Nepal is a landlocked country between India and China. It is small country but very popular in the world due to the it’s natural beauty and the country is home to many pilgrimage sites related to the two predominant religions of Nepal, Hinduism and Buddhism. The Himalaya is considered the abode of the gods. As the Hindu Scripture Skanda Purana cites, “In a hundred ages of the gods, I could not tell thee of the glories of the Himalaya. As the dew is dried up by the morning sun, so are the sins of mankind by the sights of the Himalaya.” The country abounds in many temples, monasteries and shrines visited by the devout followers of their respective faiths, which include the places of worship of other religions such as Islam, Christianity, Bon, Kirat, Jain and Sikh. Some of these sites are located in the Kathmandu valley, the capital city.
- Pashupatinath
- Swayambhunath
- Krisnhna Mandir
- Bhudanilkantha
- Hanuman Dhoka
- Dakshinkali
- Guhyeshwari
- Changu Narayan
- Bagalamukhi and Kumbheshwar
- Bajrajogini
- Bauddhanath Stupa
Pashupatinath
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Pashupatinath, or Pashupati, is a Hindu temple on the banks of the Bagmati River in Deopatan, a village 3 km northwest of Kathmandu. It is dedicated to a manifestation of Shiva called Pashupati (Lord of Animals). It attracts thousands of pilgrims each year and has become well known far beyond the Kathmandu Valley. The temple is barred to non-Hindus, but a good view of the temple can be had from the opposite bank of the river.
It is not known for certain when Pashupatinath was founded. Tradition says it was constructed by Pashupreksha of the Somadeva Dynasty in the 3rd century BC, but the first historical records date from the 13th century. The ascetic Pashupata sect was likely related to its foundation.
Pashupati was a tutelary deity of the ancient rulers of the Kathmandu Valley; in 605 AD, Amshuvarman considered himself favored by his touching of the god's By the later Middle Ages, many imitations of the temple had been built, such as in Bhaktapur (1480), Lalitpur (1566) and Benares (early 19th century). The original temple was destroyed several times until it was given its present form under King Bhupalendra Malla in 1697.
According to a legend recorded in local texts, especially the Nepalamahatmya and the Himavatkhanda, the Hindu god Shiva once fled from the other gods in Varanasi to Mrigasthali, the forest on the opposite bank of the Bagmati River from the temple. There, in the form of a gazelle, he slept with his consort Parvati. When the gods discovered him there and tried to bring him back to Varanasi, he leapt across the river to the opposite bank, where one of his horns broke into four pieces. After this, Shiva became manifest as Pashupati (Lord of Animals) in a four-face (chaturmukha) linga.
Swayambhunath
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Swayambhunath is a very popular and beautiful place, this is one of the world's most glorious Buddhist Chaityas. It is said to be 2000 years old. Painted on the four sides of the spire bases are the all-seeing eyes of Lord Buddha., it is situated 4 km. from center of Kathmandu city. specially it is know as Buddhist Stupa, it lies on top of the small hill, which lies in south part of Capital city. It is also famous by the name of Monkey Temple as there are a lot of monkeys living around the north west part of the temple Swayambhunath means the self-manifested Lord Swayambhu and people believed to derive from a time when tradition says, Kathmandu valley wan under the water of vast lake, and it was a know as s home of Vipashwi Buddha is credited with having sown lotus, which grew into a giant jeweled lotus.And also it has another story which says that Manjushree used his sword to drain the lake once filed the Kathmandu Valley, Swayambhu was a small stupa when it first appeared, but after a long time suffered demolition from earthquakes and it was whitewashed and plastered.The main entrance has 365 stone steps which need to be climbed before you reach the temple.From Swayambhu we can see very beautiful view of Kathmandu city and many mountains beside hills.It is said that the stupa had been built during the Lichhivi regime in Nepal. It is a Tibetan type monastery which has museum, library and many more things added in recent era.
Krisnhna Mandir
Krishna Mandir is Nepal's finest piece of stone architecture. Siddhi Narsingh, a passionate devotee of Krishna, built this temple in the 17th century when he dreamed Krishna and Radha being union at this spot. This magnificent temple is a delicate, airy creation which defies its heavy material. The first story of the temple consists of scenes from the Hindu holy book Mahabharat; the second story pavilions are banded by friezes from the Ramayana. Atop a stone pillar in front, a brilliantly executed large metal Garuda (the bird on which Lord Krishna rides) kneels in homage.
Bhudanilkantha
Bhudanilkantha Temple lies in Northern part of Kathmandu city, it is far away about 5km. from Capital city, it is deep below at the base of Shivapuri hill. According to the tradition meaning of Budhanilkath is "old blue throat".
Budhanilkantha has it own history and it is know as a historical place of Nepal. Particularly Hindu religion belongs this temple and it is know as God Vishnu. This temple is created by King Pratap Malla. Once he saw God Vishnu on his dream and he has strong belief on God Vishnu. The Lord Vishnu lies prominently at 5m. in length inside a tank 13m long giving the impression of floating, around this temple we can see many others God temples, daily many people visit this temple, specially Nepalese and Indian people come to visit this place.The basic festival of the year is when Lord Vishnu who sleeps on the cosmic ocean during Chaturmasya periods wakes up on the Haribodhini Ekadashi day in late October or early November period. Many thousand of Hindu people come their day to celebrate their festival.
Hanuman Dhoka
Most of the cultural centers of Nepal are concentrated around the Kathmandu Valley; among those cultural sites, the important one is the Hanuman-Dhoka Durbar Square (HDDS). Located at the heart of ancient city Kathmandu it is a complex of beautiful temples and shrines both Hindu and Buddhist. Most of them are built in the pagoda style embellished with intricately carved exteriors built between 12th and 18th centuries. The Durbar square with its old temples palaces epitomizes the religious and cultural life of the people. It is here that kings of Nepal are crowned and their coronations solemnized. Until the early 20th century the Durbar square was the king’s residence. It is a living open museum of Nepal. The name Hanuman Dhoka Durbar came from the statue of hanuman established by king Pratap Malla at the entrance of the royal palace in 1672 A.D. the nine storied residence built by king Prithbi Narayan Shah in 1770 is called Basantajpur Durva. The whole complex is also known as Kathmandu Durbar square The palace complex was originally founded during the Lichchhavi period but as it stands today most of it was constructed by king Pratap Malla in 17th century. The palace was renovated many times in later year. The architectural remains and art objects within the palace complex now existing are from Malla shah and Rana period of Nepal.
Dakshinkali
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Dakshinkali Temple lies at the distance of 22 km southern edge of the Kathmandu valley. Dakshinkali Temple is one of the well-known Hindu worship that is committed to the Goddess Kali otherwise called "the dark one". The temple is dedicated to the goddess Kali, Shiva's consort in her most bloodthirsty incarnation, and twice a week faithful Nepal’s journey here to satisfy her blood-lust, so many devotees arriving here bring unsaturated male animals like goats, hens, ducks, sheep and occasionally buffaloes. The temple is thronged with devotees especially on Tuesday and Saturday. Stream of blood flows along the temple and Goddess Kali is bathed in blood on the annual occasion of Dashain which falls in October.The animals are butchered in the stream beside the temple and the carcass is eaten as ‘Prasadam’(holy food ) by participants. The six armed image of Kali is of black stone. It is taken also as the favorite picnic spot by people of Kathmandu. Since this place is quite far away from the valley and there is less noise, crowd and other types of pollution. People can also be enjoying with friends and families in this place.People believe that if we pray to the goddess and offer sacrifice our enemies will demise and we will be victories in our way, and lots of other people do make their wishes to goddess. This place is really good if you once visit you will never forget lifetime.
Guhyeshwari
It is one of the famous Shakti Peeths in Nepal and is located on the banks of the Bagmati River near the Pashupatinath Temple. Here too, non-Hindus are denied entry. The goddess is replicated here in the form of a silver plated water-hole which is kept covered by a silver kalash (auspicious water jar).
The Swasthani Brata Katha chronicles the origin of the temple. Following the death by self-immolation in a fire by his beloved consort Sati Devi, a grief-stricken Shiva wandered aimlessly across the earth carrying her dead body on his shoulders. In the course of his directionless wandering, the corpse began to rot, and parts of the body fell at different places.
Changu Narayan
The Changu Narayan Temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is perched atop a small hill to the east of Kathmandu in Bhaktapur district. It is one of the best known Vishnu - Narayan is another name of Vishnu - temples in Nepal and is visited by a large number of devotees especially during Harishayani Ekadashi in the month of Ashadh and Haribodhini Ekadashi in Kartik, over the four month period when Lord Vishnu is supposed to retire to sleep.
At the front of the temple is a beautiful statue of Garuda dating back to 5th century Lichchhavi period. This Garuda is unique in that it resembles a human being except that it has wings unlike other Garuda statues found elsewhere. The Garuda is the baahan (carrier) of Lord Vishnu, and it is interesting to note that all Vishnu temples have the celestial bird seated on its knee with folded palms in front of the temple.
Bagalamukhi and Kumbheshwar
This is a five-storey pagoda-style temple of Lord Shiva. Inside the courtyard is a natural spring whose source, it is said. is the famous glacial lake of Gosainkunda. This temple was built by King Jayasthiti Malla while the golden finial was added later, in 1422 A.D. He also cleaned the pond near Kumbheshwar and installed various images of Narayan, Ganesh, Sitala, Basuki, Gauri, Kirtimukh and Agamadevata around the pond and in the courtyard. Ritual bathing takes place here every year on the day of Janai Poornima.
Bajrajogini
Bajrajogini, situated in Sankhu village 20 km east of Kathmandu, is a prominent Tantric deity which is worshipped by both Buddhists and Hindus alike. The three-storey pagoda was constructed by Kantipur (Kathmandu) King Pratap Malla in the 17th century. There is also the temple of Khadgajogini in the area. Goats, chicken and ducks are offered as sacrifice to the deity during festivals such as Dashain. Buddhists following the Vajrayana sect also consider the temple to be sacred. There are a number of prayer wheels with inscriptions of “Om Mani Padme Hum” written in Tibetan script.
Bauddhanath Stupa
The Bauddhanath Stupa is one of the most imposing landmarks in Kathmandu and is also another center of Buddhism in the valley. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The entry to the Bauddhanath Stupa complex is through a gate, and shops selling tourist paraphernalia and restaurants ring the stupa. The path around the stupa is crowded with devotees circumambulating clockwise round the stupa, turning prayer wheels with the writing “Om Mani Padme Hum” inscribed on them. Devout pilgrims prostrate themselves along the path.
The stupa is said to contain relics of Kashyapa Buddha, who preceded the arrival of the Enlightened Buddha, according to Buddhist holy texts. The stupa, originally constructed around the 5th century, is said to have been renovated in the 7th and 8th century to the present form. To the north of the stupa is the temple dedicated to Harati Ajima, the goddess that protects children from diseases such as smallpox. According to folklore, she was used to devouring children of the settlements. Buddha persuaded her to give up the cannibalism, and she now protects the shrine. According to legend, however, the temple is dedicated to Sukhotama Devi who is supposed to have built the stupa.
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