What does 84 kos mean? The Chaurasi Kos parikrama explained

Kos as unit

A kos is an old Indian measure of distance, roughly three kilometres by common reckoning. It is the distance a shout can carry, or the distance a bullock cart covers at a steady walk in a short time. The exact value varied from region to region and century to century. The Mughal kos-minar pillars along the old roads were set about one kos apart.

So when someone says eighty-four kos, they are using an old measure that has no single exact equivalent. The modern figure is a convention, not a survey.

It helps to picture a village road before any highway existed. A traveller on foot would count his journey by kos, the way we count by kilometre markers today, and a pilgrim would say he had come so many kos to reach the dham.

84 kos about 252 km, verify

Multiply 84 by 3 and you reach about 252 km, the length most often quoted for the Braj Chaurasi Kos Parikrama. Some pilgrim sources give slightly different totals depending on the route taken, and it is best read as a traditional reckoning. The circuit passes through parts of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana.

The number 84 itself carries meaning in Indian tradition, associated with the cycle of births. Local belief holds that completing the circuit frees the walker from fear of rebirth. This is belief, and I have not matched it to a specific verse.

The story as the scripture tells it

The twelve forests of Braj, the twenty-four groves and the sacred hills and lakes are listed in the Varaha Purana, in a section called the Mathura Mahatmya. It tells that Mathura mandal is twenty yojanas wide and that any visit to its tirthas brings merit. Exact numbers differ between editions, so I give the idea and not the verse.

The Bhagavatam does not list the circuit, but it tells the individual lilas that mark it: Talavan and the demon Dhenuka (10.15), Bhandirvan and Pralamba (10.18), Mahavan and the mortar (10.9). The Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya Lila 17 and 18, describes Mahaprabhu's walk through the forests of Braj in the sixteenth century.

Most pilgrims who walk it carry a pocket Bhagavatam or a book of Braj songs, and read a few verses at each stop. This habit of reading the story where it happened is probably the oldest reason the circuit exists.

Where in Braj it happened (place by place, tradition flagged)

The circuit takes in Mathura, Vrindavan, Mahavan and Gokul, Baldeo, Govardhan, Radha Kund, Barsana, Nandgaon, Kamyavan and Bhandirvan, among others. Seven of the twelve forests are traditionally counted on the west bank of the Yamuna and five on the east, though local lists differ.

Different traditions follow slightly different routes, and some stops lie in Rajasthan, such as Kamyavan in the Deeg district. Present roads do not follow the old paths exactly.

What the story means to the people who live here

In Braj, walking around a holy place keeping it on your right is an act of love. The 84 kos is the largest such act. Families save for it, and in Kartik month organised walks such as ISKCON's Vrajamandala Parikrama pass through the villages with chanting and tents.

Villagers along the route offer water and a place to rest. For them the pilgrims are guests of Krishna, and treating them well is part of the yatra.

Even a short part of the walk brings the feeling. A single day on the Govardhan road is enough to meet the courtesy of the villages.

How to read it before you go, and a short audio or reading list

A good first book is a good translation of the tenth canto of the Bhagavatam, especially chapters 8 to 18. Then a modern guide to the places, such as the Braj Discovery website, which lists many of the stops in Hindi and English.

For the idea of parikrama itself, read about the Govardhan circuit. It is the same walk in miniature, with its own stories at every stage.

• Srimad Bhagavatam 10.8 to 10.18
• Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya 17 and 18
• Braj Discovery website for place lists

How long it takes

On foot, the full circuit takes weeks, and organised groups often walk it in the cool month of Kartik. By car a driver can arrange the key places in about five to seven days. A shorter version, covering the main towns and a few forests, can be done in two or three days. Winter, from October to February, is the right season. Summer is not advised.

Ask your driver or guide to explain in advance which days involve long drives and which involve walking, so that elders in the group can choose the days that suit them.

Visit the place: link to the guide page

Our guide has a page for the 84 kos overview, the twelve forests and each stop you can reach by car. If you only have a weekend, start with Govardhan and Barsana and treat them as the first two steps of a longer path.

Takeaway: carry the story, not the worry

Nobody completes Braj in one visit, and nobody is asked to. In the spirit of the Gita, do your part with devotion and let the result take care of itself. Take the part you can walk, and leave the rest for the next time.

lala:Cab plans the road, the rest stops and the timing, so that your attention stays with the place.

Questions, answered