Popular Lord Krishna Temples in India
Bhagwan Sri Krishna, 8th avatar of Lord Vishnu, who takes birth on earth to uproot ‘adharma’, is the most venerated and revered God by Hindus. Lord Sri Krishna, the universal supreme being who expounded the ‘Bhagwat Gita’ – the Song of God – which teaches the philosophy of life – to attain Brahman – the ultimate truth. The Lord has taught the world to attain moksha i.e. liberation from the cycles of birth and death to become one with the Lord.
In India, there are many ancient temples dedicated to Bhagwan Sri Krishna. The most prominent and important places where Krishna lived during his stay on Prithvi (Earth) as a mortal are visited by many to worship the lord.
Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple: Mathura, Uttar Pradesh.
The Garbha GrihaShrine is the prison cell where Lord Krishna was born. Close to this temple is the Pavitra Kund, a large water tank, where baby Krishna was given his first bath after his birth. The complex also has Keshavdeva Temple and Bhagvata Bhavan.
Gokul: Uttar Pradesh
Nand Bhawan, the home of Nanda and Yashoda, the foster parents of the Lord Krishna where he was brought up, is more than 5000 years old. As a baby Bhagwan Krishna sucked the life out of demoness Puttana in this bhawan. Other holy sites at Gokul are Thakurani Ghat, Raman Reti or Raman Bihariji Temple, Gokulnath Temple and Brahmand Ghat.
Krishna’s Childhood Place: Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh
The Lord Krishna spent his childhood in Vrindavan along the banks of the river Yamuna. There are a great number of temples dedicated to the lord but prominent among them are Banke Bihari Mandir, Radha Raman Temple, ISKCON Temple, Prem Mandir.
There is also a Katyayani Temple in Vrindavan which is one of the 51 Shakti Peeth.
Maharishi Sandipani Ashram: Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh
The ashram is where Krishna, Balarama and Sudama learnt Shastra Vidya and battle techniques because Bhagwan wants people to understand that only a guru can teach to achieve success in life and guides the way to lead righteous path.
Dwarkadhish Temple: Dwarka, Gujarat,
it is also known as Jagat Mandir. Lord Krishna is worshipped as ‘King of Dwarka’.
Bhalka Tirth: Somnath, Gujarat.
This is the sacred place where an arrow shot by a hunter pierced Krishna’s foot towards the end of the Lord Krishna’s avatar as a mortal. Krishna chose to complete his avatar at the confluence of holy rivers Hirana, Kapila and Saraswati. Later on, Dehotsarg Temple was built at this place.
There are many other ancient temples dedicated to Bhagwan Krishna built by devotees all over the country.
Shrinathji
The temple of Shrinathji is located on the banks of river Banas in Nathdwar, Rajasthan. The idol of Bhagwan was brought here from Govardhan near Vrindavan, to protect it from destruction by Mughals.
Shri Jagannath Temple
The temple of Jagannath –Bhagawan of the Universe is on the eastern coast of India, in Puri, Orissa. It is one of the sacred Char Dham temple – others being Badrinath, Rameswaram and Dwarka. The Lord is worshipped along with his siblings Balabhadra (Balarama) and Subhadra. The idols are made from neem wood called Daru and changed every 8th 12th or 19th year in adhik masam of hindu calendar.
Guruvayur Temple
There are many temples dedicated to Lord Krishna in Thrissur, Kerala, but the most prominent temple is located in Thrissur district. Idol of the deity in the temple was installed by Brihaspati (Guru of the devas) and Vayu (God of wind) hence Lord Krishna is called Guruvayur.
Balakrishna Temple
This is a very unusual temple of Balakrishna (Child form of Krishna) in Hampi, Karnataka. The darshan of the Lord is through a nine holed window – Kanakana Kindi (Kanaka’s window, through which the lord gave darshan to his staunch devotee) – which Is facing west, whereas in hindu temples the deity faces the east direction. The idol is actually made from ‘Saaligram’, but appears to be of sandalwood as it has been completely covered with sandalwood paste applied lovingly by devotees over a long period of time.
There are many other ancient and beautiful temples all over India dedicated to Lord Krishna like:
Sri Venugoplaswamy Tempe, Karnataka.
Sri Rajagopal Swamy Temple, Mannargudi, Tamil Nadu.
Ranchchodraiji Temple, along the banks of river Gomti in Dakor, Gujrat.
Unnikrishna (child form of Krishna) Temple, Ambalapuzha, Kerala which is incredibly famous for the Palapayasam Prasadam served in the temple.
ISKCON temples at Bangalore, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Anantapur and many places in Bharat.