Vrindavana- India's Garden Of Eden: Where God Walked On Earth

Vrindavana

- India’s Garden Of Eden-

Where God Walked On Earth

By

Rajasekhara

This Book Is Dedicated To The Lotus Feet Of

His Divine Grace

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Founder-acharya International Society for Krishna Consciousness

Namah om vishnu-padaya krishna-presthaya bhu-tale

srimate bhaktivedanta swamin iti namine

namas te saraswati deve gaura-vani-pracarine

nirvisesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine

We bow down with great reverence and adoration before your Divine Grace

Because you are so firmly situated in serving the lotus feet of Lord Krishna You are the most worthy and trusted disciple of Saraswati Goswami

Without fear you preached aloud the glories of the Lord’s holy names

The transcendental vibration Kriskna’s name was heard around the world

You came as an emissary on the order of your Gurudeva and Lord Gauranga And most forcefully dispelled atheistic belief in impersonalism and voidism

Vrindavana - India’s Garden Of Eden - Where God Walked On Earth

Copyright: Rajasekhara 2015

Published by Rajasekhara at Smashwords

ISBN 9781311938541

COVER PHOTO: Madana-Mogana Temple, Vrindavana

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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BSP Vedic Heritage Foundation,

Heritage House,

Parikrama Marg,

Dorera,

District Mathura,

Uttar Pradesh,

India.

[email protected]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION TO EDEN

The Biblical ‘ Garden of Eden’

Children born of the Forbidden Fruit

The Pamir Plateau is the Biblical 'Garden of Eden'

Heaven On Earth

ABOUT VRINDAVANA

The Geographical Details Concerning Vrindavana Dhama

Vraja Mandala

The Spiritual Benefits Of Performing Parikrama

Important Guidelines to Observe While Performing Parikrama

The Ten Offences to be Avoided in the Holy Dhama

INTRODUCTION TO THE DHAMA

The Timing of the Lord’s Descent

The ‘Golden Avatara’ Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

The Goswamis Rupa and Sanatana Arrive in Vrindavana

The Seven Goswami Temples of Vrindavana

Shrila Prabhupada Reveals Vrindavana to the World

The Sacted Forest Of Vrindavana

Lord Chaitanya’s Pilgrimage to Vrindavana

Performing Parikrama of Vrindavana

Internal Parikrama of Vrindavana

Pancha-kosi Vrindavana Parikrama

The Purpose of Performing Parikrama

The Vrindavana Parikrama Visits Over 70 Holy Places

PART ONE – Raman Reti To Radha Damodara Temple

1. Krishna Balarama Temple

Vrindavana Parikrama Begins at the Parikrama Path

2. Ramana Reti / Krishna Balarama Tree

3. Varaha Ghata

4. Madana Ter Ghata

5. Go Ghata / Ram Gol Ghata

6. Kaliya Ghata

7. Prabhodananda Saraswati Bhajana Kutira and Samadhi

8. Kaliya-Mardana Temple

9. Prashkandana Ghata / Dwadashaditya Tila

10. Suraja Ghata

11. Madana-Mohana Temple

The Story of Lord Madana-mohana

PLACES OF INTEREST AT MADANA-MOHANA TEMPLE

11a. Dwadashaditya Tirtha (Yoga-pitha)

11b. Krishna Kupa

11c. Bhajana Kutira of Sanatana Goswami

11d. Sanatana Goswami Samadhi

11e. Tapan Mishra and Chandrasekhara Acharya Pushpa Samadhis

11f. Grantha Samadhi

12. Advaita Vata

13. Astha-sakhi Temple

14. Banke-Bihari Temple

15. Radha Vallabha Temple

16. Narasringha Temple

17. Bhattaji Temple

18. Imli Tala / Tentuli-tala

19. Shringara Vata / Shringara Ghata

20. Jaru Mandala / Jamun Tree

21. Govinda Ghata

22. Radha Damodara Temple

PART TWO – Radha Damodara To Radharamana

PLACES OF INTEREST AT RADHA DAMODARA TEMPLE

22a. Jiva Goswami Samadhi

22b. Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami Samadhi

22c. Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Prabhupada Pushpa Samadhi

22d. King Bhirambhir Pushpa Samadhi

22e. Rupa Goswami Bhajana Kutira

22f. Rupa Goswami Samadhi

22g. Bhugarbha Goswami Samadhi

22h. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Bhajana Kutira

23. Seva Kunja (Rasa-sthali)

The Twelve Upavanas

24. Purnamasi Temple

25. Sita-natha Temple

26. Radha Shyamasundara Temple

26a. Shyamananda Tilak Sthana and Samadhi

Shyamananda Discovers Radharani’s Ankle-bell

27. Pishima Gaura-Nitai Temple

28. Bankhandi Mahadeva Temple

29. Mirabhai Temple

30. Shahji Temple

31. Nidhuvana

32. Sad-Bhuj Mahaprabhu Temple

33. Chira Ghata / Chehana Ghata

34. Keshi Ghata / Keshi-tirtha

The Liberation of the Keshi Demon

Benefits of bathing in the Yamuna

35. Gadadhara Dant Samadhi

36. Vamsi-Gopala Temple

37. Radha Gokulananda Temple

PLACES OF INTEREST AT RADHA GOKULA TEMPLE

37a. Lokanatha Goswami Samadhi

37b. Narottama Dasa Thakura Puspa Samadhi

37c. Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura Samadhi

38. Radharamana Temple

PART THREE – Radharamana To Ramana Reti

PLACES OF INTEREST AT RADHARAMANA TEMPLE

38a. Appearance Place of Radharamana

38b. Gopala Bhatta Goswami Samadhi

39. Radha Gopinatha Temple

39a. Madhu Pandita Goswami Samadhi

40. Sona Gauranga Temple

41. Bilvamangala Samadhi

42. Dhira Samira / Dhira Samira Ghata

43. Shrinivasa Acharya Kunja

44. Radha Shyama-raya Temple

45. Radha Kanta Temple

46. Vamsi Vata

47. Gopishwara Mahadeva Temple

48. Gopalaji Temple (Brahmachari Temple)

49. Lala Babu Temple (Krishna-Chandrama Temple)

50. Gyana Gudri

51. Radha Vraja-Mohana

52. Tekari Rani Temple

53. Jagannatha Ghata (Jagannatha Temple)

54. Mirror Temple (Radha-nama Bank)

55. Brahma-kunda

56. Rangaji Mandir

57. Radha Govinda Temple

The Tyrant Aurangzeb Attacks the Govindaji Temple

58. Venu Kupa / Sixty-four Samadhi Pitha

58a. Raghunatha Bhatta Goswami Samadhi

59. Katyayani Temple

60. Pani Ghata

61. Adi Bhadri Ghata

62. Raja Ghata

63. Mahaprabhu Baithaka / Vishrama Sthali

64. Jaipur Temple

65. Davanala-kunda

66. Radha Kupa

67. Krishna Kupa

68. Bhagavata Nivas

69. Vishram-kund

70. Bhaktivedanta Swami Gate

71. Prema Mandira

APPENDIX

GLOSSARY

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

BOOKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR

VRINDAVANA GUIDE MAPS

INTRODUCTION TO EDEN

The ‘Garden of Eden’ has never been a mystery to the people of India and has been known to those who study the Vedas since many thousands years. In the ancient Sanskrit language of the Vedic scriptures, the ‘Garden of Eden’ is called ‘Vrindavana Dhama’. The name ‘Vrindavana’ refers to the sacred garden-forest cared for by the angel-goddess named ‘Vrinda’, and the word ‘Dhama’ means the ‘Sacred abode of the Lord’. The ‘Garden of Vrindavana’, has been elaborately described in the Vedic scriptures such as the Bhagavatam, the Brahma Samhita and the various Puranas. Vrindavana is the sacred garden where God performed His most pleasing transcendental pastimes when He incarnated on Earth fifty centuries ago. Vrindavana is an exact replica of God’s original heavenly Kingdom located in the spiritual sky. Vrindavana is not an ordinary garden or forest, but God’s personal pleasure-garden which comprises of many beautiful sub-forests, flower-groves, parks, pastures, lakes, rivers, hills and mountains. The Vedas prescribe that all the followers of Vedic religion known as Sanatana-dharma (also called Hinduism), should go on pilgrimage to Vrindavana, the Garden of Eden, at least once in their life before they die, so they may become free from their sins committed in worldly life.

In the very heart of the Vrindavana forest, lies a very secluded inner-core known as ‘Seva Kunja’ which means the ‘forest-grove of servitude’. Seva Kunjs and its environs known as the Upavans, covers an area of around five square miles. The ritual circumambulation of the sacred Seva Kunja, known in Sanskrit as parikrama, which traverses this inner core of Vrindavana forest, is described in great detail within this book. Although, due to the advancement of urban civilization, Vrindavana is not the great uninhibited forest that it once was, however, all the holy places connected to the pastimes of the Supreme Lord are well known and have been preserved through the ages thanks to the efforts of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and His dedicated disciples, the illustrious Six Goswamis of Vrindavana.

The Biblical ‘ Garden of Eden’

Both the Bible and Koran describe the ‘Garden of Eden’ as a spiritual paradise and the abode or residence of God, but neither scripture provides any detailed description of that abode, and its actual geographical location has been a great mystery for thousands of years. In the ancient Biblical language of Hebrew, the word for the ‘Garden of Eden’ is ‘Gan Adn’, which means ‘the place of great pleasure or delight’. In the Koran, the Arabic word for the ‘Garden of Eden’ is ‘Adn’, which means ‘the Lord’s abode or residence’. The Bible and Koran both say that the ‘Garden of Eden’ is the place where the Almighty Lord resides and from where Adam and Eve were cast out due to their having partaken of the forbidden fruit. The name ‘Adam’ in Hebrew means ‘man’ and not only refers to one particular man, but can refer to all men. This is also true for the word ‘Eve’, which can refer to both one specific woman as well as all women.

Adam and Eve and the Forbidden Fruit

The respective followers of the Bible and Koran believe that the story of Adam and Eve was an actual historical event at the beginning of creation, which they date around 4,000 BCE. The Vedas give the date of Earth’s creation at 4.5 billion BCE, and the last creation, after the last mass extinction caused by the great flood, at 120 million BCE. Vedic scholars view the Biblical story of Adam and Eve as part historical and part parable, and describes man’s fall from the Kingdom of God, due to the sin of engaging in illicit sexual union, eating the forbidden fruit, which went against God’s will and thus transgressed the sacred principles of religion (Dharma). This means that when the Almighty Lord told Adam and Eve not to partake of the forbidden fruit, He was warning them not to engage in sexual union simply for carnal pleasure. Sexual union is meant for the purpose of procreation to bring forth good progeny to fill the earth, rather than to enjoy unrestricted sex simply for personal sense gratification, which is considered adultery and often results in production of illegitimate offspring born out of sin. According to the universal law known as karma (law of action & reaction), a child born out of adultery or irreligious sex, inclined to a life of irreligious conduct and licentious behavior and described in the Vedas as varnasankara, or unwanted population. The subject of religious and irreligious sex-life is fully explained in our the book entitled Kama Sutra Dhama Sutra – The Yoga Of Pure Sex.

Children born of the Forbidden Fruit

This illegitimate child is referred to in Vedic terminology as ‘varnasankara’, which means a child who will not be any benefit to society, but will instead generally behave in an immoral and irreligious manner and thus create a disturbance to the peace-loving society at large. The influence of the ‘varnasankara’ progeny in society is clearly visible throughout the world in this modern age of adulterous relationships, and is reflected by the ever-increasing wave of irreligious activities sweeping the world. Acts like murder, robbery, fraud, embezzlement, drug-trafficking, homosexuality, child-abuse, rape, prostitution, to name just a few, are the hallmark of the varnasankara population that is creating havoc in today’s society. In the Vedic Bible which is known as the Bhagavad Gita (7.11), the Supreme Lord clearly says that sex within the principles of holy matrimony and for the purpose of progeny, is as pure as God Himself and is therefore not sinful. On the other hand, indulgence in sex simply for carnal pleasure and not for the purpose of progeny, is both sinful and degrading to the soul, and not at all pleasing to God. The conclusion is that all those who are not living with God in the ‘Garden of Eden’, are in fact tha same as Adam and Eve, who have been cast out from the Kingdom of God, because of having tasted the forbidden fruit in the form of irreligious sex, simply for their own selfish carnal pleasure. God has created sex for a specific purpose and if such a facility is abused it must result in unlimited suffering under the stringent karmic laws of material nature.

The Pamir Plateau is the Biblical 'Garden of Eden'

A large number of Christian scholars are coming to the view that the Pamir Mountains are in fact the the location of the Biblical 'Garden of Eden'. It was previously thought that the 'Garden of Eden' was near the headwaters of the Euphrates River in northern Mesopotamia. However, many scholars now believe that the Garden of Eden was more likely located in the Pamir Mountains of central Asia. The location of the 'Garden of Eden' is mentioned in the Holy Bible's old Testament where it says in Genesis (2.10-14) 'And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; and the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel; that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.'

Because Genesis mentioned the Euphrates, christian scholars assumed that Eden must have been located on the banks of the Euphrates river in Mesopotamia; but as the rivers Euphrates and Tigris merge into one river, the Euphrates does not correspond geographically to the descriptions found in Genesis, which states that only one river went out of Eden and divided into four parts. The location of four rivers which start