Uttar Pradesh: Aaditya Thackeray inaugurates refurbished 500-year-old temple

Shiv Sena UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray on Monday inaugurated the refurbished 500yearold Thakur Shyama Shyam temple in Mathura Uttar Pradesh the ANI reportedAaditya Thackeray also paid obeisance at the temple during the programme the temples priest Mukesh Swami saidThe priest said the temple was constructed by Cheet Swami one of the eight noted disciples of Mahaprabhu Ballabhacharya over 500 years agoAaditya Thackeray refused to comment on political questions asked by reporters after the inaugurationFlanked by party MP Priyanka Chaturvedi Thackeray paid obeisance at the Yamuna amid the chanting of Vedic hymnsHe also paid obeisance to the principal deity of the three main temples based at the Srikrishna Janmasthan said Vijai Bahadur Singh the spokesperson of the Srikrishna Janmasthan Seva SansthanHe also prayed at Bankey Bihari temple its priest Gyanendra Goswami saidThe Thakur Shyama Shyam Mandir situated at Shyam Ghat was restored with the efforts Chaturvedi with the help of N R Alluris Nagarjuna FoundationAaditya Thackeray was scheduled to visit Mathura to inaugurate the Thakur Shyama Shyam Mandir and visit Krishna Janmabhoomi Banke Bihari temple along with other important temples on Monday a press release earlier issued from Shiv Sena UBT Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedis office had said on FridayThakur Shyama Shyam Mandir a venerable heritage temple situated at Shyam Ghat Mathura boasts a rich history spanning 500 years Rooted in the Pushtimarg tradition also recognized as the Vallabha Sampradaya within Vaishnavism this temple holds a unique place as a subtradition of the Rudra Sampradaya the release stated reported PTIThe temple was established in the early 16th century by Vallabhacharya It was further expanded by his notable successors such as Vitthalnath reported PTIShri Vallabhacharya assigned eight ashtasakhas eight gems to contribute to the Bhakti movement of Shri Lord Krishna and promote Brij Bhasha the language of Braj Dedicated to the Yugal form of ashtasakha Shri Cheet Swamiji this sacred temple is maintained by the Cheet Swami lineage reminiscent of Banke Bihari at Nathdwara the release mentioned reported PTIAs the first temple encountered by the Braj yatris it holds particular importance during the 84 Kosi pilgrimage Vaishnavites visiting Vishram Ghat for Yamuna Paan find solace in this temple underlining its significance and historical eminence reported PTIwith PTI inputs