Sri Sri Radha Raman Temple

This is one of the ‘Seven Goswarni Temples’ and was established by Gopala Bhatta Goswami, one of the famous Six Goswamis of Vrindavana. The deity of Radharamana suddenly self-manifested one day from a shalagrama-shila just for the pleasure of Gopala Bhatta. All shalagrama-shilas are considered to be a natural manifestation of Lord Vishnu and are therefore immediately worshipable and do not need to be installed. The shalagrama-shila is a sacred black stone that is worshiped specifically by brahmanas and must be worshiped in all Vedic sacrifices as the yajna-pati, or principle enjoyer of the sacrifice. The shalagram-shila is also an essential part of deity worship being the principle recipient of the seva-puja, and no worship is considered complete without the shaligrama-shila being worshiped as the seva-pati.
The story regarding the amazing shalagrama-shila of Gopala Bhatta is as follows. After spending a number of years studying and writing in the company of the Goswamis of Vrindavana, Gopala Bhatta decided to make the arduous journey to the holy place known as Muktinatha in the Himalayas, where there is a famous shrine of Lord Vishnu. One day while taking his bath in the sacred Kali Gandaki River that flows in the region of Muktinatha, Gopala Bhatta scooped water with his kamandal and was about to pour it over his head, when he found that a number of black stones known as shalagrama-shilas had somehow or other entered his kamandal, perhaps due to the strong currents in the river. After putting them back into the Gandaki, he again scooped water with his kamandala and found that a number of shilas had once again entered his kamandala Surprised at this; he again put them back into the river, but when this happened for a third time, he realized it was the plan of the Lord and decided to keep all the shilas that had entered his kamandala. He carefully tied them in a cloth and kept it suspended around his neck for safety. The Kali Gandaki River, which starts high-up in the Himalayan Mountains in what is now Nepal, is the only river in the world where these sacred shalagrama-shilas can be found.
When Gopala Bhatta eventually returned to Vrindavana, he performed his bhajana in a comer of Nidhuvana where he also began worshiping the shalagrama-shilas he had obtained from the Kali Gandaki. At night, Gopala Bhatta would place all the shalagrama-shilas in a cloth bag and hang them in a nearby tree while he took rest. One day while worshiping the shalagramashilas, he began lamenting that he did not have an archa-vigraha or deity of Lord Krishna like the other Goswamis, which he could dress with beautiful clothing, ornaments, crowns, and other deity paraphernalia. The following day was Nasasingha-chaturdasi, the appearance day of Lord Narasinghadeva, the half-man half-lion incarnation of Vishnu who appeared from a rock pillar.
Early the next morning when Gopala Bhatta went to worship his shalagrama-shilas, to his utter amazement he found that one of the shilas had opened up and transformed into a beautiful deity of Krishna, standing in the tri-bhanga-rupa, or the three-fold bending form and playing a flute. On hearing the news of the miracle, the other Goswamis immediately came to congratulate Gopala Bhatta on his amazingly good fortune and to see for themselves the exquisite beauty of the self-manifested deity, which stood about ten inches high. The Goswamis gave the deity the name ‘Radharamana’ which means ‘one who gives pleasure to Radha’. When the deity is being dressed in the morning, or during abhisheka ceremonies, one can clearly see half of the shalagramashila from which the deity appeared, still attached to deities back. The actual place where the deity of Radharamana self-manifested from a shaligrama-shila can be seen in a courtyard next to the samadhi. An off-shoot of the original tree where Gopala Bhatta used to hang his shaligramashilas in a cloth bag can also be seen here.

Çré Rädhä-Ramaëa is the deity of Çré Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé, the recipient of Çréman Mahäprabhu’s mercy. Çré Bhaööa Gosvämé initially served and worshipped a çälagräma-çilä. Once, he intensely desired to decorate his çälagräma, to seat Him on a swing and sway Him back and forth, and to serve Him in many ways like a deity. “If only He had arms and legs like a deity‚” he thought. Prabhu is very kind to His devotees. To fulfil the desire of this bhakta, He transformed Himself that very night into the attractive threefold-bending form of Çré Rädhä-Ramaëa. Çré Bhaööa Gosvämé decorated Him with many ornaments, swung Him on a swing and offered food preparations with great affection. If one has darçana of Çré Rädhä-Ramaëa’s back, one will see that it resembles a çälagräma-çilä. Although the deity is only twelve finger-widths tall, He is very attractive. Çré Rädhä-Ramaëa’s lotus face is like Çré Govinda’s, His chest is like Çré Gopénätha’s, and His lotus feet are like Çré Madana-mohana’s. By taking His darçana, one receives the benefit of taking darçana of these three deities. According to the book Sevä-präkaöya, Rädhä-Ramaëa manifested from the çälagräma-çilä in saàvat 1599 (1543 AD). His abhiñeka took place on Pürëimä in the month of Vaiçäkha (April–May) that same year. There is no deity of Çré Rädhä with Rädhä-Ramaëa, but a gomaté-cakra is worshipped on the altar to His left. According to an injunction in Çré Hari-bhakti-viläsa, a gomaté-cakra is to be worshipped along with a çälagräma-çilä. Adjacent to the temple of Çré Rädhä-Ramaëa, to the south, is the samädhi of Çré Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé and the place where Rädhä-Ramaëa appeared. Unlike other deities, Çré Rädhä-Ramaëa never left Våndävana.

Family lineage
Radha raman temple
“After serving Sri Radha-ramanaji for some years, Gopala Bhatta requested his disciple, Gopinatha dasa, to marry and assume the responsibility of worship. Gopinatha dasa, however, refused to marry, but his younger. married brother accepted the service after being initiated as Damodara dasa by Gopala Bhatta Gosvami. After Gopala Bhatta Gosvami’s disappearance Damodara dasa continued the worship of Sri Radha-ramanaji.
“The present day Gosvami families worshipping Sri Radha-¬ramanaji are spiritual descendants of Gopala Bhatta Gosvami, and they are linked through an ancestral chain to Damodara dasa Gosvami, the first Deity sevait after Sri Gopala Bhatta Gosvami. Due to their sincere devotional mood and a strong spiritual and family lineage, the Gosvami families in Vrindavana continue to offer first class worship to Sri Radha-ramanaji.
“When Srila Gopala Bhatta Gosvami was overwhelmed by Krsna -prema, Sri Radha-ramana revealed Himself as Sri Gauranga.”(BR).
“Out of affection for Srila Gopala Bhatta Gosvami, Srila Sanatana Gosvami compiled the famous Vaisnava smriti titled hari-bhakti-vilas, and published it under Gopala Bhatta Gosvami’s name”(CC Adi 1O.105p.). Gopala Bhatta Gosvami resided for forty-five years in Vrindavana , and out of great humility he requested Srila Krsna das Kaviraja not to mention his name in the classic caitanya caritamrta. In the eternal pas¬times of Radha and Krsna, Gopala Bhatta Gosvami serves as Guna-manjari

“Before leaving Vrindavana to preach in the West, Srila Prabhupada had a very close friendship with Sri Visvambhara Gosvami, an acarya in the line from Gopala Bhatta Gosvami. Srila Prabhupada often advised his disciples to learn about the proper standard of Deity worship and Vaisnava etiquette from the Sri Radha-ramana Temple. Srila Prabhupada himself often vis¬ited the Radha-ramana Temple, and he was very much impressed by the high standard of deity worship.”[Sri Padmanabha Gosvami]

Radha Ramana is only a short walk, en route to Kesi Ghat.
We enter the temple compound through an archway leading in from the street. The new temple building for Radha Ramana was completed in 1826 by Shah Kundan Lal, the same architect who built Shahji Temple.
Two-story buildings enclose the first courtyard, shutting out direct sunlight. We enter a second courtyard and behold the Radha Ramana Temple wedged in between a couple of buildings. The facade is built of light brown sandstone, and the main archway is decorated with spiraling lotus designs.
Radha Ramana was founded by Gopal Bhatta Goswami, who met Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu when the Lord was traveling in South India, near Tiruchirappali. Lord Chaitanya converted Gopal Bhatta’s father from the worship of Lakshmi Narayana to the worship of Krishna, and Gopal Bhatta wanted to accompany the Lord on His arduous trip through India. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, however, told the boy to join Rupa and Sanatan Goswamis in Vrindaban.
“First, go to the sacred Gandaki River in Nepal,” the Lord told him. “There you will find a salagram sila, an expansion of Lord Narayana. Take that sila to Vrindaban, and wait for Me there.”
These silas are the Lord’s expansions in the form of small, black stones.
When Lord Chaitanya did not return to Vrindaban, Gopal Bhatta and the other Goswamis were saddened. In 1542, the night before Rasa-Lila Purnima, Gopal Bhatta felt very morose, thinking that while the other Goswamis were decorating their Deities with dresses and crowns, he could worship the stone only with sandalwood and tulasi leaves. That night, however, Gopal Bhatta was told in a dream to go to the box where he kept the salagram. In the place of the one stone, he found eleven silas and the Radha Ramana Deity now present before us.
This self-manifesting Deity is only about twelve inches high. He is finely contoured, especially at the chin-line and mouth, and He has big lotus eyes, curved upward a bit. The heavy epicanthic folds remind me of Nepalese Buddha eyes. He stands in His tribhanga position, a threefold bending curve, one leg crossed over the other, a stance that is Lord Krishna’s famous trademark. This beautiful shiny black Deity is remarkable, especially considering that He’s not sculptured by anyone’s hand.
A silver crown on a small throne is placed on His left for Radharani. Since Radha Ramana. is self-manifested, the devotees feel that it would be inappropriate to put a sculptured Deity of Radharani next to Him, although the Deity is the same whether sculptured or self-manifesting. The pujaris have prepared a place for Radharani just in case She wishes to appear. “She is visible in your heart,” they reply when asked about Her presence.
Silver articles on the altar include ornate thrones, trays, peacocks, and elephants-all for the Lord’s pleasure. In the temple courtyard is the samadhi of Copal Bhatta Goswami. A white marble arch nearby marks the sacred spot where the Deity manifested, and the boxin which the salagram was kept hangs from the same tree where Gopal Bhatta Goswami had first placed it. Obviously, Radha Ramana is a living temple, not just a monument or a business run by families who profit from theDeities.

Descendents of the original pujaris Respect SP
“The descendents of the original pujaris here are still quite learned in Vaishnava philosophy,” Achyutananda tells us. “They maintain this temple gorgeously, preach the holy name, and distribute prasadam. And they regard Srila Prabhupada highly.”
“Prabhupada has come here?”
“Oh yes. They’ve often invited him to their functions, and he always attends.”
The links between Radha Ramana and Prabhupada’s ISKCON go way back. Gopal Bhatta Goswami was one of the great acharyas of the Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya, to which ISKCON belongs. And it seems that the grandfather of the present pujari knew Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati. Moreover, Gopal Bhatta Goswami’s book, Sri Hari-Bhakta-Vilas, conceived by Sanatan Goswami, is ISKCON’s standard reference book for householder duties, Deity worship, mantras, holidays, and many other aspects of devotional life.
The priests at Radha Ramana give us a warm welcome, offering us some charanamrita, rose-scented water that has bathed the Deity. The pujaris gladly let us photograph the Deity. Like Srila Prabhupada, they believe in broadcasting the Deity’s glories in all ways, including the modern. The Deity has been dressed in fine clothes and freshly garlanded, and the priests are happy to share His beauty.

Worship of Radha Raman before construction of temple:-
Radha-raman, the self-manifested Deity of Gopal Bhatta Goswami, also appearing in 1542, was adored in a tree for two centuries. Jagat Guru Swami explains:
“In the area of the present Radha-raman temple, there used to be a large lake connected to the Yamuna River. For a couple hundred years they worshiped Radha-raman in a tree, and at night put Him in a boat anchored in the middle of the lake. They stood guard with bows and arrows. The arrows would be dipped in a homemade poison, so even if they just nicked you, you would go down; if anyone came to hassle the Deity of Radha-raman. In the Radha- raman temple they still have the bows and arrows.”