When the Pushtimarg devotional movement began in India five hundred years ago, the founder likely couldn’t have imagined how its followers would spread around the world and, in the twentieth century, to the shores of the United States.
According to tradition, this dramatic history began with a dream. In 1493, the Hindu god Krishna appeared to Vallabha, a teacher, philosopher, and sage. Krishna commanded Vallabha to find a stone form on Govardhan hill in the region of north India called Braj (also known as Vraj). Vallabha recognized the stone figure as Shri Nathji, Krishna’s form as a child, and began to worship him. He established a temple on the mountain and began the Pushtimarg tradition.
Pushtimarg, translated as “path of grace,” is one of the north Indian devotional (bhakti) movements that emphasize a personal relationship with Krishna. As Pushtimarg expanded in India, it also accompanied devotees to other countries. In the nineteenth century, images of Shri Nathji reached parts of the British colonial empire, and Pushtimarg established roots where Indians migrated. By the late twentieth century, Pushtimarg and other forms of Hinduism had built a presence in North America.
The evolution of Hinduism in the United States was made possible by a dramatic change in immigration law. In 1965, Congress passed the Immigration and Nationality Act, which for the first time since 1924 opened the nation’s doors to the Eastern Hemisphere. The legislation also created a pathway for Hindus to follow the American dream.
Hindu communities of many varieties rapidly evolved in the United States. On the East Coast in Flushing, New York, skilled workers from India erected the first Hindu temple in the country. Planners used ancient construction methods but also conformed to stringent US building codes, adapting to the host society. Another south Indian temple was completed high on the hills outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as a dramatic symbol of this vibrant addition to American religion.
Temples from north Indian devotional bhakti traditions soon followed. In 1966, the first Hare Krishna temple in the United States was founded in New York. In 1974, the first temple from the Swaminarayan movement opened, also in New York.
By the late 1980s, Pushtimarg temples had been constructed in New York and Texas with the support of spiritual leaders in India. In 1988 in Pennsylvania, the Vraj temple and pilgrimage center was created and dedicated in 2002. It now attracts over 170,000 pilgrims a year and is recognized within the tradition as the official residence of Shri Nathji in the western hemisphere. Pushtimarg temples were also opened in other regions of the United States where large populations of Gujaratis had settled.
Across the United States, Pushtimarg devotees found ways to honor their heritage and at the same time connect with established patterns of religion in the West. American traditions such as youth groups, community service, and retreats became part of Pushtimarg institutional life. Temples recruited volunteers to help prepare food, care for the building, and teach classes. As Pushtimarg developed a national presence, a curriculum was produced, helping children learn about their parents’ religion. Pushtimarg became a global religion with a thriving US community.
One of the most distinctive aspects of the Pushtimarg tradition is its emphasis on the arts. Vibrant paintings of Shri Nathji that are known as pichwais play a key role in the tradition. To exhibit the National Museum of Asian Art pichwais, we’ve collaborated with members of the Hindu community to provide personal and profound perspectives on why and how these paintings are meaningful. Learn more about this upcoming exhibition below, or visit in person while it’s on display through August 24, 2025.
You can read more about the Pushtimarg diaspora in Seeing Krishna in America: The Hindu Bhakti Tradition of Vallabhacharya in India and Its Movement to the West (2014).
