Shri Radha Raman Temple Vrindavan

Sri Radha Ramana Temple is a historic shrine that dates back to the time of early modern period. Dedicated to Lord Krishna and Radha, the temple of Sri Radha Raman Temple is one of the finest Hindu shrines in Vrindavan. The name Radha Raman stands for ‘one who gives pleasure to Radha’. Radha Raman is believed to be a self-manifested deity from Shaligram Shila. Being one of the oldest temples in Vrindavan, it possesses an enormous historical importance. There is an interesting fact related to the temple, according to which, a fire has been burning continuously in the temple’s kitchen since it was lit during the time of its construction. The presiding deities of the shrine are Shaligram and Radharani.

History of the Temple

The temple of Sri Radha Raman was built by Gopal Bhatta Goswami (one of the disciples of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu), some 500 years back. Gopal Bhatta Goswami visited Vrindavan at the age of thirty. Upon arrival, he received the divine blessings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. However, the blessings were in the form of Kopin (loincloth of Chaitanya), Patta, (wooden seat), Dupatta (long piece of cloth). Amongst all these, the wooden seat is well-preserved, and hence, can be seen at the temple.

On the instruction of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Gopal Bhatt Goswami went to Kali-Gandaki River in Nepal. Having been blessed by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Goswami found 12 Shalligrams Shillas. He brought those 12 Shillas to Vrindavan and started worshipping them with intense devotion. These Shillas were worshipped by Goswami in their original form. However, he always desired to worship the divine form of the Lord, i.e., an image which could be fed, touched and dressed up.

With the passing of years, his desire kept getting stronger. Finally, on the day of Narasimha Chaturdashi in May 1542, Gopal Bhatta Goswami reminisced on the glory of Lord Narasimha (an avatar of Lord Vishnu, he was half human and half lion). The next day, when he got up for his morning prayer, he saw the open lid of the basket in which he had kept the Shillas. When he opened the lid, he found the exquisite idol of the deity along with 11 other Shillas. The idol was the 12th Shilla (Damodar Shilla) which got transferred into the image of Lord Krishna.