Golden Triangle Tour with Mathura Vrindavan

Mathura Vrindavan Tour

His father Vasudev carried baby Krishna across the Yamuna in a basket. The waters were ao turbulent that Vasudev nearly drowned, but the great snake Sheshang emerged from the river and spread its hood over father and child to shelter them. Krishna was a naughty child, terribly found of dairy products, particularly ghee and butter. Paintings of a chubby blue child wearing a feather crown and gorging on butter are extremely common in Hindu households and shops all over north India. Krishna's consort is the wooed with the music of his flute and finally married. Love stories of Krishna and Radha have inspired many poems and legends. One of the most famous is Geet Govind. Krishna's name is synonymous with love and sweet romance in lush green gardens. Famous is the rather grim looking room in the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple (on the outskirts of the city of Mathura) which makes the spot where Krishna was born. Mathura is a colourful, constantly festive city with temples lining its ghats. The most famous is Vishram Ghat where Krishna is said to have come after killing Kamsa.

The Krishna legend is by no means Mathura's only claim to fame. From the 5th century BC Mathura's was a centre of Buddhism and regarded as the premier north Indian city in terms of its artistic and scholarly achievements. The Mathura school of art is on display at the government Museum (open from 10:30 to 16:30, Tuesdays to Sundays). The museum has stone sculptures and brass artifacts dating from ancient Indian dynasties. It also houses the headless statute of Krishna, a conqueror who founded a huge empire with its capital at Peshawar in the 1st century AD. There is also a statue of the Standing Buddha and fragments of ancient places. The images at the Government Museum show traces of Greek influence after Alexander's invasion of India. The museum which is an important part of Mathura Vrindavan sightseeing tours , as a whole provides glimpses of the rich north Indian civilization over the last centuries BC through the first centuries AD.

Vrindavan Tour

Vrindavan (forest of Fragrant Basil) is where Krishna used to dance at Holi (the festival of colors) with Radha and her gopis (cowgirl consorts). The festival takes place between January and march and is celebrated on a full moon night towards the end of winter. People sprinkle coloured powder and water on each other, drink bhang (opium flavoured milk), dance and sing. The town is an important Hindu pilgrimage site.

Of the many important temples located in Vrindavan, the most notable is Govindeoji Temple built in 1590 by Raja Man Singh 1 of Amber. This temple is seven storeys high and every year thousands of Vaishnavite pilgrimas (followers of Vishnu) come here to pray. The Sri Ranganathji Temple is architecturally similar to the temple of south India. It has a carved gopuram (a pyramidical pillar) at its summit. During festivals, the temples of Vrindavan are decorated with flowers, clay lamps and brightly coloured flags.

Since the early decades of the 20th century, traditional Hindu families sent their Widows to holy cities like Vrindavan and Benares. Some of them were extremely young because it was common practice to marry young girls to much older man. The Widows shaved their heads and wore simple white clothes as a mark of their widowhood. The custom of sending widows to Vrindavan has almost completely disappeared today, although widows are still sent to this city from very poor areas because their families can no longer look after them. They live in the temples or in vidhva ashrams (widow shelters) and are cared for by the temple administrators. The plight of the widows of Vrindavan and Benares is a subject of great social concern and many citizen groups are campaigning for improved living conditions for them.

The Golden triangle tour Package is incomplete without visiting Mathura and Vrindavan. If you are on a short stay in Delhi, Mathura Vrindavan Tours Packages can be done as a day excursion.