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Braja & Vrindavan Spiritual Subjects

Braja is where Sri Krishna performed His pastimes 5,000 years ago. Braja Mandala covers an area of 1453 square miles (2325 square km) surrounding Vrindavana and Mathura. The area of Braja Mandala goes from Agra in the south to Banchari in the north. It is about 150 km (84 miles) across. Braja is the area 75 km (42 miles) in each direction, with Mathura in the center. This Braja area, even though appearing to be part of India, is not destroyed when the universe is destroyed.

In the Adi Varaha Purana it says that there are over 600 million tirthas (holy places) on this earth. The benefit of going to all these tirthas and more is attained by going to the tirthas (holy places) in Mathura. It also says in the Adi Varaha Purana that by circumambulating Mathura you attain a hundred times the same results as circumambulating all the holy places, temples in the world, and the benefits of giving all charity and doing all rituals for the well-being of the world. It also says that even those who just see a person who has just returned from Mathura get cleansed of their sins.

Vrindavana and Mathura are the most important Vaishnava holy places in all of India. This is because Mathura is the birthplace of Lord Krishna and Vrindavana is where He had His childhood pastimes.

There are twelve principle forests in Braja and all of them are considered places of pilgrimage. Other major places in the Braja area are: Nandagram, Varsana, Gokula, Govardhana Hill, and Radha Kund.

It is said in the Padma Purana that “Simply by residing for one day in Mathura one will attain Hari-bhakti, devotion to Hari (Vishnu).” Some of the important and especially interesting temples in the town of Vrindavana are the Govindaji, Madana Mohana, Banke Bihari, Radha Damodara, Radha-Raman, and Sri Raghunatha Temples. All the places in Vrindavana are considered important because they are transcendental. ISKCON (the International Society for Krishna Consciousness) has one of its major centers in Vrindavana called the Krishna Balarama Mandir.

“In the Varaha Purana there is a statement praising the residential quarters of Mathura. Lord Varaha tells the men of earth, ‘Any person who becomes attracted to places other than Mathura will certainly be captivated by the illusory energy.’ In the Brahmanda Purana it is said that all the results of traveling on all the pilgrimages within the three worlds can be achieved simply by touching the holy land of Mathura. In many sastras (scriptures) it is said that simply by hearing, remembering, glorifying, desiring, seeing or touching the land of Mathura, one can achieve all desires.” (Nectar of Devotion, page 102)
In the Adi Varaha Purana it is stated: “Any person who dies in any place within Mathura—a holy place, a home, or even a courtyard—certainly attains salvation. In this world Mathura is the best of all holy places beginning with Kashi (Varanasi).”

Emperor Akbar named Vrindavana “Fakirabad” (the land of the ascetics). When he visited Vrindavana he asked the devotees there what they wanted. As they had renounced everything, there was nothing for them to ask for. When he insisted, they asked that he prohibit killing of any animals in the area of Vrindavana and Braja Mandala by hunters or persons killing animals for sport. Killing a peacock, a monkey or cutting a tree for no reason is a punishable offense.

Statements About Vrindavana
“It is understood that Mathura City is the transcendental abode of Lord Krishna. It is not an ordinary material city, for it is eternally connected with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Vrindavana is within the jurisdiction of Mathura and still continues to exist. Because Mathura and Vrindavana are intimately connected with Krishna eternally, it is said that Lord Krishna never leaves Vrindavana (vrindavanam parityajya padam ekam na gacchati). At present the place known as Vrindavana in the district of Mathura, continues its position as a transcendental place and certainly anyone who goes there becomes transcendentally purified.

“We must understand the transcendental importance of Mathura, Vrindavana and Navadvipa dhamas. Anyone who executes devotional service in these places certainly goes back home, back to Godhead after giving up his body.

“Whenever the Supreme Personality appears, He appears in Mathura because of His intimate connection with this place. Therefore, although Mathura and Vrindavana are situated on this planet earth, they are transcendental abodes of the Lord.” (Srimad Bhagavatam 10.1.28 Purport).
“The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna engages in pastimes there eternally. For this reason Vrindavana is better than all other holy places. Sixty billion sacred places reside in Mathura and Vrindavana. (Mathura Mahatma)
“Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu instructs us that just as Krishna is worshipable, Krishna’s place, Vrindavana, is also worshipable. Similarly, the paraphernalia in Vrindavana—the trees, roads, rivers, everything—is worshipable. A pure devotee thus sings, Jaya, Jaya Vrindavana-vasi yata jana: ‘All glories to the residents of Vrindavana.’ If one has a staunch devotional attitude, all these conclusions will be revealed in the heart.” (Caitanya Caritamrita Madhya 12.38 purport)

“As Brajendranandana, Krishna, is worshipable, His dhama, Vrindavana is also worshipable. We should be very much respectful toward Vrindavana-dhama. Otherwise we will be offenders, dhama-aparadha.” (Srila Prabhupada Tape 72/48)

“The human form of life is meant for understanding this transcendental land of Vrindavana and its inhabitants. An expansion of this Vrindavana, which is the supreme abode of Krishna, is also present on earth. No one can appreciate Vrindavana without being highly elevated in spiritual knowledge, Krishna consciousness.” (Teachings of Lord Caitanya)

“Vrindavana-dhama is non-different from Krishna because the name, form, fame and place where the Lord manifests are all identical with the Lord as absolute knowledge. Therefore, Vrindavana-dhama is as worshipable as the Lord.” (Srimad Bhagavatam, Intro.)

“The ideal place to execute Krishna consciousness is Braja-bhumi, or Vrindavana, where the people are naturally inclined to love Krishna and Krishna is naturally inclined to love them.” (Caitanya Caritamrita Madhya 4.95)

Description of Vrindavana
“In Vrindavana there are many falls which are always pouring water, and the sound is so sweet that it covers the sound of the crickets. And because water flows all over, the forest always looks very green and beautiful.

“The inhabitants of Vrindavana were never disturbed by the scorching heat of the sun or the high summer temperatures. The lakes of Vrindavana are surrounded by green grasses, and various kinds of lotus flowers bloom there, and the air blowing in Vrindavana carries the aromatic pollen of those lotus flowers. When the particles of water from the waves of the Yamuna, the lakes and the waterfalls, touched the bodies of the inhabitants of Vrindavana, they automatically felt a cooling effect. Therefore they were practically undisturbed by the summer season.

“Vrindavana is such a nice place. Flowers are always blooming, and there are even various kinds of decorated deer. Birds are chirping, peacocks are crowing and dancing, and bees are humming. The cuckoos there sing nicely in five kinds of tunes.” (Krishna Book)

“Sri Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead full of all opulence, and His complete opulences are exhibited only in Braja-dhama. Braja-dhama is made of transcendental touchstone. Its entire surface is the source of all valuable jewels, and the cintamini stone is used to decorate the lotus feet of the maid of Vrindavana. Vrindavana is a natural forest of desire trees and creepers, and the inhabitants do not want anything but the fruits and flowers of those desire trees.
“In Vrindavana there are cows that fulfill all desire (kama-dhenus), and their number is unlimited. They graze from forest to forest delivering only milk. The people want nothing else. In Vrindavana, the natural speech of the people sounds like music and their natural motion resembles a dance. The water in Vrindavana is nectar, and the brahmajyoti effulgence, which is full of transcendental bliss, is directly perceived there in its form.” (Caitanya Caritamrita Madhya 14.220-27)

Instruction from Nectar of Devotion
A devotee must visit a Vishnu temple at least once or twice every day, morning and evening. In Vrindavana this system is followed very strictly. All the devotees in town go every morning and evening to visit different temples. Therefore during these times there are considerable crowds all over the city. There are about five thousand temples in Vrindavana city. Of course it is not possible to visit all the temples, but there are at least one dozen very big and important temples which were started by the Gosvamis and which should be visited.

One must circumambulate the temple building at least three times. (In every temple there is an arrangement to go around the temple at least three times. Some devotees go around more than three times—ten times, fifteen times—according to their vows. The Gosvamis used to circumambulate Govardhana Hill). One should also circumambulate the whole Vrindavana area.
One should live in a sacred place like Mathura, Vrindavana or Dwarka. One should live in the jurisdiction of Mathura.

All together there are sixty-four items for discharging the regulative practice of devotional service. Out of these sixty-four items, five items—namely worshiping the Deity, hearing Srimad Bhagavatam, associating among the devotees, sankirtana, and living in Mathura—are very important.

Statements from the Varaha Purana
The Adi Varaha Purana was spoken by Lord Varaha. It gives great glorification to the holy land of Mathura and Braja Mandala.
There is no place equal to Mathura, neither on this earth nor on the higher planets. There is no place more dear to Me (Lord Varaha) than Mathura. Even one who hears the name of Mathura spoken gets release from sins. When Janardana (Lord Vishnu) is asleep all the holy places are present in Mathura. The ungrateful, the drunkard, the thief and the vow-breaker are freed of their sins in Mathura.

The Yamuna joins the Ganges at Prayaga, but the Yamuna is a hundred times more sacred at Mathura. Of what need is Varanasi for one who goes to Mathura and dies there. Even a bird or a worm that dies there becomes four-armed like Lord Vishnu.

If one bathes at Visrama Ghata he reaches My world. He gets the benefits of bathing in all holy places by seeing the Lord there. The benefit of bathing at Visrama Ghata is not obtained by sacrifice, penance, mediation or control of the mind.

A resident of Mathura gets more benefit than a person who performs the austerity of standing on one foot for a thousand years. Honoring a single brahmana in Mathura is equal to honoring a thousand other brahmanas.

There is no place greater than Mathura in the three worlds. Mathura is the greatest of all holy places because Krishna played everywhere there. There is no tirtha greater than Mathura and no God greater than Keshava (another name of Krishna).

Forests in Braja Mandala
There are 12 main forests in the Braja Mandal area. On the eastern bank of the Yamuna are five forests called Bhadravana, Bilvavana (Belvan), Lohavana (Lauhavana), Bhandiravana and Mahavana. On the western side of the Yamuna there are seven forests which are: Madhuvana, Talavana, Kumudavana, Bahulavana, Kamyavana, Khadiravana, and Vrindavana. Of the 12 main forests, the forest of Vrindavana is considered the most important. These 12 forests are visited on Braja Mandala parikrama.
The Vaishnava acaryas have named about 137 forests in Braja. Sri Narayana Bhatta Gosvami states that 58 forests combine to make up Krishna’s transcendental form. The forest of Vrindavana forms His head, Kumudavana and Talavana form His chest, Bahulavana and Mahavana His arms, Nandagram His fingers and Bhandiravana His feet.

Deities Carved by Vajranabha
It is said that Vajranabha, the great-grandson of Krishna had 16 deities carved. He is said to have had these Deities carved 100 years after the disappearance of Krishna. It is said that these deities were carved from a rare imperishable stone called Braja. He established hundreds of temples and Deities and excavated kunds in the Braja area. Vajranabha was the son of Aniruddha. Aniruddha father was Pradyumna, the first son born of Krishna and Rukmini.

The four presiding Deities of Braja Mandala are Sri Harideva of Govardhana, Sri Keshava Deva of Mathura, Sri Baladeva (Dauji) of Baldeo, and Govinda Deva of Vrindavana, who has now been moved to Jaipur.

There are two Naths—Sri Nathji, who was originally at Govardhana and is now in the town of Nathdwar, which is near Udaipur in Rajasthan, and Sri Gopinatha, who is now in Jaipur.
The two Gopalas are Sri Madana Gopala, renamed Sri Madana Mohana, who is now in the town of Karoli in Rajasthan, and Saksi-gopal, who is now in the town of Saksi-gopal, Orissa, near Puri.

The four Mahadevas (deities of Lord Siva) are Chakalesvara at Govardhana, Kamesvara at Kamyavana, Bhutesvara at Mathura, and Gopisvara in Vrindavana. The four goddesses carved are Manasi Devi at Govardhana, Vrinda Devi at Kamyavana, Patala Devi at Mathura, and Yogamaya Devi at Vrindavana.

Sri Madana Mohana, Sri Govinda and Sri Gopinatha
It is said that Vajranabha, Krishna’s great-grandson, had three Deities of Krishna carved. He never saw Krishna, so the Deities were carved according to the description given by Uttara, the mother of Maharaja Pariksit. He had three different images carved, but none of them were perfect. Govindaji resembled Krishna’s face (Mukharavinda), Madana-Mohan resembled Krishna from the navel down to the lotus feet, and Gopinatha resembled Krishna from the navel to the neck.

In one book about the temples of Vrindavan, the Padma Purana is quoted saying that to get the full vision of Sri Krishna, pilgrims have to visit and offer obeisances to all three Deities during a single day, while the sun is still up.

Sri Govinda and Sri Gopinatha are now in Jaipur, and Madana-Mohan is in Karoli, a small town in Rajasthan. The Deities in the Govindaji, Gopinatha, and Radha Damodara temples are important Krishna Deities, and were originally installed in Vrindavan.

If you are departing from Vrindavana or Delhi and want to see these three Deities all in one day you have to take a taxi to Karoli in the morning and from there go to Jaipur. It would be difficult to see all three Deities in a one day by public transportation.

Three Stages of Devotional Service
“In the process of establishing our relationship with Krishna there are three stages: sambandha, abhidheya, and prayojana. The three Deities—Madana Mohana, Govinda, and Gopinatha—have very specific qualities. Worship of Madana Mohana is on the platform of reestablishing our forgotten relationship with the Personality of Godhead (sambandha). In the material world we are presently in utter ignorance of our eternal relationship with the Supreme Lord; therefore it is best not to aspire for success in fruitive activities or mental speculation, but instead simply to surrender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The perfection of life is simply to surrender to the Supreme. In the beginning of our spiritual life we must therefore worship Madana Mohana so that He may attract us and nullify our attachment for material sense gratification. This relationship with Madana Mohana is necessary for neophyte devotees. When one wishes to render service to the Lord with strong attachment, one then worships Govinda on the platform of transcendental service (abhidheya). Govinda is the reservoir of all pleasures. When by the grace of Krishna and the devotees one reaches perfection in devotional service (prayojana), he can appreciate Krishna as Gopinatha or Gopijana-vallabha, the pleasure Deity of the damsels of Vraja.” (Caitanya Caritamrita Adi)

Pratibhu Murtis (Deities)
In the seventeenth century, when the Muslims attacked Vrindavana and Braja, many of the original Deities in the temples were moved out of Braja. Several of the Gosvami’s original Deities were first moved to Radha Kunda and then to Kamyavana. They were then moved to Jaipur in Rajasthan. Deities were installed in place of the Deities that were removed. Often these Deities were installed in a new temple, because when a temple is desecrated or partially destroyed it is considered that it can no longer be used to worship installed Deities. This was true of the Govindaji, Madana Mohana and Gopinatha temples. Since the Deity of Radha-Raman was small, this Deity was not removed from Vrindavana.

The Deities installed in place of the original Deities are called pratibhu murtis. They are expanded forms, which are nondifferent from the original Deities. Since the original Deities stayed at Radha Kunda and Kamyavana, temples have been established at these places, which contain pratibhu murtis to honor the Lord’s visit to these places.

Deities that have moved
1. Sri Govindaji Jaipur, Rajasthan
2. Sri Gopinatha Jaipur, Rajasthan
3. Sri Damodara Jaipur, Rajasthan
4. Sri Madhava Jaipur, Rajasthan
5. Sri Radha-Vinoda Jaipur, Rajasthan
6. Sri Madana Mohana Karoli, Rajasthan
7. Sri Gopala (Nathji) Nathdwar, Rajasthan
8. Sri Harideva Rajdhani, near Kanpur, UP
9. Sri Vrinda Devi Kamyavana
10. Sri Kesava Rajdhani, UP (now lost)

Paurnamasi
She is the mother of Sandipani Muni, the spiritual master of Krishna. Paurnamasi makes the arrangements for Radha and Krishna’s pastimes. She is the benefactor of Radharani and brings her good fortune. She daily arranges the secret meetings of Radha and Krishna. Paurnamasi is the incarnation of Lord Krishna’s Yogamaya potency. She wears red garments and much jewelry. Paurnamasi is slightly tall.

Vrindavana Residents Don’t Know Krishna’s Position

“When Krishna was on this earth all the residents of Vrindavana loved Him. Indeed, they knew nothing but Krishna. They did not know whether Krishna is God or not God, nor were they disturbed by such thoughts, ‘I shall love Krishna if He is God.’ Their attitude was one of pure love, and they thought. ‘He may or may not be God, it doesn’t matter. We love Krishna, that’s all.’ This then is the platform of real, unalloyed love.” (SSR)
“Because of pure love, the devotees of Krishna in Goloka Vrindavana, Braja-bhumi, loved Krishna as an ordinary human being like them. Yet although they considered Krishna one of them, their love for Krishna knew no bounds.” (Caitanya Caritamrita Antya 10.19 purport).

“In Brajabhumi, Krishna is certainly the central point of love, and the inhabitants there know Krishna as a friend, son, lover or master.” (C.C . Madhya 9.131 purport)

Spiritual Forms of Prominent Gaudiya Vaishnava Acarya
1. Sanatana Gosvami Labanga Manjari
2. Rupa Gosvami Rupa Manjari
3. Jiva Gosvami Vilas Manjari
4. Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami Rati or Rasa Manjari
5. Gopala Bhatta Gosvami Guna or Ananga Manjari
6. Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami Raga Manjari
7. Lokanatha Gosvami Manjulali Manjari
8. Krishna Dasa Kaviraja Kasturi Manjari
9. Narottama dasa Thakur Camak Manjari
10. Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur Vinoda Manjari
11. Jagannatha Dasa Babaji Rasika Manjari
12. Bhaktivinoda Thakur Kamala Manjari

Ten Offenses to be Avoiding in the Holy Dhama
1. To have contempt or disrespect towards the guru who reveals the holy Dhama.
2. To think that the holy Dhama is temporary.
3. To commit violence towards any of the residents of the Holy Dham or pilgrims who come there, or to think that they are ordinary mundane people.
4. To perform mundane activities while living in the holy Dhama.
5. To earn money by, and making a business of, deity worship and chanting the Holy Name.
6. To think that the Holy Dhama belongs to some mundane country or province such as Uttar Pradesh, or to think that Vrindavana-dhama is equal to a holy place connected with some demigod. To attempt to measure the area of the Dhama.
7. To commit sinful acts while in the Dhama
8. To consider Vrindavana and Navadvipa different.
9. To blaspheme the holy scriptures which glorify the Holy Dhama.
10. To be faithless and to think that the glories of the Dhama are imaginary.

Personalities in Krishna Lila
Nanda Maharaja Krishna’s foster father
Yasoda Krishna’s foster mother
Vrishabhanu Radharani’s father
Kirtida Radharani’s mother
Ananga Manjari Radharani’s youngest sister
Sridham Radharani’s brother
Balarama Krishna’s older brother
Rohini Mother of Balarama
Vasudeva Krishna’s father
Devaki Krishna’s mother
Abhimanyu Husband of Radharani
Jatila Abhimanyu’s mother
Jarati Head maidservant of child Krishna

Nanda Maharaja and Vasudeva were cousins. Both of them had the same grandfather, Devamidha. Devamidha had two wives. One was a kshatriya and the other was from a vaisya family. Each one of these wives had a son. The son from the kshatriya wife was Surasena, the father of Vasudeva and the son from the vaisya wife was Parjanya, the father of Nanda Maharaja. Nanda Maharaja had four brothers: Upananda, Abhinanda, Sunanda and Nandana. At first all the children of these four sons of Parjanya had only daughters. Parjanya would go to the temple of Lord Siva at Nandagram and pray for a grandson. Finally Parjanya got a grandson when Krishna appeared.

Nanda Maharaja
The hairs of his head are generally black, but some of them are gray. His garments are of greenish color, like the new-grown leaves of a banyan tree. His belly is fatty, his complexion is exactly like the full moon, and he has a beautiful mustache.

“Let others worship the Mahabharata if they are afraid of material existence and want to become liberated from that condition. But as far as I am concerned, I wish only to worship Maharaja Nanda, because the supreme absolute Personality of Godhead, Krishna, is crawling in his courtyard as his own child.” (Nectar of Devotion)

 

Demons Killed by Krishna and the Anarthas They Represent
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura in his Sri Caitanya Siksamrita describes the demons Krishna killed in His Vrindavana pastimes and the anarthas (unwanted things) that they represent.

1. Putana - the pseudo guru.
2. Sakatasura (the cart demon) - carrying the burden of a cart-load of old and new bad habits, lethargy and vanity.
3. Trinavarta (the whirlwind demon) - false pride that comes from material scholarship, which leads to bogus philosophies.
4. Deliverance of Nalakuvara and Manigriva (breaking the twin arjuna trees) - Arrogant pride that comes from puffed-up prestige, which is rooted in madness for wealth.
5. Vatsasura (the calf demon) - a childish type of mentality which gives rise to a type of greediness, which results in a wicked type of mischievousness.
6. Bakasura (stork demon) - Cunning duplicity, deceptiveness and false types of behavior.
7. Aghasura (the snake demon) - Cruelty and violence.
8. Brahma-vimohana Pastime (Lord Brahma steals the cowherd boys and calves) - mundane activities and speculative scholasticism.
9. Dhenukasura (the ass demon) - gross materialistic intelligence, ignorance of spiritual knowledge.
10. Kaliya (chastising the Kaliya serpent) - brutality and treachery.
11. Extinguishing the Forest Fire - inter-communal discord among Vaishnavas.
12. Pralambasura (killing the Pralamba demon) - lusty inclinations; desire for personal gain and honor.
13. Second Forest Fire - disturbance of religious principles and interference with religious people who are atheist.
14. Brahmanas Performing Sacrifice - indifference toward Krishna caused by pride because of one’s status (position) in varnasrama.
15. Overcoming the Pride of Indra - demigod worship, and the tendency to think, “I am Supreme.”
16. Nanda Maharaja Captured by Varuna - thinking that spiritual life can be enhanced by intoxication.
17. Nanda Maharaja Swallowed by Vidyadhara (the snake) - rescuing the truth of Krishna consciousness from being swallowed by the impersonalists.
18. Sankhacuda (killing the conch-shell demon and getting the jewel that was stolen by him) - proneness toward acquiring name and fame, and desire for sensuous enjoyment, under the plea of devotion.
19. Aristasura (the bull demon) - pride arising from indulging in false religions invented by cheaters which causes neglect of devotional service (bhakti).
20. Kesi (the horse demon) - The feeling that “I am a great devotee and spiritual master.”
21. Vyomasura (the demon in the sky) - associating with thieves and other rascals, and with people who put themselves forward as avataras.

Bhaktivinoda Thakura says: “The devotee who worships the holy name should first petition the Lord for the strength to cast out all these unfavorable tendencies—and should pray thus before Lord Hari on a daily basis. By doing this regularly, the devotee’s heart will eventually become purified. Sri Krishna has killed a number of demons which may arise in the kingdom of the heart—so in order to destroy these problems, a devotee must cry very humbly before the Lord and admit defeat—then the Lord will nullify all contaminations.”

Sampradaya in Braja
All the sampradayas in Braja worship Krishna, Vishnu, or one of his expansions, and all are mainly considered to be Vaishnavas. Most of the temples are managed by priests who are members of the four main sampradayas
Many of the main temples in Vrindavana and Braja are managed by members of the Pushtimarg, Gaudiya, and Nimbarka Sampradayas. Two other fairly well known groups are the Radhavallabha Sampradaya and Haridasi Sampradaya. Most the newer major groups claim to be connected to the main four sampradayas.

The Nimbarka Sampradaya has controls of several temples in across Braja.
Followers of the Gaudiya Sampradaya mainly come from Bengal. They are followers of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu (1486 birth). It is the main form of Vaishnavism in Bengal, Orissa and Assam. Disciples of Caitanya and his followers came to Braja in the 16th century. They wrote books about Krishna and Braja and established some impressive temples. Two of their main bases are the town of Vrindavana and Radha Kunda. Members of the renounced order in this sampradaya often shave their head. Members of ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Hare Krishna), are known as Gaudiya Vaishnavas, because they are followers of Krishna and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Some Brahman priests have inherited control of some of the important temples. These important priests are often referred to as “Goswami.” Goswami means “controller of the senses.” Usually the local people give these priests great respect.

Rules for Pilgrims to Braja
When a household come to Braja for pilgrimage they are basically expected to act like a renunciate and dedicate their time in the holy dhama to spiritual life. Many people when they come to Braja walk around barefoot, sleep on the ground, eat only once a day, don’t engage in sex, shave their heads, and don’t take any intoxication, even tea or coffee. You are expected to bathe everyday, if not three times a day, and to wear clean clothing daily. Pilgrims are expects to not harbor any ill feelings to anyone or speak harshly with anyone. They should not harm any tree, plant or even the grass. Even the animals should be treated with respect.

The local people should be treated with respect, because they are resident of Vrindavana. Even the sweeper of the street is treated as special. It is totally banned to do any harm to the monkeys and to kill one is a punishable offense. If a monkey steals some food from someone, they are expected to just see the humorous side of it. While visiting Vrindavana, pilgrims usually rise early, bathe and go to a temple to worship.
Pilgrims should maintain a vegetarian diet in Vrindavana. One should not eat garlic and onions and should basically only eat food that is offered to Krishna, or at least offerable to Krishna.

Sanjhikala Art
This is an art form that uses dry color powder to portray pastimes of Krishna. Flower petals are often used to add beauty. This art form is usually done during the fifteen days preceding Dussehra. This art form is made on earthen and metal objects and sometimes under the surface of water. Clay and cow dung are the basic materials used. Also used are flowers, confetti and different color beans, rice and other materials. This art form of dry colored decoration is done in temples to please Sri Krishna.

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