Gokarneshwar Mahadev Mandir, Mathura: Timings, the Guardian of the North and Its Legend

Gokarneshwar Mahadev at a glance

Gokarneshwar Mahadev timings

The Gokarneshwar Mahadev temple and its timings

The Gokarneshwar Mahadev temple, also known as Gokarn Nath Mahadev, is one of the ancient and revered Shiva temples of Mathura, the city of Krishna's birth. It stands on a quiet, elevated mound, known as Gokarneshwar or Kailash, near the Akashvani, the All India Radio, station on Bhuteshwar Road, at Masani in Mathura. It is held to be the northern guardian of the holy city, one of its four great cardinal Shiva temples. It is typically open in the morning and again from the afternoon into the evening, with a midday break and the timings shift between summer and winter, as set out above; entry is free. To visit Gokarneshwar Mahadev with the other temples of Mathura, a mathura vrindavan tour with Experience My India can plan it.

From the ground (Gurudutt): Most pilgrims come to Mathura for Krishna, but the old Braj way is to know that the city is guarded on all four sides by Mahadev, by Lord Shiva himself; and Gokarneshwar is the guardian of the north. It is a peaceful mound, away from the crowds and the Shivling here is very powerful. On a Monday or at Shivratri, come and pour water on the Linga; and if a couple longs for a child, this is the Mahadev to pray to. I tell my guests the old story of Gokarna here. We tell it as the cherished tradition of Braj. Har Har Mahadev, Radhe Radhe.

The four guardian Shiva temples of Mathura

Gokarneshwar Mahadev is best understood as one of the four guardians of Mathura:

• The four cardinal Shiva temples. By the tradition of Braj, Mathura is protected on its four sides by four great Shiva temples, with Lord Shiva as the Kshetrapal, the guardian of the land, sometimes called the Kotwal, the watchman, of the holy city: Gokarneshwar Mahadev to the north, Pihleshwar or Pipleshwar, Mahadev to the east, Bhuteshwar Mahadev to the west and Rangeshwar Mahadev to the south.

• The guardians of the city. Together, these four Shiva temples are held to form a protective grid around Mathura, guarding the sacred city of Krishna's birth from every direction; so a pilgrim to Mathura who wishes to honour its guardians takes the darshan of all four Mahadevs, with Gokarneshwar as the lord of the north.

• Shiva, the guardian of Krishna's land. That Mathura, the city of Krishna, should be guarded on all sides by Lord Shiva is deeply dear to Braj, for across the land of Krishna, Shiva stands as the great protector and the foremost devotee of the Lord; the four Kshetrapal temples express this at the very boundaries of the city.

Of the four guardians, the eastern one is covered in our pipleshwar mahadev mandir mathura guide; and the Goddess guards Mathura too, at the mahavidya devi mandir mathura temple. We present this as the cherished belief and tradition of Braj.

The legend of Gokarna

The temple's name and sanctity come from the beloved legend of the sage Gokarna, which the accounts tell with some variation:

• A childless couple and a sage's gift. By the tradition, a devoted but childless couple, longing for a child, received a divine fruit from a holy sage, to be eaten so that a child might be born; but the fruit was given instead to a cow. From that, a wondrous child was born, with a human body but the ears of a cow and so he was named Gokarna, from go, a cow and karna, the ear.

• The accounts of the names vary. The accounts differ on the names of the couple: by one tradition, the well-known story of the Bhagavata Mahatmya, they are Atmadev and his wife Dhundhuli; by another, told of this temple, they are the merchant Vasukarna and his wife Sushila. We present the fuller tradition and note that the names vary between accounts; the heart of it, the birth of Gokarna from the cow and his great sanctity, is held in common.

• The sage who consecrated the temple. The child Gokarna grew to be a great and holy sage, devoted to Lord Shiva; and it is held that it was he who established and consecrated this very shrine of Shiva at Mathura, which bears his name as Gokarneshwar, the lord of Gokarna. So the temple is the seat of the sage's devotion to Mahadev.

We present this as the cherished belief and tradition of Braj, held with faith and recounted with reverence.

The Shiva Linga and the statue of Rishi Gokarna

Within the temple are its two revered forms of worship:

• The sacred Shiva Linga. The chief object of worship is the sacred Shiva Linga of Gokarneshwar Mahadev, Lord Shiva himself, upon whom devotees pour water, milk and offerings, above all on Mondays and at Mahashivratri; it is held to be ancient and powerful, the very presence of Mahadev guarding the north of Mathura.

• The four-foot statue of Gokarna. Beside the Linga stands a statue, about four feet tall, of the sage Rishi Gokarna; by the tradition, in the statue one of his hands rests upon the Linga and the other is placed at his forehead, a posture understood to symbolise the mastery of desire and of the mind through devotion to Shiva, the very fruit of his tapasya.

• A seat of tapasya. So the temple holds both the Lord and his great devotee, the Linga of Shiva and the image of the sage Gokarna in his worship; it is a seat of tapasya and devotion, a quiet, powerful Shiva shrine on its ancient mound.

Beliefs, boons and the prayer for children

Gokarneshwar Mahadev is dear for the boons the devout seek here:

• The prayer for children. As the legend of Gokarna is itself the story of a child granted to a longing couple, the temple is dear above all to couples who pray for children; by the tradition, those who keep a fast on sixteen consecutive Mondays and worship here with faith are blessed with children, so it is a place of hope for many families.

• Health, happiness and the washing of sins. By the tradition, performing the abhishek, the ritual bathing of the Linga, with sugarcane juice and reciting the praises of Shiva over forty consecutive days, is held to bring happiness, health and prosperity; and the scriptures, the Varaha Purana among them, are said to hold that the worship of Shiva here washes away sins.

• Mondays and Mahashivratri. As at all Shiva temples, Mondays, the day of Shiva and above all the great night of Mahashivratri, are the dearest and busiest times at Gokarneshwar Mahadev, when devotees throng to pour water on the Linga; the month of Shravan is likewise especially holy. We present these as the cherished belief and tradition of Braj.

The ancient mound and its history

Gokarneshwar Mahadev stands on an ancient, elevated mound, known as Gokarneshwar or Kailash, which speaks of its great antiquity. By local accounts, excavations on the mound in 1936 are said to have revealed an ancient stone plaque, held to be of the Kushan era, roughly two thousand years old, depicting the worship of a Shiva Linga, which would make this a place of Shiva worship from very ancient times; Mathura is rich in Kushan-era antiquities, so such a find is in keeping with the city's deep history. Whatever the precise dating, the temple on its old mound is revered as one of the ancient Shiva shrines of Mathura, a guardian of the city from time out of mind. We present the traditional accounts with faith and note that the precise historical details are not always settled.

How to reach and visit

The Gokarneshwar Mahadev temple is within Mathura, easy to reach:

• Reaching the temple. The temple is on Bhuteshwar Road, at Masani, near the Akashvani, the All India Radio, station, in Mathura, on its elevated mound; it is easily reached within the city by auto or taxi. Mathura Junction is the nearest major railway station and Mathura is about 150 km from Delhi and 60 km from Agra. The mound is reached by a short climb.

• Combine with the Mathura temples and guardians. Being within Mathura, Gokarneshwar is easily combined with the great Krishna temples of the city, the Krishna Janmabhoomi and the Dwarkadhish temple and with the other guardian Shiva temples and the Yamuna ghats; pilgrims who wish to honour the guardians of Mathura take the darshan of all four cardinal Mahadevs.

• Visit with reverence. Climb the mound, take the darshan of Gokarneshwar Mahadev and offer water to the Linga, above all on a Monday; dress modestly, as at all temples and come in the morning or evening darshan, remembering the midday break and the summer and winter timings. Treat the ancient shrine with reverence.

See the dwarkadhish temple and the braj yamuna ghats and leela sites of Mathura, our how to commute in vrindavan guide for getting around and confirm the hours in our mathura vrindavan temple timings guide.

We take pilgrims to Gokarneshwar Mahadev and the guardian Shiva temples of Mathura, with the Krishna Janmabhoomi, the Dwarkadhish temple, the Yamuna ghats and the whole of Braj, in a comfortable vehicle with a Braj-born guide who knows the temples, the timings and the old stories. A shared day tour starts from around ₹1,499 per person, with darshan free. The braj 84 kos yatra covers the whole of Braj, our mathura vrindavan tour the twin cities of Mathura and Vrindavan and our vrindavan tour package Vrindavan in a day; the krishna janmabhoomi is nearby and the banke bihari temple of Vrindavan is dear too. Message me on WhatsApp at +91-7302265809 to plan your Mathura darshan.

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