Krsna Balarama mandir

 Krishna Balarama Mandir (ISKCON) Vrndavan, Braj Mandal, Uttar Pradesh (UP) India

 His Divine Grace A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada established this temple in 1976. This beautiful temple has Deities of Gaura Nitai (left altar), Krishna Balarama (middle altar), and Radha Syamasundara (Radha Krishna on the right altar). On the left altar, below Gaura Nitai, there are murtis of Sri Prabhupada on the left and Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Gosvami on the right.

There is also a murti (deity) of Srila Prabhupada in the temple room. On the altar with Radha Syamasundara there are Lalita and Vishakha, the sakhis or girlfriends of Radharani. This temple was built with money donated from devotees from all over the world. The guesthouse and restaurant are some of the better facilities in Vrindavana. Regrettably the guesthouse is usually full, so it is usually a good idea to book it in advance, especially during the festival seasons.

There is also a traditional gurukula, or school of the guru, which can sometimes be visited with prior permission. Students here are trained in an ashram situation. They get both a spiritual and material education.

Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi In front of the temple is the beautiful white marble Samadhi Mandir of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). This is where his body was laid to rest after he left this world and returned to the spiritual world. His body was placed directly under where the large murti of Srila Prabhupada is located.

Normally the bodies of dead people are burned and the ashes are put in a holy river. But in the case of a paramahamsa, a highly elevated devotee of Lord Krishna, the body is not burned, but buried in samadhi. This is because the body of a pure devotee is spiritual.