The Geographical Dictionary of Ancient and Mediaeval India c5.s2.215

c5.s2.215

Bṛndāvana—Bṛndāban in the district of Mathurā, where Kṛṣṇa showed to the world examples of transcendental love through the Gopīs. The original image of Govindajī was removed to Jaipur and that of Madanamohana to Karauli in anticipation of the raid of Aurangzeb. The splendid and magnificent pyramidal old temple of Govindajî with its elegant carvings and sculptures was built by Man Singh in the thirty-fourth year of Akbar's reign (Growse's Matharâ and Brahmavaivartta P., ch. 17 and Bhâgavata P., X, ch. 12). The Nidhuvana and Nikuñjavana, the celebrated bowers of love, Pulina, the place of the râsamaṇḍala, the Bastraharaṇa-ghâṭ, the Kâliya-daha-ghâṭ,—all situated in Bṛindâvana were the scenes of Kṛishṇa's love and adventures. Bṛindâvana appears to have attained celebrity at the time of Kâlidâsa (Raghuvamśa, VI, 50). Bṛindâvana was visited by the poet Bilhaṇa who composed his Bikramâṅkadeva-charita about A.D. 1085 (see canto XVIII, v. 87). The cenotaph of Haridâs is situated in his hermitage, whence Akbar in his visit to Bṛindâbana took away his disciple, the celebrated musician Tânasena to his court. The predominance of the Buddhist religion for several centuries served to efface all traces of the sacred localities of Bṛindâvana, but were again restored by the explorations of Rûpa and Sanâtana, the celebrated followers of Chaitanya. But the identification of modern Bṛindâban with the Bṛindâvana of the Purâṇas is extremely doubtful for the following reasons: (1) Modern Bṛindâban is six miles from Mathurâ, whereas it took Akrura the whole day from sunrise to sunset to drive from Bṛindâvana to Mathurâ in a car drawn by swift horses (Vishṇu P., Pt. V, ch. 18, vs. 12 and 33, and ch. 19, v. 9, Bhâgavata P., Pt. X, ch. 39, v. 30, and ch. 41, v. 4). (2) Nanda, the foster-father of Kṛishṇa, removed from Gokula, which is six miles from Mathurâ, across the Jamuna to Bṛindâvana to escape molestations from the myrmidons of Kamsa, king of Mathurâ (Vishṇu P., Pt. V, ch. vi, vs. 23, 25, and Bhâgavata P., Pt. X, ch. xi, vs. 10—14). It is therefore not likely that he should select for his sojourn modern Bṛindâvana which is also six miles from Mathurâ and on the same side of the Jamunâ, leaving the natural barrier of a river. (3) Bṛindâvan does not contain any mountain, whereas ancient Bṛindâvana is described as mountainous (Bhâgavata P., Pt. X, ch. xi, v. 14). (4) Ancient Bṛindâvana and Mathurâ seem to have been situated on the opposite sides of the Yamunâ (Vishṇu P., Part V, ch. 18, v. 33, and Bhâgavata P., Pt. X, ch. 39, v. 34).