Our introduction to Shrinathji is through pichhwai paintings. Particularly the grand pichhwai that hangs at Boston Museum of Art. Pichwais are huge scrolls that depict Shrinath, an infant incarnation of Krishna, at the centre flanked by Gopinis on both sides.  Srinathji resides in a temple at Nathdwara (“Door to the Lord”), a small town in Rajasthan.

And we were clueless about Nathdwara till we visited Udaipur. After doing the local museums, Kumbhalgarh Fort and Bagor ki Haveli here we saw boards to Nathdwara. on asking around we came to know there is a Krishna temple there. Now it had been decades since we wanted to see Shrinath’s idol. But we were skeptical that the temple here would house the legendary form of Krishna. Nonetheless, we wanted to see for ourselves. Nathdwara is 48 km from Udaipur and we had already rented a bike.

We biked on the highway and we could see that the road has been built cutting the Aravallis. The broad smooth road with mountains on both sides made for a most picturesque journey. There were adequate direction boards and within a seamless hour, we reached Nathdwara. The temple is the hub of activity here and the surrounding area is a flea market selling puja items, prints and figurines of Krishna and Shrinath, bandhani fabrics and saris, and endless eateries.

It was afternoon and the temple was shut till about 4 pm. We had about an hour at hand and lunched at a nice restaurant that served Punjabi and Gujarati thalis for lunch. We opted for a vegetarian Gujarati thali. Clean and filling, we were set for our Shrinath experience.

The Shrinath temple is a simple structure, no domes or carvings. One can mistake this as a haveli or bungalow. But by the time we were done, there was a long queue at the entrance and it seemed dicey if we could visit the sanctum sanatorium before the shrine shut again.  In such precarious circumstances, we struck a deal with a local who seemed to know some inroads. He took us through a back door and we just followed him through the various flights of stairs – ups and downs till he brought us to a big silver impaneled gate. There was already an assembly here and the sanctum sanctorum was yet to open. All the activity had excited the visitors and everybody was waiting with baited breath. After a while, there was a “khaat” (knocking sound) behind the door and the devotees pushed the door open and in that process shoved us inside.

The shrine is not well lit and before we realized we were standing about 20 meters away from the deity.  It was the familiar form of Shrinath for sure. Carved in bas relief on black stone, the idol is of a standing healthy little boy, right hand on the waist and the left hand lifted as if he is carrying something. He wore a huge diamond on his chin. But what we remember most are the eyes. The long half-shut eyes were full of childlike mischief.  Time stood still and seeing the Shrinath idol after a wait of at least 2 decades was a reckoning. It seemed like a dream and we were immune to all the pushing, prodding, or chanting around us. After darshan of perhaps 10-15 minutes, we had to leave to make way for the next flood of devotees.

We were still in a daze when out and our priest showed us a few other shrines inside. Nothing registered much after Shrinath sighting.  Sometimes words are so inadequate in describing an experience. But they do not allow photography (we had to leave our mobiles outside as well) so we regret we cannot show you pictorial impressions of what we saw.

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There was a cart selling pudina chai where we came out of the temple. We had never had mint leaves in milk tea and had to try this. It seemed like regular tea with fresh mint leaves being added while brewing. The tea tasted amazing. It had the stimulation of caffeine along with a refreshing flavor of mint leaves. We went for refills.

It was almost 2 hours we had spent at the temple and we wanted to cover the highway and reach Udaipur before evening. So we hopped on the bike and were on our way back.

The Nathdwara experience was like magic. We have travelled quite a bit but there are few experiences that match this. It was a total surprise and was not on our bucket list when we had planned Udaipur. It is giving me goosebumps while typing this blog now. While neither of us is very religious, we got to admit it seemed like an epiphany, some divine call that brought us to Nathdwara for the mesmerizing experience.