Popular Temple
Shri Banke Bihari Temple
Vrindavan, Mathura district, Uttar Pradesh
Vrindavan's most-visited temple — famous for a curtain that opens and closes every few seconds
At a glance
- Location
- Vrindavan, Mathura district, Uttar Pradesh
- Presiding deity
- Shri Banke Bihari Ji (Lord Krishna)
- Temple type
- Popular Temple
- Tradition
- Vaishnava
- Nearest railway station
- Mathura Junction (~13 km)
- Nearest airport
- Agra Airport (~74 km); Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi (~160 km)
- Best time to visit
- October to March; Janmashtami, Holi, and the Phool Bangla festival bring special grandeur but also very large crowds.
History
According to tradition, the deity of Banke Bihari was revealed at Nidhivan through the devotion of Swami Haridas, revered as the guru of the legendary musician Tansen. The present temple structure was built in the 19th century, and it has since become one of Vrindavan's most-visited shrines. Unlike most temples, no conch or bell is sounded here — tradition holds that the deity's gaze is so powerful that priests draw a curtain across the deity every few seconds rather than leave it open continuously.
Spiritual significance
The temple features on almost every pilgrim's Vrindavan itinerary, and draws enormous crowds during Holi, Janmashtami, and the Phool Bangla (flower bower) festival.
Plan your visit
Darshan timings
7:45 AM to 12:00 PM and 4:30 PM to 9:30 PM (timings shift seasonally; the temple closes between these two darshan windows).
Timings change on festivals and special occasions. Confirm with the temple's official source before you travel.
Mathura Junction is roughly a 30-minute auto or taxi ride from Vrindavan; the final stretch to the temple is on foot or by cycle-rickshaw, as the surrounding lanes are narrow.
Continue your Krishna bhakti
Devotional texts for this deity, already on the site.