Radha Damodar Temple Vrindavan
About Radha Damodar Temple Vrindavan
Shri Radha Damodar Temple is a sacred temple dedicated to Radha and Krishna, located in Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh. Krishna is worshipped here as “Damodar,” along with Radha. This temple is one of the seven main Goswami temples in Vrindavan and was founded by Jiva Goswami in 1542. The deities of Sri Sri Radha Damodar were given to him by his guru, Srila Rupa Goswami Prabhupada.
A special Govardhan Shila (a sacred stone) in the temple has Lord Krishna’s footprint on it. It was given by Krishna to Sanatana Goswami, who could no longer circumambulate the entire Govardhan Hill due to old age. Krishna told him that walking around this stone is as good as walking around the whole hill.
The temple also houses the samadhis (memorials) of many Gaudiya saints, including Rupa Goswami, Jiva Goswami, and Krisnadas Kaviraj Goswami.
The founder of ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada, spent time here meditating and doing bhajans before establishing the society.
Radha Damodar Temple is also famous for its vast library, where Jiva Goswami stored all the original manuscripts of the Goswami
Timings of Radha Damodar Temple Vrindavan
Summer:
Morning: 07:00 am – 12:30 pm
Evening: 04:00 pm – 09:30 pm
Winter:
Morning: 08:00 am – 12:00 pm
Evening: 05:0 pm – 08:30 pm
Radha Damodar Temple Vrindavan location
Shri Radha Damodar Mandir
Seva Kunj Near Loi Bazar,
Vrindavan – 281121
District – Mathura UP India
Radha Damodar History Vrindavan
In 1516, a year after Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited Vrindavan, Srila Rupa Goswami and Srila Sanatana Goswami arrived in Vrindavan. They came on the order of Lord Caitanya to find the places where Sri Krishna had performed His pastimes. At that time, there were no temples in Vrindavan, only thick forests. The Goswamis lived simply, often staying under trees, thorn bushes, or even in empty crocodile holes. They performed bhajans (devotional songs) at places like Ter Kadamba, Barsana, Radha Kund, and the Radha Damodar temple area.
Later, their young nephew, Sri Jiva Goswami, joined them. He took initiation (diksha) from Srila Rupa Goswami and served him. In 1542, Srila Rupa Goswami carved a Deity of Lord Damodar from black marble he obtained from the Vindhya Mountains. He offered this Deity to his disciple, Srila Jiva Goswami, who purchased land at Seva-kunj to worship the Deity.
After the disappearance of Rupa and Sanatana, Jiva Goswami became the head of the Radha Damodar Temple. The temple became famous for its library, which held many rare books and manuscripts.
Some devotees believe that the Deities of Radha Damodar in the Vrindavan temple are not the original ones. They think the original Deities are in Jaipur. However, this is not true.
In 1670, Emperor Aurangzeb invaded Vrindavan. He planned to destroy temples and damage the Deities. To protect them, many main Deities of Braj were moved to Jaipur in Rajasthan by the Rajput kings. Deities like Govindadeva, Gopinatha, and Madana-Mohana stayed in Jaipur.
However, the Radha Damodar Deities returned to Vrindavan. They have been worshipped there ever since. The Deities now in the Govinda, Gopinatha, and Madana-Mohana temples in Vrindavan are called “Pratibha-murtis.” These are substitute Deities. They were installed after the original ones were moved. All Pratibha-murtis are smaller than the original Deities.
The Deity of Damodarji in Jaipur is smaller than the one in Vrindavan. This shows that the original Deity of Sri Damodarji is in Vrindavan. The smaller substitute Deity is the one worshipped in Jaipur
Distance for Radha Damodar Temple Vrindavan
| Place Name | Distance |
|---|---|
|
Mathura Railway Station |
14 km |
|
Banke Bihari Mandir |
950 m |
|
Mathura Bus Stand |
12 km |
How to Reach Radha Damodar Temple Vrindavan
By Road: You can easily hire a cab from Agra, Mathura, or Delhi to travel to the Radha Damodar Temple. It is approx. 160 km from Delhi, 80 kms from Agra, and 10 kms from Mathura.
By Train: The city is well-connected with almost all cities across the country. The nearest railway station is in Mathura, located 14 kms away.
By Air: The nearest fully functional commercial airport is the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, approx. 152 km away.