Did you know that in India, there is a temple where in the last 500 years, not a single matchstick was lit? It may sound a bit shocking because every day the idol is worshipped in the temple and a lamp is also placed along with incense sticks. Even havan is performed in this temple and bhog is prepared for the Lord in the kitchen. So, how is it possible that a matchstick is not lit?
This particular temple is the Shri Radha Raman Temple of Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh. Every day thousands of devotees gather here to have a darshan of Shri Radha Raman, who is another form of Lord Shri Krishna. The temple is 500 years old. Pundrik Goswami Maharaj, who is the priest in the temple, shared that Shri Radharaman Lal Ju appeared here from Shaligram Shila 500 years ago. Since then, people here have been worshipping this avatar of Lord Krishna.
In a podcast, Pundrik Goswami Maharaj shared that when Shri Radha Raman Lal Ju appeared 500 years ago here, a fire was needed to worship him. It was early in the morning and Gopal Bhatt Ji recited the hymns of fire in the Rigveda and rubbed the wooden sticks to light the fire. Reportedly, that fire has been kept lit till date in the temple. It is maintained with the help of fuel and till today, even the food cooked in the kitchen of the temple is with this fire.
As per reports, the fire which was lit 500 years ago has not been extinguished till now. This practice was begun by Swami Gopal Bhatt Ji and is still being followed by his followers in the temple. From making food and lighting the lamps, to worshipping the Lord, everything is lit with this fire.
Swami Gopal Bhatt Ji was a disciple of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Shri Radha Raman Temple of Vrindavan carries forward the legacy and sect of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. It is believed that the idol of Shri Radha Raman looked exactly like Shri Krishna thousands of years ago. In this temple, Lord Krishna along with Radha Rani is worshipped. There is no idol of Radha Rani in the temple. But a space designated next to Lord Krishna is where she is worshipped. Devotees believe that Radha Rani performs her Leela and when it is completed, she will sit near Shri Radha Raman Lal Ju.
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