The followers of Pushtimarg narrate that the deity's arm and face first emerged from the Govardhan hill, and thereafter, the local inhabitants (Vrajavasis) under the spiritual leadership of Madhevdrapuri started the worship of the Gopal(Krishna).deity. This Gopala deity was later termed as Shrinathji. Thus, Madhavendra Puri is attributed to discovery of the deity of Gopal near GOvardhana, which was later adapted and worshiped by Vallabhacharya as Shrinathji. Initially, Madhavendra Puri, carried out the worship of the deity's upraised arm and later, the face.
According to Pushtimarg literature, Shrinathji appeared to Shri Vallabhacharya in the Hindu Vikram Samwat year 1549 and directed the Vallabhacharya to proceed to the Govardhan Hill to begin worship. Vallabhacharya made arrangements for the worship of this deity, and this tradition was carried forward by his son, Vithalanathji.
History
According to the legend, the Srinathji deity self-manifested from stone and emerged from the Govardhan Hills. Historically, the image of Shrinathji was first worshipped at Govardhan hill, near Mathura. The image was initially shifted from Mathura in 1672 A.D. along river Yamuna and was retained at Agra for almost six months, in order to safeguard it from, according to legend, the Mughal ruler Aurangzeb, who wished to keep the prestigious deity with him in Agra.Subsequently, the image was transferred further south on a chariot to a safer place to protect it from barbarian destruction unleashed by Mughal ruler Aurangzeb.When the icon reached the spot at village Sihad or Sinhad in Mewar, the wheels of chariot in which the icon was being transported sank into mud and could not be moved any farther. The accompanying priests realised that the place was the Shrinathji's chosen spot and accordingly, the icon was installed in a temple there under the rule and protection of the then Maharana Raj singh of Mewar.
In the anomical environment of late 18th and early 19th century, the temple of Shrinathji was attacked by the Medas and the Pindaris. Accordingly, the icon was shifted again and was protected at Udaipur and Ghasiyar under the patronage of Maharana Bheem Singh of Mewar.
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