The presiding deity of
the Shrinathji temple in Nathdwara, Rajasthan, and the name of a specific
picture of the god Krishna.
The sculpture was initially buried on top of Mount
Govardhan, a prominent peak in the Braj area linked with Krishna's humiliation
of the storm-god Indra, according to legend.
The location of the picture was given to Vallabhacharya, the
founder of the Pushti Marg religious group, in a dream.
On Mount Govardhan, Vallabhacharya erected a temple to hold
the picture, and his family have been Shrinathji's hereditary slaves ever
since.
Fearing that the picture might be destroyed by the Moghul
ruler Aurangzeb, the portrait was transported to Rajasthan in 1669.
Shrinathji is said to have shown his desire to remain in
Nathdwara by digging his wagon's wheels deep into the ground, preventing it
from moving any farther.
In 1672, a new temple was built and consecrated, and the
picture has stayed there ever since.
Whether or whether one believes in the divine mandate, much
of the account seems to be plausible.
Given Braj's closeness to Agra, the Moghul capital,
custodians of famous pictures may have been anxious about their safety, and
because the Moghuls' Hindu vassals ruled the nearby state of Rajasthan, this
would have been a natural location to move.
Even now, Nathdwara is located in a distant and sparsely
populated district of Rajasthan, indicating that it was once a safe haven.
The Pushti Marg, a religious group dedicated to the deity
Krishna, plays a significant role in the administration of the Nathdwara temple.
Rajendra Jindel, Culture Of A Sacred Town, 1976, is a good
source of knowledge.
Discover more about Hindu Art, Architecture, and Iconography here.
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