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Mathura Travel Guide

Mathura is the birth place of Lord Krishna. Situated on the west bank of the river Yamuna, Mathura and its surrounding region popularly known as Brij Bhoomi areimportant place of pilgrimage. The birth of Lord Krishna about 5200 years ago (according to over gies and the puranas) gave the city its sanctity. In ancient times it was a cultural centre of much renowh and received great stimulas under Ashoka in the spheres of sculpture under Ashoka in the spheres of sculpture and architecture. Later Kanishka made it the capital of his eastern empire and the city became on important centre of trade learning arts and culture.
The Skas (100 BC - 57 BC made it their capital and under them large number of stupas and viharas were built, under the Kushams, Mathu Rose to a great prominence and prosperity. It was under the imperial Gupti (350 A.D. - 465 A.D) these Mathura became centre of Buddhism.
Leele-Purushottam-Lord Shri Krishna is like showing a lamp to tf sun. To the Hindus, he is the Lordd without beginning and with out end. 1- is unborn and eternal. He was in the prison-house of the crual King Kam: Lord Shri Krishna assumed the fullness of an, "Avatara" towards the end the "Dwapara Yuga". •
The oldest city of the aboriginal King Madhu was at Madhupur no Maholi. The Aryan city after the defeat of Madhu, was built on the site of present KATRA, with the Bhuteshwar temple of its centre.
The first temple was constructed on this spot by Bajranabha, great grand son of Lord Krishna in memory of his family deity. A stone it scription of first century B.C. discovered in this area relates to the times great Kashtrapa Shodasa (B.C. 80-57). The next big temple that was col structed in this place was during the regin of Gupata emperor Chandr Gupta Vikramaditya in about 400 A.D.
In 1017 A.D. this artistic temple constructed during the time ( Chandra Gupta Vikramaditya was destroyed by Mahmud of Ghazni.
A sanskrit inscription in cised on a stone stab was found in Katn Keshavadeva. It mentions that in Vikrama Samvat, 1207 (1150 A.D) whe Maharaja Vijayapala - Deva was the ruler of Mathura an individual by nam Jajja of it a new temple constructed on the site of Shri Krishna's birth place.
This grand temple too war destroyed early in the sixteenth centui during the reign of Sikandar Lodi.
About 125 years later in the reign of emperor Jshangir, Raja Veer Singh deva Bundela of or caused construction of another magnificent temp! (about 250 feet high, on the sacred spot at a cost of thirty three lakhs of rt pees).
Emperor Aurangazab could not tolerate this last memorial at the birt place of Lord Shri Krishna. In 1669 A.D. he got the Keshavadeva temple d€ stroyed. Over a part of the Raised plinth of the temple an IDGAH wa erected. Materials of the temple were utilised in the construction of the Mud lim structure. The ldgah is still in existence.
In 1803 A.D the Mathura Region came under the British dominatio in 1815, the East India Company auctioned the area of Katra Keshavadev, which was purchased by tie then Raja Pathni Mal of Banaras. It was th, earnest desire of Raja Patni Mal that the LordKeshavadeva temple should b, reconstructed on the site of his birth.
Presented day Mathura abounds in place, of Religious and historicE
interest, all the year round, a number of fairs and festivals provide an opportunity to enjoy the folk music and dances of Brij. The Raslila is performances In India.