Mathura Vrindavan

Mathura and Vrindavan are great places to visit as they are famous pilgrimage destinations for the devotees of Lord Krishna. Mathura is a district located in the state of Uttar Pradesh on the west side of River Yamuna and Vrindavan is a town in this district. Devotees and tourists come here from all over the world for spiritual experience. Mathura, popularly known as ‘Brajbhoomi’ is the sacred place where Lord Krishna was born and Vrindavan is where he spent his childhood. Vrindavan boasts of around 5000 temples.

Every corner of the Mathura reverberates with the stories of Lord Krishna. According to the Bhagavata Purana (puranic texts of Hinduism), Lord Krishna and gopis had performed the rasa dance on the banks of the river Yamuna in Vrindavan.

Vrindavan is dotted with many temples dedicated to Lord Krishna and Radha. It attracts around five lakh pilgrims every year. Banke Bihari Temple is the most famous temple here. Built in 1864, it houses the Lord’s murti discovered by the saint Swami Hari Das, known for his bhajnas, in Nidhi Van where Banke Bihari (another name of Lord Krishna) was originally worshipped. The temple hosts mangala-aarti only one day in a year and only once a year the feet of the deity can be seen on Akhyaya Tritiya. To be a part of aarti at this temple is an experience in itself. You will be lost in the melodious aarti feeling one with the Lord. At this temple the Lord’s idol is treated like the lord himself.

Visit Vrindavan during the festival of Janamashtmi which marks the celebration of Lord Krishna’s birth. The temples are beautifully adorned with fresh flowers, devotional songs are sung and devotees keep fast. The lord’s idol is bathed in milk and honey, covered with beautiful clothes and adorned with jewellery. The spirit can be experience in the entire Vrindavan and thousands of devotees visit the temple.

Vrindavan is also famous for food. After visiting the temples you can explore the small markets for mouth-watering kachoris, refreshing sweet lassi and amazing rabri. Colourful handcrafted clothes and jewellery for the lord’s idol are available here. You can also buy CDs of Lord’s devotional songs. And don’t forget to buy some famous sweet pedas of Mathura which is famous across the country.

Visit these holy places and experience the charm and beauty of the land where Lord himself once lived.