Shri Dwarkadheesh Mandir is one of the oldest and largest Hindu temples of

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the states and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the to ...

city in state of

Uttar Pradesh, India Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

. The current structure of temple was built up by Seth Gokul Das Parikh, the treasurer of then

Gwalior State Gwalior state was a semi-autonomous Maratha state. It was centred in modern-day Madhya Pradesh, arising due to the rise of the Maratha Empire and fragmentation of the Mughal Empire. It was ruled by the House of Scindia (anglicized from Shinde ...

(

Scindia The Scindia dynasty (anglicized from Shinde) is a Hindu Maratha dynasty of maratha origin that ruled the erstwhile State of Gwalior. It had the Patil-ship of Kumberkerrab in Wai. It was founded by Ranoji Scindia, who started as a personal serv ...

) in 1814, with approval and donation from Shrimant Daulatrao Scindia, Maharajah of Gwalior. In this historic temple, Lord

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

is worshipped in his Dwarkanath or Dwarkadhish form along with his counterpart goddess

Radha Radha ( sa, राधा, ), also called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna. She is worshiped as the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion. She is the avatar of goddess Lakshmi and is also d ...

in form of Radharani.

Architecture

The temple has a large premises with the main building enclosed by a magnificently carved Rajasthani style entrance with steep steps leading to temple courtyard. In the central courtyard a platform is built up lined up with three rows of richly carved pillars which support the ceiling which is also beautifully painted. Another small temple of another form of Lord Krishna (

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within ...

) ''

Shaligram A shaligrama shila ( deva, शालिग्राम शिला, Śāligrāma-śilā), also rendered as shaligram, is a particular variety of stone collected from riverbed or banks of the Kali Gandaki, a tributary of the Gandaki River in ...

'' is also built up within the temple courtyard.

Festivals

The temple management is under the followers of Vallabhacharya sect (whose followers were the original founders of the premises). The main festival of the temple is called Hindola festival which is celebrated annually in the rainy month of ''

Shravan Shravana Kumara () is a character mentioned in the ancient Hindu text ''Ramayana.'' He is best known for his filial piety towards his parents. He was killed accidentally by Prince Dasharatha. Life Shravana Kumara's parents, Shantanu and Gyanva ...

'' (Occurring in July/August). It is the 13 days long festival. The temple in this duration is beautifully decorated in theme colours. Lord Dwarkadheesh and goddess

Radharani Radha ( sa, राधा, ), also called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna. She is worshiped as the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion. She is the avatar of goddess Lakshmi and is also de ...

are brought out of their sanctum and are placed in beautifully decorated ''Jhoola'' (swing) adorned with golden and silver ornaments for the special darshan.Besides Hindola festival, temple also celebrates

Janmashtami Krishna Janmashtami , also known simply as Krishnashtami, Janmashtami, or Gokulashtami, is an annual Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Krishna, the eighth avatar of Vishnu. According to the Hindu lunisolar calendar, it is observed ...

Radhastami Radhashtami is a Hindu holy day commemorating the birth anniversary of the goddess Radha, the chief consort of the god Krishna. It is celebrated with great fervor in her birthplace Barsana and the entire Braj region on the eighth day (Ashtami ...

Holi Holi (), also known as the Festival of Colours, the Festival of Spring, and the Festival of Love,The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...". is an ancient Hindu religious festival ...

and

Diwali Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It i ...

with great fervour. The temple has religious significance and therefore lakhs of pilgrims visit the shrine every year from different parts of the country and world.

Reach

This Temple is about 3.5 km from city main railway station Mathura Junction. From there many modes are available to reach the temple including buses, taxis and

auto rickshaw An auto rickshaw is a motorized version of the pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw. Most have three wheels and do not tilt. They are known by many terms in various countries including auto, auto rickshaw, baby taxi, mototaxi, pigeon, jonnybee, bajaj ...

s, and it takes about 10 minutes to reach the temple. A

cycle rickshaw The cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport. It is a type of hatchback tricycle designed to carry passengers on a for-hire basis. It is also known by a variety of other names such as bike taxi, velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab ...

takes about 15–20 minutes only. Mathura city can be approached by nearest airport at

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...

60 km away. From there a cab or bus for Mathura depot can be taken and then reach the temple by taking a connecting auto or rickshaw.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Shri Dwarkadhish Temple - Mathura
Hindu temples in Mathura district Radha Krishna temples Krishna temples 19th-century Hindu temples

Architecture

Festivals

Reach

See also

References

External links