Kotwan, Mathura: The Sacred Braj Village of Sheetal Kund, Its Story and How to Reach

Key takeaways

• Kotwan is a sacred village in the north west of the Mathura district.

• It lies on the rim of Braj, at the UP and Rajasthan border.

• It is a holy place of Krishna in the Vaishnava tradition.

• It is home to the Sheetal Kund, a sacred kund of Krishna.

• It holds the Brijbhushan Mandir, the sadhana place of Mauni Baba.

• It is about 55 km north of Mathura, near Kosi and Nandgaon.

I am Gurudutt, born in Gokul in the Mathura district, guiding pilgrims through Braj since 2018: more than 50,000 of them. Beyond the famous towns of Braj lie many quieter and lesser known holy places, dear to the devout and rich in the presence of Krishna, and one of these is Kotwan, a sacred village on the far north western rim of the Mathura district. It is off the usual pilgrim track, a place of the Sheetal Kund and of holy ashrams, in the peaceful Braj countryside near the Rajasthan border. Here is everything you need: its significance, its sacred places, its location and how to reach it, told by someone from this land. Plan it with our Mathura Vrindavan Tour Package, message on WhatsApp at +91 7302265809, any day from 8 AM to 9 PM.

What is Kotwan?

Kotwan is a village in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, lying in the far north west of the district, on the very rim of the sacred land of Braj, at the border of Uttar Pradesh and the Bharatpur district of Rajasthan, near the Haryana border. It is a holy place in the Vaishnava tradition, part of Braj Bhoomi, the land of Krishna, and associated from ancient times with the Lord and his pastimes; some hold it among the sacred groves, the vans, of the wider Braj, under the name Kot Van. Though it is a small village, far from the crowds of Mathura and Vrindavan, it is revered by the devout for its sacred kund, its holy temple and ashram, and its place in the pilgrimage of all Braj, and thousands of Radha Krishna devotees come to it. It is a place of quiet and rural sanctity, the Braj of the countryside rather than the city. The table gives the essentials at a glance.

Kotwan, Mathura, at a glance.

Sheetal Kund: the sacred pond

The chief sacred place of Kotwan is the Sheetal Kund, a holy kund or pond associated with Lord Krishna and revered as a teerth, a sacred pilgrimage water, of Braj. Like the many kunds of the holy land, each bound to a leela or a saint, the Sheetal Kund is a place of pilgrimage where the devout come to bathe, to pray and to honour the memory of Krishna in this quiet corner of Braj. Its name, Sheetal, means cool or soothing, and it is held sacred and cooling to the soul. The kund and the sacred places around it have in recent times been officially recognised among the teerth sthals, the designated holy places, of the region, drawing the devotees who make the wider pilgrimage of Braj. To sit by the Sheetal Kund in the peace of the countryside is a gentle and moving experience, far from the press of the great temples.

The Brijbhushan Mandir and Mauni Baba

Kotwan holds too a revered temple and ashram, the Shri Brijbhushan Mandir, which has the proud privilege of being the sadhana sthali, the place of spiritual practice and penance, of the saint Shri Madhav Das ji Maharaj, known lovingly as Mauni Baba, of the renowned Ramanandi Sampraday, one of the great traditions of Vaishnava devotion. That a saint of such standing made Kotwan his place of sadhana has given the village a special sanctity and draws his devotees and followers to it. The ashram and temple are places of living devotion and penance, of the deep and quiet spiritual life of Braj that continues away from the tourist track, and to visit them is to touch that living tradition of holiness. It is this union of the ancient sacred kund and the living ashram that gives Kotwan its special character among the holy places of Braj.

Kotwan on the rim of Braj

Part of the interest of Kotwan is its place on the far edge of Braj, where the holy land meets Rajasthan. It lies about fifty five kilometres north of Mathura, near the town of Kosi, also called Kosi Kalan, on the old Delhi road, and about twenty kilometres from Nandgaon, the village of Krishna’s boyhood home; and just to its west, across into Rajasthan, lies Kaman, the ancient Kamyavan, one of the twelve great forests of Braj. So Kotwan sits among the outer holy places of the land, on the pilgrim ways of the far Braj, and is naturally joined to a pilgrimage of the northern and western reaches, of Nandgaon, Barsana, Kosi and Kamyavan. Our places to visit in Nandgaon guide covers a great centre nearby, and the Braj Chaurasi Kos Yatra guide the great pilgrimage that encircles all these places.

Location and how to reach Kotwan

Kotwan lies in the far north west of the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, about fifty five kilometres north of Mathura city, near Kosi Kalan on the old Delhi road, close to the border of Rajasthan and not far from Haryana. It is well connected by road, lying near the National Highway that joins Delhi and Mathura and Agra; the nearest railway stations are at Kosi Kalan and at Hodal, and the larger junction is Mathura, about fifty five kilometres away. It is about a hundred kilometres from Agra and roughly a hundred and thirty from Delhi. Being off the main pilgrim track, it is best reached by a private car, which can take it on a pilgrimage of the northern Braj. The table gives the distances.

Reaching Kotwan, Mathura. Distances are approximate; verify on the day.

Our Mathura Vrindavan taxi service can take you to Kotwan and the far Braj, and the three day Mathura Vrindavan pilgrimage tour covers the great centres of Braj.

Visiting Kotwan with the northern Braj

Because Kotwan lies on the far rim of Braj, it is best visited not alone but as part of a pilgrimage of the northern and western reaches of the holy land, which hold some of its most beautiful and less crowded places. Nearby lie Nandgaon, the hill village of Krishna’s boyhood home; Barsana, the village of Radha; Kosi, an old town of the pilgrim way; and, across in Rajasthan, Kaman, the ancient Kamyavan, one of the twelve sacred forests, rich in kunds and temples. A pilgrimage of these outer places, taking in Kotwan and its Sheetal Kund, is a lovely and peaceful counterpart to the busy towns of Mathura and Vrindavan, and shows the pilgrim the quieter, rural, deeply devotional face of Braj. Our Barsana tourist places guide covers another great centre of the western Braj.

When to visit

The cool months of October to March are much the best for a visit to Kotwan and the countryside of the northern Braj, pleasant for the drive and for the quiet sacred places. The great festivals of Krishna, above all Janmashtami and the springtime Holi, which is famous throughout this Barsana and Nandgaon region, are the most joyful and vivid times, though the villages are busier then. The peak summer of May and June is very hot in the open countryside, so the cool season is far kinder. Being a rural place, Kotwan is peaceful on most ordinary days, a quiet retreat for the devout. Our best time to visit Mathura Vrindavan guide is the seasons.

The honest bit

Honest words on Kotwan, from one born in Braj. This is a small and quiet village of the far countryside, a place of gentle rural sanctity, the Sheetal Kund and the ashram, rather than a grand temple town or a place of famous monuments, so come to it in that spirit, for its peace and its devotion and its living holiness, and not expecting the spectacle of Mathura or Vrindavan. Darshan is free, and no official VIP pass exists here or anywhere in Braj. Being off the main track, it has few of the facilities of the tourist towns, so plan your visit, carry water, and best come by a private car that can take it in along with the northern Braj, for public transport to so remote a village is slow and awkward. Respect the quiet of the ashram and the village, and Kotwan will give you a taste of the deep, rural, unhurried Braj that the crowds never see, one of the gentle hidden treasures of the holy land.

Why Experience My India is the right choice

I was born in Gokul Mahaban Bangar, and the whole of Braj, its famous towns and its hidden village shrines alike, is my own home ground. Guiding since 2018, more than 50,000 pilgrims, 4.5 stars across 204 Google reviews, WhatsApp first, 8 AM to 9 PM daily. What a local brings to a far place like Kotwan is the knowledge that it exists and is worth the journey, the roads to so remote a village known, the pairing of it with Nandgaon, Kosi and Kamyavan into a pilgrimage of the northern Braj, the story of the Sheetal Kund and the ashram told on the ground, and a car to carry you to the quiet corners the buses never reach. One clear fare, and never a charge for free darshan.

Tip from Gurudutt: do not make the long journey to Kotwan for its own sake alone, but weave it into a day of the northern and western Braj, the reaches that most pilgrims never see. Take in Nandgaon and its hill temple, Kosi on the old road, Kotwan with its Sheetal Kund and ashram, and if you have the time, cross into Rajasthan to Kaman, the ancient Kamyavan with its many kunds. A day among these quiet outer places, far from the crowds, shows you the deep rural soul of Braj, the holy countryside where the devotion is as strong as in the great temples and the peace far greater. It is a side of Braj I love to share.

Related guides

• Nandgaon, UP: the boyhood home of Krishna

• Barsana parikrama: the circle of Radha’s hills

• Govardhan temples: the temples of Giriraj and their timings

• Mathura tourism: a complete travel guide

• Tourist places in Mathura and Vrindavan: the complete guide

Plan your Braj pilgrimage

Tell me your dates and your group, and I will build Kotwan and the quiet places of the northern Braj into your pilgrimage, the remote roads planned, the Sheetal Kund and the ashram seen, paired with Nandgaon and the western Braj in the right order, with a car and a guide born on this soil, for one clear price. WhatsApp +91 7302265809, any day 8 AM to 9 PM. Packages from Rs 5,999 per person, 4.5 stars from 204 Google reviews. Born in Gokul, Mathura.