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Vrindavan

The town of Vrindavan is situated in the north Indian stateof UttarPradesh around 151 km south of Delhi. The place is just 10 km off Mathura, the place whereLord Krishna is said to have spent his childhood. Vrindavanis situated on the New Delhi-Chennai and New Delhi-Mumbai main railway line. A meter-gauge line connects Vrindavan to Mathura. There are quite a good number of passenger trains plying between these two places.

History
The name 'Vrindavan' issaid to have beenderived from 'Vrinda', another name for the sacred tulsi (basil) plant. A legend has it that the entire place was a tulsi grove at one time. According to another tradition, it was named after Vrinda Devi, one of Krishna's playmates. Whatever may be the case, Vrindavanis primarily a place of temples. Nearly 4,000 in number, which include several private shrines and sattras (houses for the distribution of alms), theyare spread on a 10 km stretch.

The earliest known shrine in Vrindavan is said to have been built by the local gosains in a large garden called Nidhiban, later named Seva Kunj. According to tradition, Emperor Akbar was taken blindfolded inside the grovewhere he had some kind of a spiritual experience. As a result, he acknowledged the spot as being holy ground.

The four temples that were built in honourof his visit are Govind Deva, Madan Mohan, Gopinath, and Jugal Kishore. The first is an impressive edifice built in red sandstone. Architecturally this temple is one of the finest in North India. The beautiful tower that exists has lost some of its upper stories. Amutilated inscription on one of its walls records that Raja Man Singh of Amber built the temple in 1590. At the time of Aurangzeb, the principal image was removed from Vrindavan to Jaipur.

However, apart from its history, what keeps Vrindavan alive in the popular imaginationof the people is its rich legend and mythology. Vrindavan is considered the place where LordKrishna spent his early childhood. It was here that Krishna indulged in adolescent pranks with the gopis (milkmaids) in the forests and stealing theirclothes while they bathedin the river. Little now remain of the legendary forests and the river has meandered away frommost of Vrindavan's bathing ghats, but the Krishna effect is still there in the large number of pilgrims visiting this town.

Highlights

• Yamuna River
  The Yamuna river flows through Vrindavan and Mathura. It is the most sacred river in India as it is so intimately connected with Krishna's pastimes. Situated on the bank of the Yamuna is the Keshi Ghat, where Krishna killed the Keshi demon and saved his friends. One who bathes here gets the benediction of bathing in all of the holy places.
  
  
• Krishna Balarama Mandir
  One of ISKCON's major centres is the Krishna Balarama Mandir. This beautiful marble temple was constructed twenty years ago. There are Deities of Gaura-Nitai, Krishna Balarama and Radha-Syamasundara. In front of the temple is the Samadhi Mandir of Srila Prabhupada. This is where his body was laid to rest after he passed away in 1977. His house has been turned into a museum. There is also a guesthouse, restaurant, gurukula and goshalla.
  
  
• Sri Sri Radha Govindaji Mandir
  Built in 1590 by Maharaja Man Singh for the original Govindaji deity discovered by Srila Rupa Goswami. Govindaji was removed from this temple and reinstalled in Jaipur when the Muslim Emperor Aurangzeb destroyed part of the temple in 1670. Several other Deities are also installed here. As this temple was partially destroyed ,worship is now carried in the new Govindaji Mandir ( located behind the original temple).
  
  
• Sri Sri Radha Madan Mohan Mandir
  Sanatana Goswami discovered the Deity of Madan Mohan. Ram das Kapoor, a merchant donated the funds for this mandir in 1580. When the Muslims attacked in 1670, the original Deities were moved to Karoli. Worship is done in the new Madan Mohan Mandir to the replacement Madan Mohan Deity.
  

Best time to visit
Being a part of the Gangetic plain, Vrindavanfaces extreme climate with hot and humid summer and chilly winter. The maximum temperature during the summer can reacha high of around 45°C and a low of around 5°C during the winters. Monsoon reaches this region in the first week of July and continues tillthe second week of September. The ideal season to visit Vrindavan is during winters (October to mid-March).



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