SRI KRISHNA MUTT

Udupi is known for its Sri Krishna Mutt. On the main façade, there is no door to indicate the entrance of the temple. Instead, there is a small window, through which one can see the idol from outside. In fact, the access to the mutt is from the south. On the right side of the temple is the sacred tank, called Madhwa Pushkarani. It is surrounded by stone steps and a mandapam (hall) sits at its center.

History. According to legend, the idol of Sri Krishna was fashioned by Viswakarma, on the orders of Sri Krishna himself, from a stone of Saligrama. Towards the end of Dwapara Yuga, Devaki felt a strong desire to see Krishna's balaleela once again. These leela, performed by Krishna for his mother, were witnessed by his wife, Rukmini, who, falling in love with this balaroopa, ordered Krishna to procure a similar idol for her daily worship. It was then that Krishna asked Viswakarma to make such an idol of Balakrishna, with a churn in his right hand and a rope in the other. And it was this idol that was worshipped daily by Rukmini. After the disappearance of Sri Krishna from this world, the idol fell into the hands of Arjuna, who hid it in Rukmini's garden. Over time, the idol was covered with a thick layer of sand, dust and vegetation. One day, a sailor from Dwaraka loaded this heavy piece into his boat to serve as ballast. Sri Madhvacharya, alerted by his aparoksha, or divine gnana, waited for the arrival of this precious ballast at Vadabhandeswar, a seaside site near Udupi. When the boat approached it, it was caught in a severe storm and was about to sink. The captain of the boat, seeing a holy man on the shore, implored him to save him from disaster. Thereupon, Sri Madhvacharya waved the top piece of his garment and calmed the storm. The grateful captain offered him all the riches his ship contained, but he accepted only the heavy piece of ballast from the lot. When Sri Madhvacharya broke it, he found the beautiful and perfect idol of Sri Krishna. He carried it to Udupi and, having installed it in the temple, began to worship it. Since that time, the idol continues to be worshipped by pooja led by Sri Madhvacharya's disciples, all of whom are balasanayasi. The right to touch and worship this idol is reserved exclusively for these eight mutt, spiritual descendants of Sri Madhvacharya. No one else can touch it.