Pastime Places

The Twelve Forests (Vanas )

1. Madhuvana

2. Tālavana

3. Kumudavana

4. Bahulāvana

5. Kāmyavana

6. Khadiravana

7. Vṛndāvana

8. Bhadravana

9. Bhāṇḍīravana

10. Bilvavana

11. Lohavana

12. Mahāvana

The Sub-Forests (Upavanas )

1. Brahmavana (Brahma-kuṇḍa)

2. Apsarāvana (Govardhana)

3. Vihvalavana (Vihvala-kuṇḍa)

4. Kadambavana (Sonehara)

5. Svarṇavana (Sonehara)

6. Surabhivana (Govardhana)

7. Premavana (Prema-sarovara)

8. Mayūravana (Varṣāṇā)

9. Māneṅgitavana (Varṣāṇā)

10. Śeṣaśāyanavana (Śeṣaśāyī)

11. Nāradavana (Govardhana)

12. Paramānandavana (Paramādra)

The Ancillary Forests (Prativanas )

1. Raṅkavana (Raṅkolī)

2. Vārttāvana

3. Karahāvana (Karhela)

4. Kāmavana (Kāmāi)

5. Añjanavana (Ajñokh)

6. Karṇavana (Kunvārā)

7. Kṛṣṇākṣipanavana (Varṣāṇā)

8. Nandavana (Nanda-grāma)

9. Indravana (Indrolī)

10. Śikṣāvana (Varṣāṇā)

11. Candrāvalīvana (Rīṭhorā)

12. Lohavana

The Great Forests (Adhivanas )

1. Mathurā

2. Śrīkuṇḍavana (Rādhā-kuṇḍa)

3. Nanda-grāma (Nanda-grāma)

4. Gaḍavana (Kāmyavana)

5. Lalitā-grāma (Ūñchagaon)

6. Vṛṣabhānu-pura (Varṣāṇā)

7. Gokula (Gokula)

8. Balabhadravana (Baladeva)

9. Govardhana (Govardhana)

10. Yāvaṭā (Yāvaṭā)

11. Vṛndāvana (Vṛndāvana)

12. Saṅketavana (Saṅketa)

In addition to these forty-eight forests there are another eighty-nine, com-prising a number of forests of service (sevyavana ), forests of penance (tapo-vana ), forests of liberation (mokṣavana ), forests of desire (kāmavana ), for-ests or reward (arthavana ), forests of rest (viśrāmavana ), forests of religion (dharmavana ), forests of perfection (siddhavana ), forests of meeting (saṅga-vana ), and forests that demark the boundaries of the dhāma.

The Sixteen Banyan Trees

1. Saṅketavaṭa

2. Bhāṇḍīravaṭa

3. Yāvavaṭa

4. Śṛṅgāravaṭa

5. Vaṁśīvaṭa

6. Śrīvaṭa

7. Jaṭajūṭavaṭa

8. Kāmavaṭa

9. Manorathavaṭa

10. Āśāvaṭa

11. Aśokavaṭa

12. Kelivaṭa

13. Brahmavaṭa

14. Rudravaṭa

15. Śrīdharavaṭa

16. Sāvitrīvaṭa

Seven Footprints of Kṛṣṇa

1. Kāmyavana

2. Baiṭhāṇa

3. Toṣa

4. Foot of Govardhana

5. Nanda-grāma

6. On Govardhana

7. Surabhi-kuṇḍa

8. Caraṇa-kuṇḍa (Baladeva)

Eleven Main Hills

1. Girirāja (Govardhana)

2. Setu-kandarā (Ādi-badri)

3. Kedāranātha (Kedāranātha)

4. Caraṇa-pahāṛī (Kāmyavana)

5. Indrasena-parvata (Kāmyavana)

6. Āṭora-parvata (Ūñchagaon)

7. Sakhīgiri-parvata (Ūñchagaon)

8. Brahma-parvata (Varṣāṇā)

9. Nandīśvara (Nanda-grāma)

10. Viṣṇu-parvata (Varṣāṇā)

11. Caraṇa-pahāṛī (Baiṭhāna)

Six Places of Toll Pastimes (Dāna-līlās )

1. Karhela (Varṣāṇā)

2. Dāna-gaṛh (Varṣāṇā)

3. Sāṅkari-khor (Varṣāṇā)

4. Dāna-ghāṭī (Govardhana)

5. Gahvaravana (Varṣāṇā)

6. Kadamba-khaṇḍī

Eleven Main Lakes

1. Pāvana-sarovara (Nanda-grāma)

2. Māna-sarovara (Bilvavana)

3. Ajano-khara (Ajñokh)

4. Prema-sarovara (Varṣāṇā)

5. Rāma-tāla (Rāma-ghāṭa)

6. Mukharā-tāla (Mukharāi)

7. Kusuma-sarovara (Govardhana)

8. Harajī-pokhara (Yatipura)

9. Pīlī-pokhara (Varṣāṇā)

10. Bhānokhara (Varṣāṇā)

11. Īśvara-pokhara (Nanda-grāma)

In addition to these eleven main lakes, there is a secondary list of one hundred and forty-eight lakes (kuṇḍas ), which include eighty-four in Kāmyavana alone. In addition, there are countless other lakes around Vraja.

Ten Wells (Kūpas )

1. Saptasamudra (Gopīśvara / Vṛndāvana)

2. Nanda-kūpa (Mahāvana)

3. Indra-kūpa (Indrolī)

4. Candra-kūpa (Candra-sarovara)

5. Bhāṇḍīra-kūpa (Bhāṇḍīravana)

6. Karaṇavedha-kūpa (Gokula)

7. Kṛṣṇa-kūpa (Janmasthāna / Mathurā)

8. Veṇu-kūpa (Vṛndāvana)

9. Kubjā-kūpa (Mathurā)

10. Gopa-kūpa (Ramaṇa-retī)

Six Swings

1. Karhela

2. Saṅketa

3. Govardhana

4. Ajñokh

5. Vṛndāvana

6. Rādhā-kuṇḍa

Twenty-four Bathing Places (Ghāṭas )

1. Brahmāṇḍa (Mahāvana)

2. Gaū (Gokula)

3. Govinda (Gokula)

4. Ṭhākurāṇī (Gokula)

5. Yaśodā (Gokula)

6. Uttareśvara (Gokula)

7. Vaikuṇṭha (Mathurā)

8. Viśrānti (Mathurā)

9. Prayāga (Mathurā)

10. Beṅgali (Mathurā)

11. Rāma-ghāṭa (Shergarh)

12. Kāliya-dāha (Vṛndāvana)

13. Gopāla (Vṛndāvana)

14. Praskandana (Vṛndāvana)

15. Yugala (Vṛndāvana)

16. Imlī-tāla (Vṛndāvana)

17. Dhīra-samīra (Vṛndāvana)

18. Keśī (Vṛndāvana)

19. Bihārī (Vṛndāvana)

20. Pāṇi (Vṛndāvana)

21. Rāja (Vṛndāvana)

22. Cīra (Tapovana)

23. Gopī (Tapovana)

24. Nanda

Thirty Dancing Places (Rāsa-maṇḍalas )

1. Vṛndāvana (5)

2. Kāmyavana (2)

3. Nanda-grāma

4. Karhela (2)

5. Dāna-gaṛh (2)

6. Sāṅkari-khor

7. Māna-gaṛh

8. Vilāsa-gaṛh (2)

9. Gahvaravana

10. Saṅketa (3)

11. Piyāso

12. Yāvaṭā (2)

13. Kokilavana

14. Ūñchagaon (3)

15. Picchalinī-śilā

16. Sonehara (2)

Twelve Special Stones (Śilās )

1. Sindūrī (Ḍhūkā Daujī / Govardhana)

2. Kajalī (Ḍhūkā Daujī / Govardhana)

3. Bhājana (Mukharāi)

4. Sundara (Ḍhūkā Daujī / Govardhana)

5. Śṛṅgāra (Govinda-kuṇḍa / Govardhana)

6. Sugandhi (Śyāma-ḍhāk, Govardhana; Setu, Ādi-badri)

7. Mānika (Māna-sarovara)

8. Picchalinī (Kāmyavana)

9. Citravicitra (Ūñchagaon)

10. Snāna (Yatipura / Govardhana)

11. Daṇḍautī (Yatipura / Govardhana)

12. Añjanī (Ajñokh)

Five Special Thrones (Siṁhāsanas )

1. Caraṇa-pahāṛī (Kāmyavana)

2. Bhojana-thālī (Kāmyavana)

3. Lukluki-kuṇḍa (Cave above kuṇḍa, Kāmyavana)

4. Kadamba-khaṇḍī (Sonehara)

5. Ratna-siṁhāsana (Govardhana)

The Famous Deities of Vraja

Four Devas:

1. Harideva (Govardhana)

2. Keśavadeva (Mathurā)

3. Baladeva (Baladeva)

4. Govindadeva (Vṛndāvana, Jaipur)

Two Nāthas:

1. Śrī Nāthajī (Govardhana)

2. Gopīnātha (Vṛndāvana, Jaipur)

Two Gopālas:

1. Madana-mohana (Vṛndāvana, Karoli)

2. Sākṣi-gopāla (Vṛndāvana, Purī)

Six Baladevas at:

1. Ūñchagaon

2. Ariṅg

3. Rāma-ghāṭa

4. Baladeva

5. Nārī

6. Rāl

Two (Rādhā) Ṭhākurāṇīs at:

1. Rāval

2. Varṣāṇā

Seven Goddesses (Devīs):

1. Vṛndā (Kāmyavana)

2. Saṅketa (Saṅketa)

3. Kātyāyanī (Vṛndāvana)

4. Mathurā-devī (Mathurā)

5. Novarī, Covarī (Ḍabhalā)

6. Mahāvidyā (Mathurā)

Seven Mahādevas:

1. Bhūteśvara (Mathurā)

2. Gokarṇa (Mathurā)

3. Kāmeśvara (Kāmyavana)

4. Gopeśvara (Vṛndāvana)

5. Nandīśvara (Nanda-grāma)

6. Uttareśvara (Gokula)

7. Cakreśvara (Govardhana)

Summary

This catalogue of the features of Vṛndāvana is an indication of the variegatedness of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes when He appears on earth and the innumerable opulences of His abode. The many features of the dhāma help to remind us of the Lord, His associates, and His pastimes, knowledge of which should be-come the equivalent of history and geography lessons for pilgrims to Vṛndāvana.