The Radha Gopinath Temple in Vrindavan is the one of seven ancient temples (Sapt devalayas), established by the Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu & holds much significance for devotees.
Vrindavan, often hailed as the city of temples, boasts countless sacred sites, each with its unique story. However, certain temples stand as icon, deeply connected with the very identity of this holy city. The Radha Gopinath Temple in Vrindavan is definitely one such iconic shrine.
Devotees believe that Vrajanabha, Lord Krishna’s great-grandson, installed the original Gopinath Deity in Vrindavan over five-thousand years ago. You can also have virtual tour of the temple on youtube.
History
The statue and temple got lost with time . Around five hundred years ago, Paramananda Bhattacharya found the statue of God in the ground at Banshivat, near the Yamuna River. Later, Madhu Pandit Goswami, who was a desciple of Shri Gadadhar Pandit and a close friend of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, worshiped the Gopinath Deity.
Once, Nityananda Prabhu’s wife, Jahnava Thakurani, visited Vrindavan. While she was looking at Shri Radha-Gopinath, she thought Radha’s statue was too small. She observed that Statue of Radha rani was too small. She felt that if Radha was a bit taller, the pair would look even more beautiful. After seeing the evening prayers, Jahnava Thakurani went back home.
That night, in a dream, Shri Gopinath asked Jahnava to get a taller statue of Radha. Radha Rani also told her the same thing in a dream. So, she had a statue of Radha made that was a better size for the Gopinath Deity. The book Bhakta-mala says that when Jahnava Thakurani left this world, she showed her own statue and stayed in it. She told the priests to put her statue in the same room as Shri Gopinath.
When this statue arrived at the Gopinath temple in Vrindavan, the priests were not sure about putting it next to Shri Gopinath. At that time, Gopinath himself told the priests, “Don’t worry. This is My dear Anang Manjari. Put her on My left, and Radha on My right.” And that is what happened. Jahnava now stands on Shri Gopinath’s left, and Radha stands on His right. Jahnava Thakurani sits on Gopinath’s left, and Lalita Sakhi and a small statue of Radha sit on His right. Near the new temple, to the east, is the tomb of Madhu Pandita.
Timings
Morning – 5:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Evening – 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Timings may slightly vary as per seasons.
