Famous Temples in India

Religious Significance

The legend of the Banke Bihari Temple illustrates how the temple came into existence. It is believed that Swami Haridas, who was a devotee of Lord Krishna, spent most of his time in meditating, praying and reading holy scriptures. His commitment to the lord was so devout that he continued his strict discipline even after getting married to Harimatiji. After her surrender to the lord, Haridas left for Vrindavan, where he chose a secluded spot for meditation, which is now known as Nidhivan. One day, when Swamiji granted his permission to his disciples to enter Nidhivan, they saw something unusual. There was bright light filling the whole place, which was unlike anything they had seen. It was none other than Lord Krishna himself, who had appeared in front of the devotees in person with his consort Radha. Sensing the effect of Lord's appearance to his disciples, Swami Haridas requested both, the lord and his consort to take single form. Moreover, he also wished for his beloved deity to be in front of his sight always. The lord granted both his wishes and left a charming black image after submitting to the desire of his devotees. The temple was formally constructed in 1864 with the contribution of Goswamis. After construction of the temple, the Goswamis transferred the idol to this temple. The present idol in this grand temple is the same one that the Lord granted to Swami Haridas.

It is said that once a king of Rajasthan came to Vrindavan to visit Banke Bihari and they saw the eyes of God Baba Bihari and watched him a tick. After this the king went back to his kingdom. After some time, when the temple's services came to the temple, the Lord was not present there. This incident caused a stir in the priests of the temple. Praise be to God, then it is known that God has gone there with them from there. After much prayer, God was reestablished in the temple. Since then, no one here is allowed to see God alone. Service providers take special care of the fact that no devotee can see them continuously. For this, the curtain is inserted in front of the idol in a little while. Visitors flutter themselves and tears in their eyes. The devotees who come to see this temple, Baba Bihari say that when devotees visit them, they themselves fall in color. Their eyes begin to moist, because of which they themselves do not even know.