Mathura and Brindavan are two ancient towns related to life of Lord Krishna . Mathura is the birth place and Brindavan is the place where Krishna spent his early childhood .
Mathura has many small shrines dedicated to Krishna and there is also a cell (Krishna Janma Bhoomi) where he was born . This temple draws thousands of devotees everyday and security arrangements are very tight here and frisking is done twice before pilgrims are allowed inside. The Mathura temple and a mosque share a common wall here. No cameras are allowed near the temple and I do not have any picture to share of Krishna Janma Bhoomi.
Banke Bihari is the most popular temple in Brindavan; built in 1921. This temple is situated in a crowded narrow by- lane and one has to really wade through a sea of people , cattle, vehicles and what not.
The Krishna is known here as Banke Bihari ; the idol is bent at 3 places i.e it is in a dance posture. The beauty of the idol here is, it has large expressive eyes which are believed to be powerful and magnetic. It is believed that looking at his eyes for a long time will make one swoon hence curtains are drawn and opened every few seconds. Monkeys are plenty here and one has to be careful about their belongings, specifically their spectacles and locals keep reminding visitors about the same.
Our guide took us to Nanda -Yasodha's house, situated near river Yamuna and we also saw the sacred tree where Krishna used to play his flute mesmerizing all Brajvasis . Nidhi Van, is yet another holy place where there are lush green groves which was once a Tulsi Van. It is believed that every night Radha and Krishna visit this place to play Ras.
Mathura- Brindavan echoes only Krishna's name. It makes one feel Krishna is right among us.They greet each other in Krishna's name..'Radhe, Radhe" Every heart here beats only Radhe..Radhe Every activity here is dedicated to Lord Krishna here. Some thing different and great.
Mathura is situated at a distance of 160 Kms. from Delhi. The distance between Brindavan and Mathura is only 15 Kms.
Mathura can be easily approached by road or rail from Delhi.
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| Banke Bihari temple |
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| Radhe Radhe |
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| Nidhi Van |
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| Nidhi Van |
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| Nanda's house ,a shrine now. |
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| Hanuman |
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| The tree where Krishna used to play his flute |