There are 25 holy tirthas (bathing places or ghatas) in Mathura.
Visram Ghata is in the middle and there are 12 ghatas south of Visrama
Ghata and 12 ghatas north. The 12 ghatas in the south extend to
Moksa Ghata.
Some pilgrims take bath in all 25 tirthas
before beginning Braja Mandala parikrama. Lord Caitanya and Lord
Nityananda both took bath in all these ghatas before doing Their
parikrama of Braja Mandala. There is an interesting road, south
of Visrama Ghata, that runs along the Yamuna, in the area where
these ghatas are located. Many people visit this area.
These holy tirthas are mostly located about 400m south of Visrama
Ghata, almost right next to each other. Many of the ghatas are known
now by different names. Asi Ghata, Prayaga Ghata, Chakra Tirtha
Ghata, Krishna Ganga, Dhruva Ghata and Visrama Ghata are still known
by the same names.
The 25 important tirthas or bathing places that are mentioned in
the scriptures are:
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1. Avimukta
2. Adhirudha
3. Guhya-tirtha
4. Prayaga-tirtha
5. Kanakhala
6. Tinduka-tirtha
7. Surya-tirtha
8. Vatasvami
9. Dhruva Ghata
10. Rishi-tirtha
11. Moksa-tirtha
12. Budha-tirtha
13. Gokarna
14. Krishna Ganga
15. Vaikuntha
16. Asi Kunda
17. Catuh-samudrika-kura
18. Akrura Ghata
19. Yajnika-vipra-sthana
20. Kubjakupa
21. Ranga-sthala
22. Mancha-sthala
23. Mallayuddha-sthana
24. Dasasvamedha Ghata
25. Visrama Ghata
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One can take a peaceful and interesting boat ride on the Yamuna
near Visrama Ghata. To visit the 25 ghatas along the Yamuna takes
about 45 minutes.
Siva is the eternal guardian of the Braja Mandala area. Because
he is the guardian one are supposed to ask his permission to be
able to successfully circumambulate Braja Mandala. He is the greatest
Vaishnava. There are four important Siva temples that surround Mathura.
There are four Siva-lingas that protect the four sides of Mathura,
which are called the dik-pala (protectors) of Mathura. They are
Gokarnesvara Mahadeva in the north, Pippalesvara Mahadeva in the
east, Rangesvara Mahadeva in the south, and Bhutesvara Mahadeva
in the west.
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