Shrinathji

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The deity form of Sri Nathji, with arm upraised to lift Govardhan hill

Shrinathji is a deity form of Krishna situated in the temple town of Nathdwara near Udaipur in Rajasthan. Shrinathji specifically refers to the story in the Bhagavata Purana wherein Krishna lifts Govardhan hill to protect the inhabitants of Vrindavan from a downpour of rain sent by Indra, king of the devas. Krishna in his form of Sri Nathji is also worshipped throughout India by followers of Bhakti Yoga and the Vaishnava traditions, especially within Gujarat. The town of Nathdwara itself is often referred to as 'Shrinathji', after the famous deity.

[edit] The temple

The priests and servants within the temple are not paid any cash salaries, receiving simply prasad as a reward for their duties. Often this prasad is given or sold to guests who visit the temple for darshan.

Nathdwara enshrines Shrinathji - a deity of Krishna which was originally enshrined at Govardhana in Vrindavan. The deity was brought to Mewar, for the sake of protection during the period of Aurangazeb the Moghul monarch. The chariot carrying the image is said to have become stuck here whilst travelling and hence a temple was established with the permission of the then Rana of Mewar at Nathdwara. According to local worshippers the Srinathji deity is believed to have originally self manifested from stone. It was originally worshipped in a humble shrine and then moved to a larger temple in its vicinity. Vallabhacharya made arrangements for the worship of this deity and this tradition was continued by his son Vittalesh Goswami. It is believed that Taj Bibi, a wife of Akbar had visited this temple. It was during the 17th century that this image was shifted to Rajasthan.