Udupi Sri Krishna Matha

The story of Udupi Sri Krishna Matha

Udupi Sri Krishna Matha is the temple complex where Krishna is worshipped through the inner window called the Navagraha Kindi and the outer window known as the Kanakana Kindi, so the most striking thing here is that devotees do not stand before the deity in the usual way. The complex you are standing in was founded by the Vaishnavite saint Madhvacharya in the 13th century, and he is also remembered as the founder of the Dvaita school of Vedanta.

The temple is described as a historic Hindu temple dedicated to Krishna and to Dvaita Matha, and the Matha area resembles a living ashram, a holy place for daily devotion and living. Madhvacharya is believed to have found the vigraha of Krishna in a large ball of gopichandana, and in his Tantrasara Sangraha he placed it initially facing east. Later, because of the intense devotion shown by Kanakadasa, the deity is said to have turned Pashchimabhimukha, facing west. That is why all the other Vigrahas in other Ashta Mathas face west as well.

What you can look for here is the pair of viewing windows: the inner one is the Navagraha Kindi, and the outer one is the Kanakana Kindi, which is decorated by an arch named after Kanakadasa. A statue has also been erected here. Around the Krishna Temple are several other temples, including the Udupi Anantheshwara Temple, which is over a thousand years old.

This is also a working religious center. During the Paryaya festival, held once every two years, the temple management is handed over to the next Ashta Matha, and each Matha is headed by a swami during his Paryaya. The Paryaya tradition had completed 500 years as of 2021, and Puttige Matha is presently administering the temple with Junior Pontiff Shri Sushreendra Teertha Swamiji as Sarvajna or Paryaya Peetha. The place is a State Protected Monument, so what you see is both active shrine and protected heritage.