God has been conceived as either personal or impersonal. In theism, God is the creator and sustainer of the universe, while in deism, God is the creator, but not the sustainer, of the universe. In pantheism, God is the universe itself.

Brahma is the first god in the Hindu triumvirate, or trimurti. The triumvirate consists of three gods who are responsible for the creation, upkeep and destruction of the world.

“God made you a masterpiece – be blessed, secure, disciplined and equipped.” – Joel Osteen

Hinduism dies if untouchability lives, and untouchability has to die if Hinduism is to live.     - Mahatma Gandhi

“When the solution is simple, God is answering.” – Albert Einstein

The greatest contentment comes from devotion alone and not from it's rewards, therefore one who has this devotion seeks nothing else.      - Lord Krishna

“Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you.” – Saint Augustine

“We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito.” – C.S. Lewis

“God has given us two hands, one to receive with and the other to give with.” – Billy Graham

The three essentials of Hinduism are belief in God, in the Vedas as revelation, in the doctrine of Karma and transmigration.      - Swami Vivekananda

The awakened sages call a person wise when all his undertakings are free from anxiety about results.  - Lord Krishna

You are what you believe in. You become that which you believe you can become. - Bhagavad Gita

 “God will never give you anything you can’t handle, so don’t stress.” – Kelly Clarkson

 “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is God’s gift, that’s why we call it the present.” – Joan Rivers

The essence of Hinduism is the same essence of all true religions: Bhakti or pure love for God and genuine compassion for all beings.  - Radhanath Swami

“God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say ‘thank you?” – William Arthur Ward

Affirm divine calmness and peace, and send out only thoughts of love and goodwill if you want to live in peace and harmony. Never get angry, for anger poisons your system. -  Paramahansa Yogananda

The ultimate goal of human life is to transcend culture and personality to the unconditioned pure being. But the means to do this is through our culture and way of life.  - David Frawley

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” – Reinhold Niebuhr

“Every man’s life is a fairy tale written by God’s fingers.” – Hans Christian Andersen

“Being human means you will make mistakes. And you will make mistakes, because failure is God’s way of moving you in another direction.” – Oprah Winfrey

 “Krishna taught in the Bhadavad Gita: ‘karmanyeva-adhikaraste ma phalesu kadachana’, which means, ‘Be active, never be inactive, and don’t react to the outcome of the work.”  ― Anonymous, Buddhist Scriptures

“Every day is a gift from God. There’s no guarantee of tomorrow, so that tells me to see the good in this day to make the most of it.” – Joel Osteen

India is the meeting place of the religions and among these Hinduism alone is by itself a vast and complex thing, not so much a religion as a great diversified and yet subtly unified mass of spiritual thought, realization and aspiration.   - Sri Aurobindo

Hinduism at its best has spoken the only relevant truth about the way to self-realization in the full sense of the word.      - Count Hermann Keyserling

“Faith is about trusting God when you have unanswered questions.” – Joel Osteen

 “You are a spiritual being with a human experience.”   ― His Divine Holiness Sri Nithyananda Paramashivam

“I believe that whatever comes at a particular time is a blessing from God.” – A. R. Rahman

“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” – Corrie Ten Boom

“Whatever your heart clings to and confides in, that is really your God.” – Martin Luther

Hinduism the perennial philosophy that is at the core of all religions.      - Aldous Huxley

Here an attempt is made to explain suffering: the outcaste of traditional Hinduism is held to deserve his fetched fate; it is a punishment for the wrongs he did in a previous life.      - Walter Kaufmann

He alone sees truly who sees the Lord the same in every creature seeing the same Lord everywhere, he does not harm himself or others.      - Lord Krishna

“The function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays.” – Soren Kierkegaard

“Our prayers should be for blessings in general, for God knows best what is good for us.” – Socrates

 “Anyone who is steady in his determination for the advanced stage of spiritual realization and can equally tolerate the onslaughts of distress and happiness is certainly a person eligible for liberation.”   ― A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, The Bhagavad-gita

“Through hard work, perseverance and a faith in God, you can live your dreams.” – Ben Carson

“I will thank God for the day and the moment I have.” – Jim Valvano

“Look for God, suggests my Guru. Look for God like a man with his head on fire looks for water.” – Elizabeth Gilbert

“Let us never forget to pray. God lives. He is near. He is real. He is not only aware of us but cares for us. He is our Father. He is accessible to all who will seek Him.” – Gordon B. Hinckley

“God sleeps in the minerals, awakens in plants, walks in animals, and thinks in man.” – Arthur Young

“God gives us relatives; thank God, we can choose our friends.” – Addison Mizner

Vishnu is a Hindu god, the Supreme God of Vaishnavism (one of the three principal denominations of Hinduism) and one of the three supreme deities (Trimurti) of Hinduism. He is also known as Narayana and Hari. As one of the five primary forms of God in the Smarta tradition, he is conceived as “the Preserver or the Protector” within the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the divinity.

Vishnu is one of the most important gods in the Hindu pantheon and, along with Brahma and Shiva, is considered a member of the holy trinity (trimurti) of Hinduism. He is the most important god of Vaishnavism, the largest Hindu sect. Indeed, to illustrate Vishnu’s superior status, Brahma is, in some accounts, considered to have been born from a lotus flower which grew from Vishnu’s naval. A complex character, Vishnu is the Preserver and guardian of men (Narayana), he protects the order of things (dharma) and, when necessary, he appears on earth in various incarnations or avatars to fight demons and fierce creatures and so maintain cosmic harmony.

Vishnu represents Sattvaguna and is the centripetal force as it were, responsible for sustenance, protection and maintenance of the created universe.

Etymologically speaking, the word ‘Vishnu’ means ‘one who pervades, one who has entered into everything.’ So he is the transcendent as well the immanent reality of the universe. He is the inner cause and power by which things exist.

Matsya is said to be the avatar that rescued the first man, as well as other creatures of the earth, from a great flood. Matsya is sometimes depicted as a great fish or as a human torso connected to the tail of a fish. 

Matsya is said to have forewarned man about the coming flood and ordered him to preserve all the grains and living creatures in a boat. This story is similar to many deluge myths found in other cultures.

Kurma (or Koorma) is the tortoise incarnation that relates to the myth of churning the ocean to obtain treasures dissolved in the ocean of milk. In this myth, Vishnu took the form of a tortoise upon which to support the churning stick on his back.

 The Kurma avatar of Vishnu is usually seen in a mixed human-animal form.

Varaha is the boar that raised the earth from the bottom of the sea after the demon Hiranyaksha dragged it to the bottom of the sea. After a battle of 1,000 years, Varaha raised the earth out of the water with his tusks. 

Varaha is depicted as either a full boar form or as a boar head on a human body.

As the legend goes, the demon Hiranyakashipiu obtained a boon from Brahma that he could not be killed or harmed by any means. Now arrogant in his security, Hiranyakshipiu began to cause trouble both in heaven and on earth. 

However, his son Prahlada was devoted to Vishnu. One day, when the demon challenged Prahlada, Vishnu emerged in the form of a man-lion known as Narasimha to slay the demon.

In the Rig Veda, Vamana (the dwarf) appears when the demon king Bali ruled the universe and the gods lost their power. One day, Vamana visited the court of Bali and begged for as much land as he could cover in three steps. Laughing at the dwarf, Bali granted the wish. 

The dwarf then assumed the form of a giant. He took the whole earth with the first step and the entire middle world with the second step. With the third step, Vamana sent Bali down to rule the underworld.

In his form as Parasurama, Vishnu appears as a priest (Brahman) who comes to the world to kill bad kings and protect humanity from danger. He appears in the form of a man carrying an ax, sometimes referred to as Rama with an ax. 

In the original story, Parasurama appeared to restore Hindu social order which had become corrupted by the arrogant Kshatriya caste.

Lord Rama is the seventh avatar of Vishnu and a major deity of Hinduism. He is considered supreme in some traditions. He is the central figure of the ancient Hindu epic "Ramayana" and is known as King of Ayodhya, the city believed to be Rama's birthplace.

According to the Ramayana, Rama’s father was King Dasaratha and his mother was Queen Kausalya. Rama was born at the end of the Second Age, sent by the gods to do battle with the multi-headed demon Ravana.

Rama is often depicted with blue skin, standing with a bow and arrow.

Lord Krishna (the divine statesman) is the eighth avatar of Vishnu and is one of the most widely revered deities in Hinduism. He was a cowherd (sometimes depicted as a charioteer or statesman) who shrewdly changed rules.

According to legend, the famous poem, the Bhagavad Gita, is spoken by Krishna to Arjuna on the battlefield. 

Krishna is depicted in a variety of forms because there are so many stories surrounding him. The most common story describes Krishna as a divine lover who plays the flute; he is also described in his child form. In paintings, Krishna often has blue skin and wears a crown of peacock feathers with a yellow loincloth.

Balarama is said to be the elder brother of Krishna. It is believed that he engaged in many adventures alongside his brother. Balarama is rarely worshiped independently, but stories always focus on his prodigious strength.

In visual representations, he is usually shown with pale skin in contrast to Krishna's blue skin.

In a number of versions of the mythology, Lord Buddha is thought to be the ninth incarnation. However, this was an addition that came after the dasavatara was already established.

Kalki (meaning “eternity” or "mighty warrior") is the last incarnation of Vishnu. He is not expected to appear until the end of Kali Yuga, the current time period. Kalki will come, it is believed, to rid the world of oppression by unrighteous rulers. It is said that he will appear riding a white horse and carrying a fiery sword.

"I repeatedly offer my obeisances unto you, the controller of the thirty primal demigods; unto you, the original father of all created beings; unto you, whose character is gracious; unto you, whose head is crested by the sickle moon arisen from the waves of the Ganga and unto you, who are a festival for the eyes of the fair goddess Gauri."

sutapta chamikara-chandra-nila-

padma-pravalambuda-kanti-vastraih

sa nritya-raggesta-vara-pradaya

kaivalya-nathaya vrisa-dhvajaya

"I offer my obeisances unto you, who are dressed in garments resembling molten gold, the moon, blue lotuses, coral, and dark rain clouds; unto you, who bestow the most desirable boons on your devotees by means of your delightful dancing; unto you, who are the master of the impersonalists and unto you, whose flag bears the image of the bull."

sudhamzu-suryagni-vilochanena

tamo-bhide te jagatah shivaya

sahasra-shubhramshu-sahasra-rashmi-

sahasra-sajjit-tvara-tejase'stu

"I offer my obeisances unto you, who dispells darkness with your three eyes - the moon, the sun and fire; unto you, who causes auspiciousness for all the living entities of the universe and unto you, whose potency easily defeats that of thousands of moons and suns."

nageza-ratnojjvala-vigrahaya

shardula-charmamzuka-divya-tejase

sahasra-patropari samsthitaya

varaggada-mukta-bhuja-dvayaya

"I offer my obeisances unto you, whose form is brilliantly illuminated by the jewels of Ananta, the king of snakes; unto you, who are clothed by a tiger-skin and thus radiate divine effulgence; unto you, who sits upon a thousand-petalled lotus and unto you, whose two arms are adorned by lusterous bangles."

su-nupura-ragjita-pada-padma

ksarat-sudha-bhritya-sukha-pradaya

vichitra-ratnaugha-vibhusitaya

premanam evadya harau videhi

"I offer my obeisances unto you, who brings happiness to your servitors, as you pour on them the liquid nectar from your two reddish lotus feet, which ring with charming anklebells. Obeisances unto you, who is adorned with an abundance of gems - please endow me with pure love for Lord Hari."

sri rama govinda mukunda shaure

sri krishna narayana vasudeva

ity-adi namamririta-pana-matta-

bhriggadhi-payakhila-dukha-hantre

"O Shri Rama, O Govinda, O Mukunda, O Shauri, O Shri krishna, O Narayana, O Vaasudeva!' I offer my obeisances unto you, Lord Shiva, the monarch of intoxicated bee-like devotees, maddened by drinking the nectar of these and other holy names of the Lord. Obeisances unto you, the destroyer of all grief."

sri naradadyaih satatam sugopya-

jijjasita-yashu vara-pradaya

tebhyo harer bhakti-sukha-pradaya

shivaya sarva-gurave namo namaha

"I offer my respectful obeisances again and again unto you, who is forever enquired of confidentially by Shri Narada and other sages; unto you, who also grants favors to them very quickly; unto you, who bestows the happiness of Hari-bhakti; unto you, who creates auspiciousness and unto you, who is the guru of everyone."

sri gaura-netrosava-maggalaya

tat-prana-nathaya rasa-pradaya

sada samutkantha-govinda-lila-

gana-pravinaya namo'stu tubhyam

"I offer my obeisances unto you, who are a festival of auspiciousness for the eyes of Goddess Gauri; unto you, who is the monarch of her life-breath; unto you, who is capable of bestowing transcendental rasa and unto you, who is expert in forever singing songs of the pastimes of Lord Govinda with great longing."

etat shivasyastakam adbhutam mahat

shrinvan hari-prema labheta shighram

jjanam ca vijjanam apurva-vaibhavam

yo bhava-purnah paramam samadaram

"A person, filled with loving feelings, who hears with rapt attention this wonderful eight-fold prayer to Lord Shiva, can quickly gain Sri Hari-prema as well as transcendental knowledge, the realization of that knowledge, and unprecedented powers."

OM in Taittirīya

OM is the Eternal, Om is all this universe. Om is the syllable of assent: saying OM! let us hear then begin the recitation with Om. With OM they sing the hymns of the Sama; with OM SHOM they pronounce the Shāstra. With OM the priest officiating at the sacrifice says the response. With OM Brahma begins creation (or, With OM the chief priest gives sanction). With OM one sanctions the burnt offering. With OM the Brahmin ere he expound the knowledge, cries "May I attain the Eternal." The Eternal verily he attains.

OM in Chhāndogya

om iti etad akşharam udgītam upāsītā;

om iti hy udgāyati tasyopa vyākhyānam. (1.1.1)

OM is the syllable (the Imperishable One); one should follow after it as the upward Song (movement) for with OM one sings (goes) upwards; of which this is the analytical explanation.

So, literally translated in its double meaning, both its exoteric, physical and symbolic sense and its esoteric symbolized reality, runs the initial sentence of the Upanishad. These opening lines or passages of the Vedanta are always of great importance; they are always so designed as to suggest or even sum up, if not all that comes afterwards, yet the central and pervading idea of the Upanishad. The īshā vāsyam of the Vājasaneyi, the keneşhitam ... manas of the Talavakāra, the Sacrificial Horse of the Bŗhadāraņyaka, the solitary ātman with its hint of the future world vibrations in the Aitareya are of this type. The Chhāndogya, we see from its first and introductory sentence, is to be a work on the right and perfect way of devoting oneself to the Brahman; the spirit, the methods, the formulae are to be given to us. Its subject is the Brahman, but the Brahman as symbolized in the OM, the sacred syllable of the Veda; not, therefore, the pure state of the Universal Existence only, but that Existence in all its parts, the waking world and the dream self and the sleeping, the manifest, half-manifest and hidden, Bhūloka, Bhuvar and Swar,—the right means to win all of them, enjoy all of them, transcend all of them, is the subject of the Chhāndogya. OM is the symbol and the thing symbolized. It is the symbol, akşharam; the syllable in which all sound of speech is brought back to its wide, pure indeterminate state; it is the symbolised, akşharam, the changeless, undiminishing, unincreasing, unappearing, undying Reality which shows itself to experience in all this change, increase, diminution, appearance, departure which in a particular sum and harmony of them we call the world, just as OM, the pure eternal sound-basis of speech shows itself to the ear in the variations and combinations of impure sound which in a particular sum and harmony of them we call the Veda. We are to follow after this OM with all our souls, upāsita,—to apply ourselves to it and devote ourselves to its knowledge and possession, but always to OM as the Udgītha. Again in this word we have the symbolic sense and the truth symbolized expressed, as in akşharam and OM, in a single vocable with a double function and significance.

The Sanskrit has always been a language in which one word is naturally capable of several meanings and therefore carries with it a number of varied associations. It lends itself, therefore, with peculiar ease and naturalness to the figure called shleşha or embrace, the marriage of different meanings in a single form of words. Paronomasia in English is mere punning, a tour de force, an incongruity, a grotesque and artificial play of humour. Paronomasia, shleşha in Sanskrit, though in form precisely the same thing, is not punning, not incongruous but easily appropriate, not incongruous or artificial, but natural and often inevitable, not used for intellectual horseplay, but with a serious, often a high and worthy purpose. It has been abused by rhetorical writers; yet great and noble poetical effects have been obtained by its aid, as, for instance, when the same form of words has been used to convey open blame and cover secret praise. Nevertheless in classical Sanskrit, the language has become a little too rigid for the perfect use of the figure; it is too literary, too minutely grammatised; it has lost the memory of its origins. A sense of cleverness and artifice suggests itself to us because meanings known to be distinct and widely separate are brought together in a single activity of the word which usually suggests them only in different contexts. But in the Vedic shleşha we have no sense of cleverness or artifice, because the writers themselves had none. The language was still near to its origins and had, not perhaps an intellectual, but still an instinctive memory of them. With less grammatical and as little etymological knowledge as Panini and the other classical grammarians, the rishis had better possession of the soul of Sanskrit speech. The different meanings of a word, though distinct, were not yet entirely separate; many links yet survived between them which were afterwards lost; the gradations of sense remained, the hint of the word's history, the shading off from one sense to another. Ardha now means half and it means nothing else. To the Vedic man it carried other associations. Derived from the root ŗdh which meant originally to go and join, then to add to increase, to prosper, it bore the sense of place of destination, the person to whom I direct myself, or simply place; also increase, addition, a part added and so simply a part or half. To have used it in any other sense than "place of destination" or as at once "half, part" and "a place of destination" would not be a violence to the Vedic mind, but a natural association of ideas. So when they spoke of the higher worlds of Sachchidananda as Parārdha, they meant at once the higher half of man's inner existence and the param dhāma or high seat of Vişhņu in other worlds and, in addition, thought of that high seat as the destination of our upward movement. All this rose at once to their mind when the word was uttered, naturally, easily and, by long association, inevitably.

OM is a word in instance. When the word was spoken as a solemn affirmation, everyone thought of the Praņava in the Veda, but no one could listen to the word OM without thinking also of the Brahman in Its triple manifestation and in Its transcendent being. The word, akşharam, meaning both syllable and unshifting, when coupled with OM, is a word in instance; "OM the syllable" meant also, inevitably, to the Vedic mind "Brahman, who changes not nor perishes". The words udgītha and udgāyati are words in instance. In classical Sanskrit the prepositional prefix to the verb was dead and bore only a conventional significance or had no force at all; udgāyati or pragāyati is not very different from the simple gāyati; all mean merely sing or chant. But in Veda the preposition is still living and join its verb or separates itself as it pleases; therefore it keeps its full meaning always. In Vedanta the power of separation is lost, but the separate force remains. Again the roots gi and gā in classical Sanskrit mean to sing and have resigned the sense of going to their kinsman gam; but in Vedic times, the sense of going was still active and common. They meant also to express, to possess to hold; but these meanings once common to the family are now entrusted to particular members of it, gir, for expression, gŗh for holding. Gāthā, gīthā, gāna, gāyati, gātā, gātu, meant to the vedic mind both going and singing, meant ascending as well as upward the voice or the soul in song. When the Vedic singer said ud gāyāmi, the physical idea was that perhaps, of the song rising upward, but he had also the psychical idea of the soul rising up in song to the gods and fulfill idea of the soul rising upward, but he had also the psychical idea of the soul rising up in song to the gods and fulfilling in its meeting with them and entering into them its expressed aspiration. To show that this idea is not a modern etymological fancy of my own, it is sufficient to cite the evidence of the Chhāndogya Upanishad itself in this very chapter where Baka Dalbhya is spoken of as the Udgata of the Naimishiyas who obtained their desires for them by the Vedic chant, ebhyah āgāyati kāmān; so, adds the Upanishad, shall everyone be a "singer to" and a "bringrer to" of desires, āgātā kāmānām, who with this knowledge follows after OM, the Brahman, as the Udgitha.

This then is the meaning of the Upanishad that OM, the syllable, technically called the Udgītha, is to be meditated on as a symbol of the fourfold Brahman with two objects, the "singing to" of one's desires and aspirations in the triple manifestation and the spiritual ascension into the Brahman Itself so as to meet and enter into heaven after heaven and even into Its transcendent felicity. For, it says with the syllable OM one begins the chant of the Sāmaveda, or in the esoteric sense, by means of the meditation on OM one makes this soul- ascension and becomes master of all the soul desires. It is in this aspect and to this end that the Upanishad will expound OM. To explain Brahman in Its nature and workings, to teach the right worship and meditation on Brahman, to establish what are the different means of attainment of results and the formulae of the mediation and worship, is its purpose. All this work of explanation has to be done in reference to Veda and Vedic sacrifice and ritual of which OM is the substance. In a certain sense, therefore, the Upanishad in an explanation of the purpose and symbology of Vedic formulate and ritual; it sums up the results of the long travail of seeking by which the first founders and pioneers of Vedantism in an age when the secret and true senses of Veda had been largely submerged in the ceremonialism and formalism of the close of the Dwapara Yuga, attempted to recover their lost heritage partly by reference to the adepts who still remained in possession of it, partly by the traditions of the great seekers of the past Yuga, Janaka, Yājňavalkya, Kŗşhņa and others, partly by their own illuminations and spiritual experience. The Chhāndogya Upanishad is thus the summary history of one of the greatest and most interesting ages of human thought. (SA)

OM in Māndūkya

OM is this imperishable word, OM is the Universe, and this is the exposition of OM. The past, the present and the future, all that was, all that is, all that will be, is OM. Likewise all else that may exist beyond the bounds of Time, that too is OM.

All this Universe is the Eternal Brahman, this Self is the Eternal, and the Self is fourfold.

Now this the Self, as to the imperishable Word, is OM: and as to the letters, His parts are the letters and the letters are His parts, namely, AUM.

The Waker, Vaishvānara, the Universal Male, he is A, the first letter, because of Initiality and Pervasiveness: he that knows Him for such pervades and attains all his desires: he becomes the source and first.

The Dreamer, Taijasa, the Inhabitant in Luminous Mind, He is U, the second letter, because of Advance and Centrality: he that knows Him for such, advances the bounds of his knowledge and rises above difference: nor of his seed is any born that knows not the eternal.

The Sleeper, Prajna, the Lord of Wisdom, He is M, the third letter, because of Measure and Finality: he that knows Him for such measures with himself the Universe and becomes the departure into the Eternal.

Letterless is the fourth, the Incommunicable, the end of phenomena, the good, the One than whom there is no other: thus is OM. He that knows is the self and enters by hi self into the Self, he that knows, he that knows.

Six Holy Places in India

1. Puri (East)

2. Tirupati (South)

3. Dvaraka (West)

4. Badrinatha (North)

5. Vrindavana

6. Mayapur

Puri (East- India)

Puri is considered one of the holiest places in India by many Hindus. But it is particularly revered by Vaishnavas as the home of Krishna in His form of Jagannatha, Lord of the Universe. The Jagannatha temple itself is nine hundred years old, and the deities are served by six thousand priests. It is strictly forbidden for non-Hindus to enter.

Puri may be most famous for its annual Ratha-yatra (chariot festival), in which the deities of Jagannath, his brother Baladeva and sister Subhadra are paraded through the city by thousands of pilgrims. Replica Ratha-yatras are celebrated throughout the world.

Tirupati (South- India)

Tirupati is the home of Lord Venkateshwara, otherwise known as Balaji. The main temple lies in the seven hills of Tirumala and attracts twenty-five thousand pilgrims daily. Inside resides the majestic “Swayambhu,” or naturally formed image of Lord Venkateswara. He is seen standing on a lotus with his conch and discus in his hands, and images of the goddesses Lakshmi & Padmavati upon his chest.

Dvaraka (West - India)

When Lord Krishna killed the evil king Kamsa and reinstated his grandfather Ugrasena as the king of Mathura, Kamsa’s father-in-law Jarasandha was enraged and attacked Mathura seventeen times. To protect his people, Krishna decided to move the capital from Mathura to Dvaraka, then an island in the sea.

Now a coastal town of thirty-thousand inhabitants named after the original city, Dvaraka is considered one of the holiest places in India. Its major attraction is the Dvarakadish temple, built in the sixteenth century, although the original temple is said to have been built by Krishna’s own grandson Vajranabha.

Bet Dvaraka, an island in the Arabic sea 30 km north of the current town, is said to be the last remaining piece of land from the original city, which sank into the sea after Krishna’s departure. And recent underwater studies conducted off the coast of Dvaraka by the ASI (Archeological Survey of India), revealed evidence of an ancient city dated at 2 million B.C.

Badrinatha (North - India)

Badarinatha, or Badarikasrama, is situated in the Himalayas, 10,248 feet above sea level. According to the Srimad Bhagavatam, it is the abode of the great rishis Nara-Narayana, and the place where Narada Muni attained liberation.

The present temple is about four hundred years old and houses the Deity of Lord Badarinatha. This Deity was installed by Sankaracarya, who recovered Him from the nearby Narada-kunda.

The temple is open six months of the year, from May to October. It is closed during the winter months due to harsh weather.

Vrindavana/Mathura

Mathura lies ninety-five miles south of Delhi. It is most famous as the place of Krishna’s birth, which tradition dates to some five thousand years ago. Its main temple is the Keshava Deo Mandir, where Radha and Krishna are worshiped. The entire area, encompassing many holy sites and twelve sacred forests, is called Vraj. Most important is Vrindavan, the village where Krishna lived. It is now a bustling town with some five thousand temples, mostly dedicated to Krishna. Many elderly Vaishnavas retire to this sacred town in the hope of returning at death to the spiritual Vrindavan, where they can engage in eternal lila (pastimes) with their Lord.

Mayapur

Mayapur is located on the banks of the Ganges River near Navadvip, West Bengal, 130 km north of Kolkata (Calcutta). It is considered a holy place by a number of other traditions within Hinduism, but is of special significance to followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism as the place where Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, regarded as a special incarnation of Krishna and Radha, was born in 1486. It is visited by over a million pilgrims annually.

Since the 1970s, Mayapur has also been the site of the world headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) as well as a number of other Vaishnava organizations, such as the Gaudiya Math.