Top Places to visit in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh

Situated in Gokul, a few kilometers away from Mathura is this incredible place called Raman Van or Raman Reti―whose sacred sands (reti) are redolent with the stories of a bygone era when Lord Krishna frequented to engage in divine plays (raman) with his brother, Balarama and his cowherd friends. This is also the place he chose to meet his love, Radha before embarking on their journey to Vrindavan together. Raman Reti today is a sandy locale sprawled in a spacious compound complete with a deer sanctuary, a couple of beautiful temples and a relaxing area for ascetics, saints and pilgrims alike. Besides paying reverence, spend some time simply ambling around in the complex―try to bask in the pastimes of Lord Krishna treasured in the sands of Raman Reti.Adjacent to Raman Reti is Karshni Ashram, a famous Ashram housing the ancient Raman Bihariji Temple. Dedicated to the 18th century Saint Gyandasji, the temple houses the deity of Lord Krishna in the exact form as was revealed to the saint as a blessing for his strong austerities to please the Lord. A visit to this famed temple must be on your itinerary if you are stepping in this mystical region.

Sri Radha Raman Mandir or Sri Radha Raman Temple, is an early modern period Hindu temple in Vrindavan, India dedicated to Lord Krishna as Radha Ramana. It was constructed at the request of Gopala Bhatta Goswami at around 1542 AD.This temple is among the 7 temples of Thakur of Vrindavan including Sri Radhavallabh ji, Shri Govind Dev ji and four others. The temple is exquisitely crafted and one of the most revered temples in Vrindavan, especially by the followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. It houses the original shaligram deity of Krishna alongside Radharani.

Radha Raman means the lover (ramana) of Srimati Radha.

Sri Krishna Balrama Temple is acknowledged for being the first temple constructed by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). Built in 1975 by the ISKCON cult, the foundation of the shrine was laid by Swami Prabhupada (founder of ISKCON) himself. Located at Raman Reti in Vrindavan, the temple can be easily reached by regular transport from the western part of Uttar Pradesh. From Delhi, one can get in touch with the temple by taking regular buses or by hiring taxis.

In the vein of other temples made by the society, Sri Krishna Balrama Mandir is too called as Iskcon Temple all over. After the original construction, the temple complex has extended evidently, to accomplish the vision of Swami Prabhupada, for an international center in Vrindavan. The temple stands on the banks of Yamuna River, where Sri Krishna along with Balrama used to herd their cows. The magnificent structure of the Iskcon Temple comes across the sight, as and when, one enters the holy lands of Vrindavan.

Sri Dwarkadheesh Mandir is one of the oldest and largest temples of Mathura city in States of Indiaof India, India. This is a major and famous Hindu shrine, and its current structure was built up by Seth Gokul Das Parikh, the treasurer of then Gwalior State(Scindia) in 1814. It was built for the famous Hindu deity Dwarkadheesh (meaning the God or king of Dwarka, where Lord Krishna has shifted from Mathura and settled till his life on earth). There the main deity is of Lord Dwarkadheesh, a form of Lord Krishna seen in a black Marble idol named Dwarkanath. With him is the White marble idol of his counterpart deity Sri Radharani.

Shri Bankey Bihari Mandir is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Krishna, in the holy city of Vrindavan in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh. It is situated near Shri RadhaVallabh Temple.This temple is among the 7 temples of Thakur of Vrindavan including Shri RadhaVallabh Ji, Shri Govind Dev Ji and four others. Bankey Bihari Ji was originally worshipped at Nidhivana. Bankey means “bent in three places” and Bihari means “supreme enjoyer.” The image of Lord Krishna stands in the Tribhanga posture. Haridas Swami originally worshipped this devotional image under the name of Kunj-Bihari (“Enjoyer of Lakes”).

‘Bānke’ means ‘bent’, and ‘Bihāri’ or ‘Vihāri’ means ‘enjoyer’. This is how Kṛṣṇa, who is bent in three places, got the name "Bānke Bihāri".

Prem Mandir is a Hindu temple in Vrindavan, Mathura, India. It is maintained by Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat, an international non-profit, educational, spiritual, charitable trust.

The complex is on a 54-acre site on the outskirts of Vrindavan, and is dedicated to Lord Radha Krishna and Sita Ram. The temple structure was established by the fifth Jagadguru, Kripalu Maharaj. Figures of Shri Krishna and his followers depicting important events surrounding the Lord’s existence cover the main temple.

Construction began in January 2001 and the inauguration ceremony took place from 15 February to 17 February 2012. The temple was opened to public on 17 February. The cost was 150 crore rupees ($23 million). The presiding deity are Shri Radha Govind (Radha Krishna) and Shri Sita Ram. A 73,000 square feet, pillar-less, dome shaped satsang hall is being constructed next to Prem Mandir, which will accommodate 25,000 people at a time.

The Krishna Janmasthan, at Mathura, is important because this is where Lord Shri Krishna manifested Himself in the prison house of the cruel king Kansa and set free his father Vasudeva and his mother Devaki. His purpose was to destroy evil, protect the virtuous, and establish righteousness on a firm footing. Adjacent to the entrance of the prison cell, stands the temple where Astabhuja Maa Yogmaya manifested. The divine ambience of the sanctum sanctorum thrills the hearts of the devotees as soon as they enter the auspicious place, and a sense of conviction surges in their minds that this indeed is the place where Lord Krishna manifested Himself. He gave mankind extraordinary and thought provoking ideas, in the Sacred Scripture, The Bhagavata Gita. The Bhagavat Gita lays the basis of how life should be led in the various walks that govern our life on this earth, as our soul is immortal!

source: https://mathura.nic.in/tourist-places/

Rail

Mathura is situated on the major Delhi-Mumbai train route. Both Central railway and Western Railway routes pass through Mathura.

Important train that origin/terminate from Mathura: 12177/Howrah - Mathura Chambal Express.

Road

Mathura is connected by road to the rest of Uttar Pradesh and India.

Tram

A tram network has been proposed in the city, which would make Mathura only the second city in India (after Kolkata) to get tram transport. In 2017, the local MLA Shrikant Sharma announced that the trams will be operation in Mathura and Vrindavan by 2018.

Air

As of now, the city has no airport but the airport was proposed to Mathura in 2012. The civil aviation minister Ajit Singh suggested Mathura's name for the site of a new greenfield international airport to chief minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav. Mathura's name came into play when group of ministers terminated the planning of building Taj International Airport at Greater Noida. Land has been marked, and construction is in progress near the Yamuna Expressway, with plans to open in the next five years with regular flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Ujjain and Varanasi and some international routes in future