Let us show our appreciation for the culture and tradition that Srila Prabhupāda brought to the world by not dismissing the value and benefits of traditional Vedic dress. It is an important visible expression of the Vedic culture that devotees seek to understand, practice, and cultivate in their lives.
Hare Krishna