Govind Devji Temple

Govind Dev Ji Temple is situated in the City Palace complex of Jaipur in Rajasthan, India. The temple is a famous tourist spot in Rajasthan along with the high religious value.

The Hindu temple Govind Dev Ji is considered to be one of the famous temples in Rajasthan, India. The temple is devoted to Govind Dev Ji or Lord Krishna and is one of the 7 temples of Thakur of Vrindavan that includes temples of Shri Bankey Bihari Ji, Shri Govind Dev Ji, Shri Radhavallabh Ji, and four others.

The murti or the idol of the deity was brought to Jaipur from Vrindavan by Raja Sawai Jai Singh II who was the founder of Jaipur. But the temple was constructed by Akbar, the Mughal Emperor. It is also believed that the idol of Lord Krishna in the temple looks exactly like the form Krishna took during his incarnation on Earth.

Originally the idol belonged to one of the disciples of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Srila Rupa Goswami. Also, the legend says that the idol is called Bajrakrit because it was created by the great-grandson of Lord Krishna Bajranabh. The temple is one of the important temples for Vaishnavites or followers of Krishna outside Vrindavan.

Here in the temple, the deity is offered aarti and bhog seven times a day when unveiled for Darshan. Daily, a thousand numbers of devotees visit this temple, and on the occasion of Janmashtami, an even larger number of people visit the temple. During aarti, the devotees can have a darshan of the lord.

History of Govind Devji Temple

As per legends, some 5,000 years ago, Lord Bajranabh who was only 13 years old asked his grandmother about Lord Krishna’s look. He was given a detailed description of the Lord and as per the description, he started making an idol. After the completion of the idol, his grandmother told him that only the feet resembled that of Lord Krishna.

Then he made another idol whose chest resembled that of the god. Then he made the third idol whose face resembled that of Lord Krishna., The first one was named Govind Dev Ji, the second one Lord Gopinath Ji, and the third one Lord Madan Mohanji. With time everything was lost but around 500 years ago the idol of Govinda was excavated by one of the disciples of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu which was buried underneath to be protected from Mughal marauders.

Architecture of Govind Devji Temple

The Govind Ji Temple is built in sandstone and marble with ceilings covered with gold. The architecture of the temple building has a mix of Rajasthani, Muslim as well and Classical Indian elements to it.

Since it was built beside a royal residence, the walls are adorned with chandeliers as well as paintings. The temple is also surrounded by a lush green garden and the garden is known by the name, ‘Talkatora’, and is best suited for children.