remarkable river that has been the witness of human and divine love
through history and legend. The river contributed much to the ethos
of Indian people and their history.
Legend:
Whenever Srimati Radhika sees the rich blue hue of the Yamuna, She
immediately remembers Her beloved Syamasundara. The Yamuna River
eternally flows in the spiritual world serving Sri Krsna's blissful
pastimes.
When Krsna appears in Bhauma Vrindavana, He enacts many exciting
pastimes in the Yamuna including dancing on the hoods of the demon
Kaliya, splashing water on His cowherd boyfriends, and swimming and
boat riding with His beloved gopis. For thousands of years devotees of
Lord Krsna have bathed in the sacred waters of the Yamuna River while
remembering Radha-Krsna's eternal pastimes and praying for mercy. It
is a tradition amongst Krsna bhaktas to first take a Yamunä bath at
Visrama Ghat in Mathura before entering Sri Krsna's sacred land of
Vrindavana.
History
Tragically those monument surroundings ultimately became Sha Jahan's
prison. His son, Aurangzeb, seized the throne and imprisoned his
father for the last eight years of his life. Legend maintains that
Shah Jahan spent his final years locked in the Agra Fort, gazing from
the Jasmine Tower of his marble palace, down the Yamuna River to the
Taj Mahal, the tomb of his beloved wife. Tended by Jahanara, his
eldest daughter, Shah Jahan was confined to the fort for eight years.
According to legend, when Shah Jahan was on his deathbed, he kept his
eyes fixed on the Taj Mahal where his beloved lies. After his death,
Shah Jahan was buried there beside his dead queen, Mumtaz Mahal. Their
love never separated them in life, miseries and finally in death. Taj
Mahal synonymous with Mumtaz Mahal remains the eternal monument for
their everlasting love.
