Radha-Gopinath Mandir & Krishna Kund, Lohvan

Lohvan, roughly 9 km south-east of Mathura across the Yamuna near Mahavan, is one of the twelve forests (dvadash-van) of Braj where, tradition holds, Krishna grazed the cows of Gokul.

• Its name is read as Loh-van, the forest of Loha, after the asura Lohjangha (also called Lohasura), who is said to have lurked in an underground lair here and troubled the cowherds until Krishna drew him out and destroyed him.
• The spot where the demon fell is marked, in local tradition, by a small Shiva shrine some devotees call Lohjangheshwar Mahadev, worshipped alongside the Vaishnav temple as a guardian of the forest.
• At the heart of the site is Krishna Kund, a modest sacred pond, on whose bank stands the Radha-Gopinath temple where the black Gopinath deity is served with Radha.
• Pilgrims recall the lila of Krishna rowing the gopis across the water in a small boat, and the cave of Lohasura is pointed out only a short distance from the kund.
• Elder tradition also links the grove to the austerities of the sage Sanat Kumar, layering the little forest with quiet sanctity.
• Be honest about the physical reality: this is not a grand marble complex but a small, little-visited village shrine on a rustic parikrama trail.
• It sits on the Chaurasi-Kos (84-kos) route rather than the main Mathura tourist circuit, so the reward here is silence, cows, open Braj fields and unhurried darshan rather than spectacle.
• The shrines here are simple structures; visit with the mindset of a pilgrim, not a sightseer, and photograph the surroundings rather than deities inside.
• For the vegetarian traveller, Lohvan itself has no reliable restaurant.
• Carry your own food or plan to eat back in Mathura or Gokul, where verified pure-veg, egg-free kitchens serve peda, kachori-sabzi and thali.
• A firm caution for all of Braj: bhang (cannabis) thandai and lassi are sold openly at roadside stalls and government theka shops, and a laced drink can look and be named almost exactly like an ordinary one.
• Never accept thandai or lassi from an unknown stall here or near Mathura's ghats; stick to sealed bottled water and sweets from a trusted halwai.
• Combine Lohvan with nearby Mahavan, Gokul and Brahmand Ghat for a half-day of quieter Braj lila-sthalis.
• Darshan follows informal village-temple rhythms; there is no ticket, but hours are not fixed, so aim for morning or late afternoon and reconfirm locally before setting out.