The following article is based on inputs by Acharya Shri Vedgopal Goswami of Shri Shri Balbhadra Peeth, Vrindavan. According to him, Bade Dauji is the elder brother of Govind Dev who manifested along with Him and three other deities from the Gomatila. Although this is an account from Braj's oral history, Vedgopal Goswami ji tries to provide evidence from the shastras to support his stance.
Bade Dauji - Govind Dev's forgotten brother
Vindavan Today
Vindavan Today
Vindavan Today
Vindavan Today
Vindavan Today




Vrindavan,
2020-08-23 (Acharya Shri Vedgopal Goswami): Baldev Chhath,
or the appearance day of Sheshavatar Balaram (also known as Dau, Baldau,
Baldev, and Daudayal), the elder brother of Shri Krishna, is celebrated on Bhadrapad Shukla Paksha Shashti (August
24, 2020) in Braj with great enthusiasm.
According to Puranic
history (Garga Puran), to save Devaki’s
seventh (unborn) child from the evil Kamsa, Devi Yogmaya transferred him to the
womb of Vasudev’s second wife Rohini who was living under the guardianship of
Nandbaba in Gokul. On the auspicious day of Bhadrapad
Shukl Paksh Shashti, Shri Balaram, the avatar
(incarnation) of Shesha Nag (the
divine serpent and king of all Nagas who always accompanies Shri Vishnu) was
born to mother Rohini. He is also known as Shankarshan.
This year, Baldev
Chhatt is being observed on August 24. While Baldeo’s Dauji is the most
well-known temple of Bhagwan Balaram, particularly famous for annual fair (Dauji ka mela), according to one of the
many accounts of Braj’s oral history, a quaint temple in Vrindavan’s anaaj mandi graced by the biggest Dauji vigraha in Braj is the original Balbhadra
Peeth.
The beautiful deity of
Baldau worshipped here, is said to have manifested along with Govind Dev and three
other vigrahas – Devi Yogamya, Vrinda
Devi, and Singhpore Hanuman, - from Gomatila. Acharya Shri Vedgopal Goswami
whose ancestors have been in the service of Dauji in an unbroken chain, throws
light on this mesmerising account from Braj's oral history.
Braj
ke Raja Daudayal
स्फुरदमलकिरीटं किंङ्किणीकङ्कणाहे,
चलदलक
कपोलं
कुण्डल
श्रीमुखाब्जम्।
तुहि
न
गिरि
मनोज्ञं
नील
मेघामबराढ्यं,
हल
मुसल
विशालं
कामपालं
समीडे।।
The
one with a glowing crown, bedecked with the waist girdle and rings, His curled
locks caressing the cheeks, dazzling ear-rings add to the irresistible beauty
of His lotus face, He is as majestic as the Himalayas. Adorned with the mesmerising
‘neelambar’ (blue) and sporting the plough and mace, Him, I remember - the
supreme, Bhagwan Balbhadra.
Situated on the banks
of Yamuna, Shri Dham Vrindavan is home to nearly 5500 temples, where the Saptadevalayas of Gaudiya Sampradaya are considered most ancient, particularly Govind
Dev, Gopinath and Madan Mohan ji.
The granthas say that instructed by
Shandilya Muni, the great grandson of Shri Krishna, King Bajranabh requested
Vishwakarma to make the vigrahas of
many gods and goddesses in a span of about 5250 years. One of them was Shri Govind
Dev. When the king’s mother (grandmother according to some accounts), saw the
image, she at once drew the veil out of modesty because its lotus face (mukharvind) was exactly like that of
Shri Krishna.
All these deities of
Braj-Vrindavan got buried in the sands of time. In the early 16th
century, instructed by Shri Chiatanya Mahaprabhu, Shri Roop Goswami set out on
the search for these lost treasures. While looking for Govind Dev, he was
directed by Shri Krishna Himself to Gomatila. In Dwapar Yug this place was
known as Keshi Teerth. When people started digging at the Gomatila, Govind Dev
manifested from the kshetra/shakti peeth along
with four other vigrahas – His elder
brother - Sheshavatar Balaram, Devi Yogmaya, Vrinda Devi and Singhpore Hanuman.
Considering the evidence
from Ashwamedh Khand of Garga Samhita, King Bajranabh performed
an Ashwamedh Yagnya in Mathura following
which he consecrated six vigrahas all
over Braj. The sacrifice (yagnya) was
similar in grandeur to the one conducted by Maharaj Yuddhishtir in Hastinapur.
These deities were Shri Deergh Vishnu and Keshav Dev in Mathura, Govind Dev in
Vrindavan, Hari Dev in Govardhan, Gokuleshwar in Gokul, and Baldau instated a yojan away from Gokul. Along with these,
another five vigrahas of Bhagwan Balaram
are also mentioned.
ततः
च
मथुरायां
च
दीर्घविष्णुं
च
केशवम।
वृन्दावने
च
गोविंदं
हरिदेवं
गिरीक्ष्वरे।।
गोकुले
गोकुलेशं
च
गोकुलाद्योजने
बलम।
स्थापयामास
वज्रस्तु
हरेश्च
प्रतिमाश्च
षट।।
बलस्य
प्रतिमाश्चान्याः
पञ्च
वै
व्रजमण्डले।
नृणा
शुभाय
वज्रस्तु
स्थापयामास
हर्षितः।।
After the deities had manifested,
Roop Goswami’s disciple, Raja Maan Singh of Jaipur constructed a magnificent
red sandstone temple for Them at the site. Govind Dev and Dau ji were
consecrated there and worshipped next to each other until Braj came into the
grip of marauding Mughals in the 18th century. Shri Govind Dev was rushed
to Jaipur. He has been residing there since 1734.
Dauji stayed behind. His
vigraha was hidden in a kund (sacred pond) near the temple. While
most of the kund has been encroached
upon today, a chhatri of it can still
be seen in Govind Ghera area. It is believed that He remained safe inside the
pond until the terror of the Mughals subsided. He didn’t leave Vrindavan.
वृंदावन
काटन
लागौ
भाग
गए
सब
देव।
वृन्दावन
ठाड़े
रहे
यमुना
और
बलदेव।।
Baldau’s vigraha was later worshipped for a long
time at the place where the new temple stands today. He is still present there as
‘Gupt Dauji’.
The daughter of Raja
Jai Singh once got a message that Govind Dev ji’s elder brother was left behind
in Vrindavan. Determined to bring Him to Jaipur, she left for Vrindavan at
once. However, the camels that were supposed to carry the vigraha refused to move an inch. The princess was perplexed. That
night Dauji appeared to her in a dream and said that He will not leave
Vrindavan.
In samvat 1835, she
ordered the constriction of the present temple in anaaj mandi. The princess was by that time the queen of Karoli. She
offered the village of ‘sanet’ as daan (charitable
offering) to the temple. Bade Dauji has been residing here since that time.
Acharya Shri Vedgopal
Goswami claims that his ancestors were the ‘kul
purohits’ of Govind Dev Mandir. The seva
of Thakur Shri Dauji Maharaj and His temple was entrusted to Shri Govind Gopal
Goswami (Parashar Gotra) and it has continued since then in an unbroken
chain/tradition.
The vigraha of Dauji at Shri Balbhadra Peeth
is the biggest in Braj, hence He is called ‘Bade Dauji’. His face resembles with that of Jaipur's Govind Rai. All festivals are celebrated
with great enthusiasm at the Balbhadra Peeth; however, Paush
Khichdi Mahotsav and Bhado’s Baldev
Chhat are most important.
On Baldev Chhat the day
begins with the mangala aarti. Around
10, panchamirt abhishek of Dauji with
milk, curd, sugar, ghee, honey, herbs, saffron, sandalwood and different types
of scented oils is performed. Shringaar
aarti and Rajbhog is offered at
12. Since Baldau loves the neelambar and
kheer (sweet milk and rice pudding), He is dressed in a splendid blue poshak after the grand rituals and
offered His favourite kheer along
with other delicacies such as malpua
and makhan mishri bhog. This is
followed by badhai gayan and prasad vitaran (distribution). During
the afternoon sadhu and brahman seva is done.
In the evening, (around
6 pm), Dauji Maharaj phool bangla, chappan bhog and nauka vihar darshan is organised amidst the backdrop of bhajan sandhya. Sayan aarti is held at 9
pm.
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