History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c74.t3.14

v5.c74.t3.14

The tract round about Mathurā is said to be 20 yojanas in extent and the city of Mathurā was in its midst¹⁵⁶⁷. The Varāhapurāṇa and the Nāradīya (uttarārdha) chapters 79–80 mention numerous tīrthas in and about Mathurā. It is not possible to enumerate them here. A few important ones will be noticed briefly. Both Varāha (chap. 153 and 161 6–10) and Nāradīya (uttarārdha 79. 10–18) mention twelve forests near Mathurā viz. Madhu, Tāla, Kumuda, Kāmya, Bahula, Bhadra, Khadira, Mahāvana, Lohajangha, Bilva, Bhāndīra and Vṛndāvana. There are also 24 upavanas enumerated by Growse on 'Mathurā' (p. 76) which are not mentioned by the Purāṇas but only by later works. Vṛndāvana ¹⁵⁶⁸ was to the north-west of Mathurā on the Yamunā and was five yojanas in extent (Viṣṇupurāṇa V. 6. 28-40, Nāradīya, uttarārdha 80. 6, 8 and 77). It was the scene of Kṛṣṇa's adventures and love-making The Padma IV. 69 9 speaks of it as a portion of Vaikuṇṭha on the earth. The Matsya (13. 38) identifies Rādhā in Vṛndāvana as Devī Dākṣāyaṇī.¹⁵⁶⁹ In Kālidāsa's day it had great fame. In Raghuvaṁśa VI, while describing Susena of the Nīpa family, king of Śūrasena, Vṛndāvana is said to be no less charming than Caitraratha, the park of Kubera (verse 50). Then there is the Govardhana ¹⁵⁷⁰ hill, which Kṛṣṇa lifted up on his little finger to afford shelter for seven days to the cowherds and their cattle against the heavy rains sent down by Indra (Viṣṇupurāṇa V. 11. 15-25). It is stated in the Varāhapurāṇa (164 1) that Govardhana is about two yojanas from Mathurā to its west. This appears to be tolerably correct as at present it is 18 miles from Vṛndāvana. The Kūrma (I. 14 18) says that the very ancient king Pṛthu performed austerities here. The details given in the Hari-vaṁśa and the Purāṇas are sometimes confused and misleading. For example, in the Harivaṁśa (Viṣṇuparva 13. 3) it is stated that Tālavana is to the north of Govardhana on the Yamunā, while it is south-east of Govardhana Kālidāsa refers to the caverns of Govardhana (Raghuvaṁsa 6. 51). Gokula is the same as Vraja or Mahāvana, where Kṛṣṇa was brought up in his early childhood by Nand-gopa who removed his habitation from Gokula to Vṛndāvana out of fear of what Kaṁsa might do. The great Vaiṣṇavite saint Caitanya visited Vṛndāvana (Caitanya-caritāmṛta canto 19 and 9th Act of the drama Caitanyacandrodaya, both by Kavikarṇapūra or Paramānandadāsa). In the 16th century Vṛndāvana became a centre of Caitanya's *bhakti* movement owing to the strenuous efforts and learned writings of the *Gosvāmins* of Vṛndāvana, particularly Sanātana, Rūpa and Jīva. Vide Prof. S. K. De's 'Vaiṣṇava faith and movement in Bengal' (1942) pp. 83-122. Vallabhācārya, who was a contemporary of Caitanya founded new Gokula, one mile to the south of Mahāvana in imitation of the ancient Gokula. Caitanya and Vallabhācārya met at Vṛndāvana (vide Manilal C. Parekh's work on Vallabhācārya p. 161). The old temples of Mathurā met the same fate at the orders of Aurangzeb as the temples of Banaras.¹⁵⁷¹