Vrindavan, 2015.09.20 (Paramvir Singh, University of Punjab, Patiala): Vrindavan is a historic town of Hindu Vaishnava tradition having a spiritual touch of Lord Krishna and his devotees of all the ages including Chaitanya and Mira Bai. Many religious personalities, scholars, researchers, students, and tourists visited the town because of its sacred character and historic importance.
In the beginning of the 16th century Guru Nanak started his Udasis (religious tours) to spread the message of God to mankind. His long travels are grouped four in number. He traveled to almost every corner of the known world of that time. After each journey he came back to Punjab, settling at Kartarpur, now in Pakistan, a town he himself established after his first itinerary. On every one of these trips, he met with pandits, sadhus, yogis, mullahs, pirs, and qadis, engaging them all in dialogue. It was after his first Udasi to the East that he came to Vrindavan while on his way back to Punjab.
Guru Nanak came to Vrindavan from Mathura, another well-known Hindu sacred city, where there is a Gurdwara, Guru Nanak Bagichi, that is dedicated to him. He came to Mathura on the bank of Yamuna near Masani in the month of Sawan (July-August) and saw that the Yamuna river water was muddy. He arranged for a well to be dug to serve clean water to the local people. From Masani, Guru Nanak came to Vrindavan and sat on a tila, or high mound. He recorded whatever he saw and heard there in a pothi, which later became a part of the holy book known as Guru Granth Sahib.
The portion of the GGS that was written in Vrindavan is as follows:
In the Yajur Veda is mentioned the forcible seduction of Chandraval,
And the appearance of Krishna of the Yadav race.
For the milkmaid Satyabhama he brought down the with-fulfilling tree
And in Vrindavan in dalliance engaged. Guru Granth Sahib, p. 470
In another verse, it is believed, Guru Nanak Dev Ji defined the word Kali-Yuga at this place. He said:
The same moon rises, the same stars appear, the same Sun blazes.
The self-same earth is now, the same breeze blowing:
The effect of Kali-Yuga must be on minds, not on places.
Eliminate desire in life.
Know this to be the sign of Kali-Yuga,
That the aggressor therein finds approval.
Many Holy Names for God, from many different traditions, are used in Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Many of the names of Vishnu appear there: Hari appears 8344 times, Ram 2533 times, Gopal (Sustainer of the Earth = Krishna) 491 times, Gobind (The One Who takes care of the Earth = Krishna) 475 times, Prabhu 1371 times, Murari (Enemy of Mur Raksh = Vishnu, Krishna) 97 times, Narayan (The One who prevails in water) 85 times, Allah 46 times, Bhagwan 30 times, Madhav 27 times, Krishna 22 times, Rab 17 times, Narsingh (Incarnation of Vishnu with the head of a lion and the body of a man) 16 times, Damodar (Krishna) 15 times, Banwari (Forest One = Krishna) 15 times, Wahi Guru 13 times, and Madhusudan (Krishna) 9 times.
The GGS further contains the following references to Vrindavan,
10. “O, blessed are the forests of Vrindavan
where played my Lord, Narayan.” [Namdev, GGS 988]“O Devaki, mother of Krishna, blessed art thou
in whose home came the All-Pervading Lord,
Vishnu, the husband of Laxmi.” [Namdev, GGS 988]“He Himself is the gopi, Himself Krishna,
He Himself grazes the cows in the woods.”
[Guru Arjun Dev, GGS 1083]“He Himself is gopi, He Himself is beloved Krishna,
He Himself grazes the cows in the woods.”
[Guru Ram Das, GGS 606]“Lotus-eyed, sweet-tongued, embellished with a myriad friendly hosts,
Yea, Thou indeed art Krishna,
The One whom Mother Yashoda fed with rice and curds,
And when Thou were at play and the silver bells on Thy belt tinkled,
Thy mother was intoxicated with joy, so superb was Thy beauty.”
[Bhatt, GGS 1402]“Beauteous are Thine eyes, sparkling Thy teeth,
Sharp Thy nose, long Thy hair.
Lustrous Thy body, cast in gold.
Cast in gold is His body, with a Krishna mala.
Chant His Name, O my friends,
That ye stand not at Yama’s door, be ye instructed thus,
O Lord’s brides,
The scum of your minds will be cleaned,
And ye will then discriminate between a swan and a crane.
Beauteous are the Lord’s eyes, sparking His teeth.
Graceful is Thy gait, O Lord, sweet Thy speech,
Like a koil (bird)’s alluring is Thy youth.
Yea, alluring is Thy youth, absorbed in its own Self
Whose sight fulfills all.
With measured steps, like an elephant’s
Thou art absorbed in Thy own majesty.
She who is inebriated with the love of such a Lord,
Flows (in purity) like Ganga’s waters.
Prays Nanak: I am Thy slave, O Lord, for graceful is Thy gait
And sweet Thy speech.”
[Praises of Lord Krishna by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, GGS 567]
Although the Sikh religion belongs to the medieval bhakti tradition, and as shown above, has many references to the names of God found elsewhere in the scriptures, they are nirguna devotees who do not accept Krishna as an avatar and do not worship him, but the formless Truth.
It is said that the mound, where Guru Nanak Dev Ji stayed, was in the possession of the ancestors of Thakur Peetambar Sinh who donated it to the Sikhs. The small Gurdwara on the mound, which is in the neighborhood of Kishorpura not far from Vidyapeeth corner, was managed by Singh Sabha committee of Mathura. In 1975 the affairs of the Gurdwara came under the control of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Sri Amritsar who managed its affairs by a local committee. Now S. Barjinder Singh of Vrindavan is taking keen interest in its day-to-day affairs and the present building came into existence by his efforts.
Dr. Paramvir Singh is with the Dept. of the Encyclopaedia of Sikhism, Punjabi University, Patiala.
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