Dada Siba Radha Krishna Temple, Himachal Pradesh

Address

Dada Siba Radha Krishna Temple, Dada Siba Village, Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh 177106

Diety

Krishna Amman: Radha

Introduction

Radha Krishna temple is located at Dada Siba Village, around 76 kms from Kangra town, in Himachal Pradesh. The village has an exquisitely painted temple dedicated to Radha – Krishna. Around 20 km from Pragpur on the road leading to Dharamshala lays the nondescript village of Dada Siba. Construction of the temple was started by Raja Gobind Singh in 1835 CE but completed by his son Raja Ram Singh in 1853 CE.

Puranic Significance

It is said that the best craftsmen were employed and the finest Nanakshahi bricks used in the construction of the Dada Siba temple. The stone of the temple came from Jodhpur while the murti of Radha Krishna came from Jaipur. The biggest attraction of this temple is the stunning frescoes on its walls. The style of painting is typical of the Kangra region in its use of brilliant yellow, red, green, blue, orange, black and white colors. The themes of the paintings range from figures of gods and goddesses to floral and geometrical patterns. However, legends associated with the life of Krishna are the main theme. The outer walls of the shikharas exhibit traces of paint which prove they were painted originally. The arched ceiling and walls of the entrance hall and two small chambers flanking the sanctum are covered with paintings, while the temple sanctum itself has marble walls and paintings cover only the ceiling. The figures of deities carved in marble wall have been painted yellow. The village of Dada Siba was part of the princely state of Dada Siba, which came to power in the mid 15th century CE as an offshoot of the Katoch dynasty.