The Land of Hari and Har - A visit to a corner of our sacred geography

Sanatana Dharma’s several thousand years history has metamorphosed  this land of Bharat into a Sacred Geography. The colonial onslaughts of 1500 plus years were unable to stop this metamorphic transformation. If anything, it only redoubled the Sanatani’s determination to protect and replicate his faith in his Gods in every nook and cranny of this beautiful land.

Hindus are bound by their faith in such intricate ways that southerners consider it their bounden duty to visit at least once Kashi located in the north-west of the country.  And the northerners are bound by their commitment to visit at least once in their life time Rameswaram, in the land’s southern tip.  Then, there are Char Dhams, Barah [twelve] Dhams spread over north, south, east and west. And there are localized deities attracting thousands of faithful all-round the year in some corner or the other. Regions don’t matter, it is the religious faith that  drives Hindus to traverse across this Sacred Land.

Between Hari and Har

It would not be wrong to say that  Hinduism is built around Hari (Lord Krishna) and Har (Lord Shiva). They are followed in their different forms and they are depicted in myriad manifestations in local lore. However, there are some specific areas of this Sacred Geography which have high pan-Indian significance. Two such prominent sacred lands, among others are: Dwaraka and Somanath. Interestingly, they are  located not far away from each other in the  Saurastra Region of Gujarat State.

Our long standing urge to visit Dwaraka and Somnath was fulfilled during our very recent nine day long visit.

Saurastra Region

Locally it is said that today’s “Sau Rastra” refers to a nomenclature in ancient times for  the existence of hundreds of small kingdoms in this region. This area is also known as Kathiawar [Kathiawad], which has its own distinct cuisine, fauna, flora and cultural moorings.

Devbhumi Dwaraka

Dwaraka city is located on the estuary of river Gomti on Arabian Sea coast, at the  tip of Gujarat’s Peninsula. In Sanskrit Dwaraka it means “gateway to Heaven”, where ‘Dwar’ means gate, and ‘ka’ refers to ‘Brahma’. The city also has been called ‘Mokshapuri’, ‘Dwaramati’ and ‘Dwarakavati’.

Dwaraka is mentioned in the epic Mahabharata. Legend has it that Lord Krishna got this ‘golden city’ built by Vishwakarma, and settled here after he defeated and killed his uncle Kansa at Mathura. It is intriguing as to how several millennia ago the long geographical distances between Mathura and Dwaraka could be fathomed and that too in such a short period of about 125 years!!

In keeping with its religious importance of Dwaraka,  in the year 2013 the government of Gujarat carved out a new small district and named it as “Devbhumi Dwaraka”. It is consists of only four talukas, and is carved out of Jamnagar district.

There are four important places in Devbhumi Dwaraka directly related to Lord Krishna. First is the Dwaraka City itself. Second is the Bet Dwaraka or Shankhodhar. It is an inhabited island at the mouth of the Gulf of Kutch, situated 2 km off the coast of the town of Okha, and 25 km north of the city of Dwarka. Northeast to southwest, the island measures 8 km long and averaging 2 km wide.

Third is Rukmini Temple, two kilometer away from the Dwarka  which commemorates Lord Krishna’s beloved wife Rukmini. Lastly, Bhala Ka Theerth Temple, which commemorates the place where Lord Krishna’s soul is said to have departed from his body. It is located in Veraval, about 4 kilometer from Somanath Temple. Those who visit Dwaraka normally visit all these places of faith in Lord Krishna.

Lord Krishna – A Multidimensional God

Hinduism is replete with Gods and God men. And each one of them is represented to have distinctive powers and  personalities. However, among all Hindu Gods, Lord Krishna has a unique personae. He is one of the most widely  worshiped Hindu Gods. He is considered to be eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu and worshiped as Supreme God on his  own right.

His extraordinary  wisdom has been narrated in the form of Srimad Bhagwat Gita [Geeta]. His overarching  super-human, Universal Power is demonstrated in his Virat-Roopa or also called Vishwa Roopa. Lord Krishna’s life-story is very proximate to humans. And interestingly, there is definite records of his birth, sojourn and  death, unlike stories of other Hindu Gods, which remain mostly mythical in their narratives.

Some Interesting Features

1. Lord Krishna has a total of 108 names. He is, Baanke Bihari, Gopala, Dwarkadish, Shyam, Makhan Chor and so on. He is also portrayed as a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero.

2. The peacock feather worn by Lord Krishna on his head is the symbol of purity. It represents his pure love for Radha and the eternal bond of Radha Krishna

3. Krishna means black or dark. It also stands for ‘all attractive’. According to Hindu Mythology, Lord Krishna is depicted in blue skin to represent the aura of calmness, purity, strength, immeasurable. It is also assumed that Lord Krishna’s skin turned blue when he was poisoned by a female demon through her breast milk when he was a baby.

4.  According to the Surya Siddhanta and other sources, Lord Krishna's birth and subsequent actions are believed to have taken place around 3228 BCE, with some suggesting a range from 3102 BCE to 3067 BCE. And he lived for 125 years.

5.  He was born in  present day Mathura  and this is the reason, the town grandly celebrates his birthday. Situated at the heart of Braj or Brij-bhoomi, Mathura is mostly called as Shri Krishna Janma-Bhoomi.

6. And of course, he has now acquired international acceptance and love through International Society for Krishna Consciousness, which was launched in 1966 from New York, U.S.A.