During the time of Krishna, Varsana was the capital of King Vrishabhanu, the father of Radharani. This is where Srimati Radharani lived and had many pastimes with Krishna. She grew up here. King Vrishabhanu and his family, including Srimati Radharani, lived at Varsana. Varsana is 42km (25 miles) from Mathura and has a 7km parikrama path around it.
There are four peaks here, on which there are Maan Garh, Mor Kuti, Vilas Garh and Dan Garh. Each one of these peaks is said to correspond to a head of Lord Brahma. Lord Brahma wanted to do some personal service for Radha and Krishna, so he incarnated himself as these hills. This is stated in the Varaha and Padma Puranas. It is said that the light colored hill of Varsana corresponds to Brahma, the dark colored Govardhana Hill to Krishna, and the reddish hill at Nandagram to Siva.
The Holi festival here at Varsana is a very popular, interesting and wild event. Other big festivals are Radhastami and the burhi-lila performances.
How To Get Here Varsana is about 42km (25 miles) northwest of Vrindavana, off the main road that goes between Mathura and Delhi. The easiest way to get here is by taking a taxi, which takes about an hour.
Both Varsana and Nandagram are close to each other (about 8km apart) and can easily be visited in the same day. The Braja Darsana bus goes directly to Varsana at 8 am in the morning. This bus begins at the Vrindavana bus stand. You can also get this bus outside the ISKCON temple. You can also take a bus to Kosi (40 km or 25 miles) and from there get a tempo to here.
Getting Around (Varsana Parikrama)
On top of the hill here is the Larily Lal temple, which is the main temple in Varsana. From there you can do parikrama of the Varsana area. First you can follow the road around through the village to Sankari Kor. When you go through Sankari Kor the hill on your right is the main hill and the hill on your left is Vilas Garh. After going past Sankari Kor you come to the village of Chiksoli (Citra). At the end of this village are Bihar Kund and Dohani Kund. When you go through the village of Chiksoli, you are at the other end of the main hill, on which the Larily Lal temple is located. Mayur Kutir is up some steps on top the hill at this place.
Up another set of steps is Maan Kutir. At the bottom of the hill here is Krishna Kund. From here you can follow the path on top of the hill to Dan Mal and the Kushal Behari (Jaipur) Temple. If you continue on the path, past the Jaipur temple, you come to the Larily Lal temple after a five minutes walk.
Verses About Radharani
“Among the gopis, Srimati Radhika is the foremost. She surpasses all in beauty, in good qualities, in good fortune, and, above all, in love”.
“Once Lord Krishna considered within His heart: ‘Everyone says that I am complete bliss, full of all rasas. All the world derives pleasure from Me. Is there anyone who can give Me pleasure? One who has a hundred times more qualities than Me could give pleasure to My mind. One more qualified than Me is impossible to find in the world. But in Radha alone I feel the presence of one who can give Me pleasure.
“Although My beauty defeats the beauty of ten million Cupids, although it is unequaled and unsurpassed, and although it gives pleasure to the three worlds, seeing Radharani gives pleasure to My eyes. The vibration of My transcendental flute attracts the three worlds, but My ears are enchanted by the sweet words of Srimati Radharani. Although the entire creation is full of different tastes because of Me, I am charmed by the nectarean taste of the lips of Srimati Radharani, and although My touch is cooler than ten million moons, I am refreshed by the touch of Srimati Radhika. Thus although I am the source for the happiness of the entire world, the beauty and attributes of Sri Radhika are My life and soul.
“In this way my affectionate feelings for Srimati Radharani may be understood, but on analysis I find them contradictory. My eyes are fully satisfied when I look upon Srimati Radharani, but by looking upon Me, She becomes even more advanced in satisfaction. The flute-like murmur of the bamboo rubbing against one another steals Radharani’s consciousness, for She thinks it to be the sound of My flute and She embraces a tamala tree, mistaking it for Me. ‘I have gotten the embrace of Sri Krishna,’ She thinks, ‘so now My life is fulfilled.’
“Thus She remains immersed in pleasing Krishna taking the tree in Her arms. When a favorable breeze carries to Her the fragrance of My body, She is blinded by love and tries to fly into the breeze. When She tastes the betel chewed by Me, She merges in an ocean of joy and forgets everything else. Even with hundreds of mouths I could not express the transcendental pleasure She derives from My association.
“Seeing the luster of Her complexion after Our pastimes together, I forget My own identity in happiness. The sage Bharata has said that the mellows of lover and beloved are equal. But He does not know the mellows of My Vrindavana. The happiness I feel when meeting Radharani is a hundred times greater than the happiness I get from meeting others.”
Radha and Krishna’s Pastimes
“Whenever Srimati Radharani leaves Her house, She is always well dressed and attractive. It is Her womanly nature to attract Sri Krishna’s attention, and upon seeing Her so attractively dressed, Sri Krishna desires to touch Her body. The Lord then finds some fault in Her and prohibits Her from going to a river crossing and stops Her from picking flowers. Such are the pastimes between Srimati Radharani and Sri Krishna. Being a cowherd girl, Srimati Radharani regularly carries a container of milk and often goes to sell it on the other side of the Yamuna. To cross the river, She has to pay the boatman, and the spot where the boatman collects his fares is called the dana-ghati. Lord Sri Krishna stops Her from going, telling Her, ‘First You have to pay the fee; then You will be allowed to go.’ This pastime is called dana-keli-lila. Similarly, if Srimati Radharani wants to pick a flower, Sri Krishna claims to be the garden’s proprietor and prohibits Her. This pastime is called kila-kincita. Radharani’s shyness arises due to Sri Krishna’s prohibitions, and ecstatic loving symptoms called kila-kincita-bhava are manifest at this time. These ecstatic symptoms are explained in the following verse, which is from Srila Rupa Gosvami’s Ujjvala-nilamani. ‘Pride, ambition, weeping, smiling, envy, fear and anger are the seven ecstatic loving symptoms manifest by a jubilant shrinking away, and these symptoms are called kila-kincita-bhava.’”.
Larily Lal Temple (Shriji Mandir)
On top of one of the hills is the Larily Lal Temple, which is where the original Radha Krishna Deities of Varsana reside. Larily Lal temple means “the temple of the beloved.” The Deities in this temple are said to have been installed by Vajranabha. In this temple there are colorful paintings on the walls and ceiling, depicting the pastimes of Radha and Krishna. This temple is an important place to visit.
This temple is on top of the main peak of the Brahma Hill. It is said that where this temple is located is where King Vrishabhanu, the father of Radharani, had his palace.
At the foot of the steps that lead to this temple are the Asta-sakhi temple and the Vrishabhanu, Kirtida, Sridama temple. These temples are said to have been established by Vajranabha.
You should be prepared when you go to this temple to be approached aggressively for a donation. If you ask a question to anyone or take anything from anyone, be prepared to give a donation. You can expect several people to come up to you to either guide you around or to ask you for a donation. You can be almost certain that if a priest comes up to you and starts talking to you in a friendly matter that very quickly the request for a donation will come up.
How To Get Here If you come by taxi the most likely place for the taxi to park is on the side of the hill close to the steps leading up to this temple, as almost everyone coming to Varsana comes to this temple first. You then walk up about 193 steps to this temple. It is a fairly hard climb and there are men at the bottom of the hill that carry people up the steps in a small palanquin.
Temple Timings Darshan is from 8 am to 12 noon and 4.30 to 8 pm.
Kushal Behari (Jaipur) Temple
On the hill next to the main temple, is the Kushal Behari Temple, built by the king of Jaipur, Raja Mandir, at the turn of the century. You should be careful when you pass this temple, because if you disturb the bees here they may attack you.
How To Get Here This is a large temple on top of the hill. It is about half a km from the main temple in Varsana. From the Larily Lal Temple, you can walk along the top of the hill to this temple, on a nice path.
Dan Mal (Dan Garh)
At this place the gopis would swing Radha and Krishna. Dan means “charity.” At this place is the Dan-bihari Temple.
The pastime about this place is that once there was a poor brahmana who had a daughter of marriageable age. The brahmana was so poor that he had no money to give a suitable dowry for his daughter. The brahmana’s wife had a sharp tongue and she sent her husband out to beg and told him not to come back without a suitable dowry. He approached Krishna at this place to help him. Krishna then arranged for him to get golden jewelry equal to the weight of Srimati Radharani.
How To Get Here This place is on top of the hills here, next to the Kushal Behari (Jaipur) temple. It is about 20m (60 feet) from the Kushal Behari temple, on the same side as Mayur Kutir.
Sankari Kor (Sankara Gully)
Sankari Kor is the spot where Krishna would stop the gopis to steal their yogurt. This path divides Vilas Garh Hill from the main hill. Krishna would stand in the middle of the ravine and would demand a tax from the gopis to get by. Krishna would sometimes break Radharani milk pots when she would not pay the tax. Indented in the stones here, you can see the marks of those broken pots. Dan Garh is the place where the taxes were assessed.
This pastime is known as dan-lila or matuki-lila. These pastimes are re-enacted each year during the burhi-lila festival. In this pastime a boy playing Krishna stops another boy dressed as Radharani, who tries to walk by carrying a pot.
Sankari means “narrow”. This narrow passageway is between the village of Chiksoli (Citra) and the town of Varsana. The path becomes very narrow at this place, with the rock coming down sharply making a V. You have to be careful that you don’t fall walking through here.
How To Get Here If you just came down the steps from the Larily Lal Temple, you make a right. You walk 80m and make another right. You follow the road around for about 200m. At this point the road turns left and bears to the right. You turn left and go 30m and make a right. The road goes through the village for 300m and then becomes a path for 700m. At this point you come to Sankari Kor. You can also have your taxi take you here. By taxi you come to the other side of Sankari Kor, near Mayur Kutir, in the village of Chiksoli.
Vilas Garh
At Vilas Garh, Radha and Krishna used to have their pastimes. Vilas Garh is one of the four peaks of Brahma-giri. It is also said that this is also called Vishnu Parvata. When you go to Sankari Kor, this is the hill on the other side of the pass from the main hill. If you are going from Varsana to Chiksoli it is on your left.
Chiksoli (Citra Village)
This is the village of Chitralekha Devi, one of the eight main gopis. This is where she took birth. This village is next to Varsana, on the other side of Sankari Kor.
How To Get Here This village is on the other side of Sankari Kor. Varsana is on one side and Chiksoli is on the other. They are virtuously right next to each other.
Mayur Kutir (Mor Khutir)
At Mayur Kutir (Mor Khutir) there was a dancing contest between Krishna and a peacock. Srimati Radharani judged their abilities. Another story about this temple is that one time Radharani complained that the forest in this area did not have any beautiful peacocks. Krishna then appeared dressed like a peacock and danced for Radharani and her friends. Another story is that one time peacocks came here and danced with their tail feathers raised for Radha and Krishna. Mayur means “peacock”.
In the small temple of Mayur Kutir there is a beautiful painting of Krishna dancing as a peacock. The painting on the altar here was done by a blind saint who used to live here.
At the bottom of the hill is Krishna Kund.
How To Get Here This is a small red brick building without any windows on the top of the hill. There are two ways to get here. From the Jaipur temple you take the left path going in the direction away from the Larily Lal Temple. You pass the Dan-bihari Temple at the beginning of the path. You walk across a ridge (the top of the hill) about 400m. If you come this way you should have shoes on, as the path can be a bit rough.
If you just came from Sankari Kor, you walk 300m on the path away from the village of Varsana. Forty metres after passing a small intersection you make a right and follow the road around to the left for 180m. When the road bears sharply to the left you will see two stairways on your right about 30m ahead. You take the first stairway (the smaller one). It is a fairly tough climb.
Maan Kutir (Maan Garh)
This place honors the pastime of Srimati Radharani showing the qualities of maan. Maan means “anger.” Maan is when Radharani acts angry and feels hurt because of Krishna’s neglect.
How To Get Here This place is close to the Mayur Kutir. If you came from Sankari Kor you take the second larger set of steps (15 of them). When you come up the steps you make a left passing Krishna Kund. You then follow the path around for about 20 seconds and you will come to some red rough steps that go up a steep hill. It is a tough climb to get here.
If you take the main path from the Jaipur temple you come to a set of buildings at the end of the path, after half a km. You make a left down some steps and walk about 16m (50 ft) and the steps leading to this place are on your right.
Gahwarvan
Gahwar means “cave in the mountain.” There are many caves here.
Dohani Kund and Bihar Kund
At Dohani Kund the cows would be milked. Dohani means “to milk.” Near Dohani Kund, Radharani used to play with the gopis.
Near Dohani Kund is Bihar Kund. At Bihar Kund, Radha and Krishna would meet together. Next to this Kund is the Bihariji Temple.
How To Get Here These two kunds are near the village of Chiksoli. They are at the bottom of the hill, not far from the bottom of the steps that go up to Mayur Kutir.
Pila Pokhar Kund
At Pila Pokhar, Srimati Radharani washed Her hands. Because of Her touch, the Kund turned a golden-yellow color. Pila means “yellow.” This Kund is still a golden-yellow color from when Radharani washed her hands here.
The pastime of this place is that Mother Yasoda really loved Srimati Radharani and wanted Her to marry Krishna. So one time when Radharani came to Nandagram, Mother Yasoda put some turmeric paste on Her hands. The custom is that when the bride’s father and groom’s father have agreed that their children would get married then the agreement become finalized by applying turmeric paste onto the hands of the future bride. When Radharani saw her yellow hands, she did not know what to do. So Srimati Radharani came here and washed her hands in the water of this pond. The water of this pond is still yellow today. This is a peaceful place.
How To Get Here Pila Pokhar is across the road from the Larily Lal Temple, at the bottom of the hill. If you just left the place where most people park to go to the Larily Lal Temple, you go back to the main road (about 200m away). Directly in front of you is a bridge, which you cross. After going about 200m, directly in front of you is Pila Pokhar, behind some buildings (a school). It is a large well-kept Kund and is hard to miss.
Mukta Kund
Trees once grew here, that were full of priceless jewels, which were planted by Krishna. The pastime of this place is that while Radharani was washing her hands at Pila Pokhar, some people saw her and went and told Her parents. Her father and mother, Vrishabhanu and Kirtida were very happy that she was engaged to be married to Krishna. So they sent a plate of precious jewels and gems to Nanda and Yasoda.
Nanda and Yasoda were very joyful. But then Mother Yasoda realized that to accept the proposal of marriage they had to return a plate of precious jewels and gems to Radharani’s parents, and they did not have any. When Krishna found out about this, he decided to plant the jewels and gems that were sent by King Vrishabhanu in a field. So that trees would grow that would be full of jewels. Sure enough a big tree grew that was full of priceless jewels.
These jewels were sent to King Vrishabhanu and Queen Kirtida to accept the marriage proposal. Nanda Maharaja and Mother Yasoda went to Paurnamasi to receive her blessings for the marriage. She told them that if Radharani and Krishna got married at this particular time the marriage would not last. She said that maybe in the future they should get married, depending on their astrological charts. So the marriage was stopped.
