Pious Life Journey of Lord Shri Krishna: 9 Places

At the center of Sanatana Dharma and culture the character and divine life journey of Leela Purushottam Lord Shri Krishna hold an extremely important place. The life of Lord Shri Krishna who incarnated in the Dvapara Yuga was not straight and simple like that of an ordinary human being. His entire life is a unique saga of continuous dynamism big geographical changes sacrifice and dedication to duty. He did not remain tied to any one place permanently but for the requirement of creation and the establishment of righteousness he made various places his abode from time to time performed his wonderful plays there and left those places forever with an extremely desireless mind when the time came. From the pious Braj land of Uttar Pradesh to the grand city of Dwarka built on the western coast of Gujarat and finally to the silent forests of Prabhas region wherever the steps of Shri Krishna fell those places are still completely vibrating with his divine consciousness and memories.

According to the Srimad Bhagavatam Mahabharata and Vishnu Purana although the physical stay of Shri Krishna ended thousands of years ago a subtle flow of his invisible energy and memories remains active in these historical and spiritual places left by him even today. These places are not just structures of bricks and stones but they are living symbols of the development of human consciousness and the inner spiritual journey. This article deeply explains those nine most prominent historical and mysterious places associated with the life of Lord Shri Krishna where he lived which he left and which are still alive in the hearts of devotees through his pious memories.

Main Stops of Shri Krishna's Life Journey and Their Vedic Description

According to the Vedic time cycle and geographical history the life of Lord Shri Krishna was spent in different regions of India during various stages which can be understood clearly through the following detailed reference table.

S.No.	Name of the Place	Geographical Region	Stage of Life and Main Play	Spiritual and Subtle Meaning
1	Mathura	Uttar Pradesh (Braj)	Birth in a dark prison and slaying of Kansa	End of bonds of ignorance and rise of justice
2	Gokul	Uttar Pradesh (Braj)	Early childhood butter stealing and slaying of Putana	Communication of simplicity, pure love and sattvic energy
3	Vrindavan	Uttar Pradesh (Braj)	Cow herding, Raasleela and divine flute playing	Ultimate bliss of the union of individual soul and supreme soul
4	Govardhan	Uttar Pradesh (Braj)	Lifting the Govardhan mountain and nature worship	Crushing of ego and message of environmental conservation
5	Nandgaon and Barsana	Uttar Pradesh (Braj)	Companionship of childhood friends and union with Shri Radha	Pinnacle of love and divine form of surrender
6	Sandipani Ashram (Ujjain)	Madhya Pradesh	Acquiring knowledge of 64 arts from Maharishi Sandipani	Ideal of education, devotion to Guru and disciplined student life
7	Dwarka City	Gujarat (Western Coast)	Establishment of a grand empire and protection of subjects	Worldly opulence, diplomacy and responsibility of an efficient king
8	Kurukshetra	Haryana	Mahabharata war and sermon of Shrimad Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna	Practical learning of Karma Yoga amidst main struggles of life
9	Prabhas Region (Bhalka Tirth)	Gujarat (Near Somnath)	Cause of hunter's arrow and leaving the body (Ending the play)	Perishability of physical body and ultimate truth of detachment

1. Mathura: Darkness of Birth and End of Tyrannical Kansa's Reign

The first and most important stop of Lord Shri Krishna's pious life journey is Mathura. In the deep darkness of the prison of Mathura on the Ashtami tithi of Krishna Paksha in the month of Bhadrapada under the Rohini Nakshatra Shri Krishna was born in the prison of Kansa. At that time the cruel guard of tyrannical King Kansa was all around and nature was also in an extremely fierce form. The hidden spiritual meaning of this place is that when human life is completely imprisoned in the jail of ignorance lust and worldly bonds the divine consciousness meaning Krishna appears within it.

Shri Krishna took birth in Mathura but on the very same night he was sent across the Yamuna to Gokul. In the later period during his adolescence Shri Krishna returned to Mathura again and he completely destroyed the tyrannical King Kansa and his evil wrestlers in the arena to free his parents Devaki and Vasudeva from shackles. Mathura is that stop in Shri Krishna's life which teaches us that for the establishment of justice even the attachment of loved ones and one's birthplace has to be given up. Even today the Krishna Janmabhoomi of Mathura provides the inner strength to devotees to stand against unrighteousness.

2. Gokul: Divine Bliss of Childhood Plays and Fathomless Affection

Emerging from the rigid bonds of Kansa in Mathura the childhood of Shri Krishna was spent in the pious and rural background of Gokul. Staying in the house of Nanda Baba and Mother Yashoda Shri Krishna won the hearts of the entire Braj dwellers with his extremely gentle and pleasing childhood plays. While living in Gokul he created the play of butter stealing broke earthen pots and ate soil while crawling on his knees.

The spiritual secret of this place is that to attain God no rigid knowledge or Vedic verses are needed but simplicity and pure love like Gokul are sufficient. In Gokul itself Shri Krishna killed terrifying demons like Putana Shakatasura and Trinavarta who are symbols of vices like lust anger and ego hidden inside human beings. The lanes of Gokul and the soil there still encapsulate the living memory of Mother Yashoda's affection and the smiles of child Krishna.

3. Vrindavan: Supreme Sweetness of Raasleela and Sound of Flute Playing

When the disturbance of demons sent by Kansa increased too much in Gokul Nanda Baba and all the cowherds decided to depart towards the dense forests of Vrindavan located on the banks of Yamuna for the safety of the animals and children of Braj. Vrindavan is that golden period of Shri Krishna's life where love devotion and spirituality reached their supreme peak. Under the Kadamba trees of Vrindavan Shri Krishna played that divine tune of his flute hearing which the entire moving and unmoving world cows birds and Gopis would run leaving their awareness.

In Vrindavan itself on the pious banks of Yamuna on the night of Sharad Purnima Lord Shri Krishna created the Maharaas with the Gopis. This Maharaas was not a worldly dance but it was a supreme divine and spiritual union of the individual soul with the supreme soul. About the dense lanes of Vrindavan Nidhiban and Seva Kunj this belief is firm even today that every vegetation there chants the name of Shri Krishna and even today in an invisible form Raasleela takes place there at night. Vrindavan is the symbol of that pinnacle of love which Shri Krishna left behind forever while going to Mathura but its memory is just as live today.

4. Govardhan: Message of Nature Worship and Crushing of Indra's Ego

Located near Vrindavan the Govardhan Mountain is a direct witness to an extremely epoch-making and revolutionary event in Shri Krishna's life. In ancient times the Braj dwellers used to perform heavy worship of King of Gods Indra considering him the god of rain so that their animals could get grass and water. Young Shri Krishna strongly opposed this superstition and ritualism. He explained to the Braj dwellers that directly this Govardhan mountain and our forests protect us which provide fodder to cows and attract clouds therefore we should worship nature instead of Indra.

Angered by this step of Shri Krishna King of Gods Indra started cataclysmic rain over Braj. Then for the protection of Braj dwellers Shri Krishna lifted the Govardhan mountain itself on his pinky finger and held it as a huge umbrella for a full seven days. This event proves that rising above rituals God considers the conservation of nature and the practical protection of every living being supreme. Govardhan mountain still stands firm as the highest symbol of nature worship in the spiritual consciousness of India.

5. Nandgaon and Barsana: Divinity of Friend Sentiment and Pure Love of Shri Radha

After Vrindavan the family of Shri Krishna went and settled on the hills of Nandgaon. This place is the center of beautiful moments spent with childhood friends of Shri Krishna like Shridama Sudama and Mansukha. Located at a short distance from the hills of Nandgaon is Barsana which is the birthplace and dwelling place of saaksat Hladini Shakti Mahabhava Swarupini Shri Radha Rani.

The love of Shri Krishna and Radha was completely desireless self sacrificing and spiritual far beyond worldly lusts. The stories of Lathmar Holi and Danleela played in the lanes between Barsana and Nandgaon are still the soul of Braj culture. When Shri Krishna started going to Mathura with Akrur ji on the invitation of Kansa he left Radha and his childhood friends forever. This sacrifice was extremely difficult but Shri Krishna showed society that for bigger duties sacrificing personal love is mandatory. Even today the eternal echo of Radha-Krishna's love can be clearly felt in the hills of Nandgaon and Barsana.

6. Sandipani Ashram (Ujjain): Guru Devotion, Acquiring Knowledge and Arts

Along with managing the political system of Mathura after the slaying of Kansa Shri Krishna and his elder brother Balarama were sent to Maharishi Sandipani's Ashram located in Ujjain (Avantika city) of Madhya Pradesh for formal education in scriptures and weapons. Despite being a king and the incarnation of God himself Shri Krishna lived a life like an extremely ordinary and disciplined student there. He used to collect dry wood from forests clean the ashram and follow the command of the Guru mother.

While living in this pious ashram Shri Krishna acquired complete proficiency in sixty-four arts and fourteen sciences in just sixty-four days. Here itself his friendship took place with the poor Brahmin boy Sudama who created an immortal history of friendship in the later period. Sandipani Ashram gives us the invaluable lesson that no matter how great or omnipotent a person may be the place of the Guru and the modesty of knowledge remain supreme in his life. This historical ashram of Ujjain still keeps that ancient Gurukul tradition and the pious memory of Guru-Shishya relationship alive.

7. Dwarka City: Establishment of a Glorious Empire and Victory Over Sea

When King Jarasandha of Magadha attacked Mathura seventeen times and the safety of Braj dwellers fell into crisis Shri Krishna took an extremely diplomatic and far-sighted decision to leave Mathura. Taking his entire subjects along he reached the western end of India on the sea coast of Gujarat. There asking for land from the sea god he got an extremely grand golden and modern city constructed through Vishwakarma ji which the entire world knows by the name of Dwarka City.

Coming to Dwarka Shri Krishna was worshiped as 'Dwarkadhish' meaning the king. He lived a household life there with Rukmini Satyabhama and other queens and operated an extremely efficient just and powerful empire. Dwarka city is the ultimate symbol of opulence political cleverness and diplomacy in Shri Krishna's life. Although the original city of Dwarka submerged inside the sea after the departure of Shri Krishna even today the archaeological remains found under the sea and the present Dwarkadhish temple are witnessing that glorious and historical period of Shri Krishna.

8. Kurukshetra: Great War of Mahabharata and Eternal Knowledge of Shrimad Bhagavad Gita

Located on the holy land of Haryana Kurukshetra is that most important ideological and strategic stop in the life of Lord Shri Krishna which changed the history and philosophy of entire human race forever. When all peace efforts between Pandavas and Kauravas failed the terrible war of Mahabharata became certain in the field of Kurukshetra. Shri Krishna vowed not to raise weapons in this war and he became the charioteer of Arjuna's chariot.

At the beginning of the war when Arjuna became infatuated and surrounded by depression upon seeing his own relatives in front of him on this very land of Kurukshetra at a place named Jyotisar Shri Krishna stopping the time cycle gave that eternal supernatural and time-transcending knowledge of Shrimad Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna which completely destroyed the ignorance within him. Kurukshetra teaches us that life itself is a battlefield and instead of running away from one's deeds a human being should perform his duty with a desireless mind without worrying about the fruit. The soil of Kurukshetra is still completely filled with that divine clarion call and eternal consciousness of knowledge of the Gita.

9. Prabhas Region (Bhalka Tirth): Ending the Play, Detachment and Supreme Truth of Body Sacrifice

The final stop of this physical and supernatural life journey of Lord Shri Krishna is the Prabhas Region located near Somnath in Gujarat which is currently known by the name of Bhalka Tirth. Due to the curse of Gandhari and the mutual civil war of Yaduvanshis when the entire Yaduvansh was destroyed Shri Krishna sat completely calm and solitary under a Pipal tree in the forests of Prabhas region in the posture of Yoganidra. The sole of his foot was shining which considering the eye of a deer a hunter named Jara shot an arrow from a distance.

This arrow hit the foot of Shri Krishna and despite being saaksat God respecting the laws of nature he left his physical body extremely peacefully with a smile and departed to his supreme abode. This place explains to us the supreme truth of detachment predominance of karma and the limitations of this mortal body. Bhalka Tirth and that pious bank of Hiran river still encapsulate that extremely emotional holy and detached memory of the final and silent moment of Lord Shri Krishna's life which teaches us that every living being coming into this world has to leave one day.

FAQ

Why did Lord Shri Krishna leave Mathura and Vrindavan forever?
The life of Shri Krishna was not to be bound by the attachment of any one place. For bigger duties like the politics of Mathura after the slaying of Kansa protecting his subjects from the attacks of Jarasandha and establishing righteousness across entire India through the Mahabharata war he sacrificed the Braj land.

What is the secret of the original Dwarka city submerged inside the sea?
According to mythological beliefs and Mahabharata after the departure of Shri Krishna and the end of Yaduvansh the work of Dwarka city was completed therefore that grand golden city submerged inside the sea. Currently modern science and archaeology department have also obtained its ancient remains under the sea.

What is the core practical message of the sermon of Gita given by Shri Krishna in the field of Kurukshetra?
The core message of Shrimad Bhagavad Gita is 'Karma Yoga'. It means that a human being should not run away getting panicked by the struggles and difficulties of life but should perform his duties with complete honesty sacrificing attachment and the desire for fruit.

What is Bhalka Tirth and what is its significance in the life of Lord Shri Krishna?
Bhalka Tirth is that historical place located near Somnath in Gujarat where Lord Shri Krishna was resting under a tree and the arrow of the hunter named Jara hit his foot. From this very place he wound up his worldly plays and departed to his supreme abode.

How are his memories still alive in these nine places of Shri Krishna today?
Although the physical period of Shri Krishna has passed the soil ancient temples folktales and the spiritual atmosphere of these places still make devotees experience a supernatural peace and a subtle presence of Shri Krishna's living existence.