Bankey Bihari Temple is a Hindu temple devoted to Bhagwan Krishna, situated in the sacred city of Vrindavan, Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh. Bankey Bihari Temple was built in 1862 and is located near Shri Radha Vallabha Temple.
The idol of Bhagwan Krishna stands in the Tribhanga position. Eminent Poet Swami Haridas prayed this religious image under the title of Kunj-Bihari (“one who relishes in the woods of Vrindavan”).
History and Legend
Bhagwan Krishna is said to have been born in a jail in Mathura, and one can still witness the prison cell in the city, at the place of the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi temple. Bhagwan Krishna father, Vasudeva, hides him out of the jail to refuge beyond the furious Yamuna River, which provides a route for the god. Bhagwan Krishna is triumphantly delivered to Vrindavan, where he was under the care of Nanda and Yashoda.
Banke Bihari temple is famous because of the idol. While the Goswamis constructed the temple structure, the idol is much old which dates back to a shrine constructed by Swami Haridas, It is believed that Haridas was given the idols by Bhagwan Krishna and Radha themselves, after hearing him sing The idol itself expresses Bhagwan Krishna in the frame of his mischievous youth. Essentially, the stories about this temple are based around the belief of the god as a child. There are no ringing bells here to call to god because it is not deemed smart or suitable to awake a child like that.
A veil conceals the idol because it is believed that once a Rajasthani princess became so dazzled by the child that Bhagwan Krishna just had to trail her back to her throne. Swami Haridas noticed that the idol was missing and next discovered it with the princess, and so a curtain hides the idol to shield Bhagwan Krishna from other devotees. Akshaya Tritiya is the day that the idol is shown, but even then only the feet is shown. Because it venerates Bhagwan Krishna’s child-like playfulness, the temple is recognized by many to be the most prominent of Vrindavan’s various temples devoted to the god.
