Day 2: Touring Kathmandu - Pashupatinath

After leaving the Boudhanath Buddhist temple, we boarded our touring van and went to the Pashupatinath Hindu temple.

Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu, Nepal

A UNESCO World Heritage site, Pashupatinath is a large Hindu temple situated in eastern Kathmandu on the banks of the river Bagmati. Prior to entering the main temple, we toured the temple located across the river up on a hill overlooking Pashupatinath. The temple was referred to only as the "Monkey Temple," and the name was quite apt. The temple was surrounded by a forest that contained many free ranging monkeys as well as a central enclosure that housed many head of deer. The temple complex consisted of a large courtyard that housed the inner sanctum of the temple. The courtyard was surrounded by other buildings associated with the temple, all centuries old.

We prepared to enter, and were all allowed in after paying the fee except our American Caucasian friend EW. Sadly, the temples restrict visitors to "true believers" unless one pays an exorbitant fee, so EW decided to explore the surrounding areas and wait for us at the exit. As we entered the inner sanctum, we were required to remove our shoes. Unfortunately, we left our socks on, which subsequently got soaked due to the mix of water and mud that surrounded the inner temple. As offerings, many people pour milk for the deities, but these offerings just drain down leading to the floor being soaked. The inner room was had a skylight lighting up the deity around which people were placing their offerings. We placed ours, and then eventually exited to reunite with EW.

The exit actually consisted of many steep steps up to a point overlooking the main temple site. It was quite strenuous! But nothing like what awaited us in the Annapurna range itself. Seriously, after this trip, who needs things like weight loss surgery? Just go to Nepal and do the steps. We eventually came back down to the level of the river, but not before crossing between several saddhus (Hindu holy men) dressed in white. Over the years though, the true saddhus have been infiltrated by those of another sort, who prey on tourists and ask for money, hurling insults at those who do not comply.

A Saddhu At Pashupatinath (note the cigarette in his hand)

EW, unaware of this, paused to take a picture of one. The man asked for alms, and EW complied. However, the saddhu, disappointed in the amount, quickly started to hurl abuses at us, so we quickly moved on, crossing the bridge to the main Pashupatinath site.

Centuries old, the temple is made to honor the Hindu Lord Shiva. Per Wikipedia, the legend of the temple's foundation is:

Pashupatinath is the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu. It is not known for certain when Pashupatinath Temple was founded. But according to Nepal Mahatmaya and Himvatkhanda, [2] one day Lord Shiva grew tired of his palace atop Mt. Kailash and so went in search of a place where he could escape to. He discovered Kathmandu Valley and, without telling anyone, he ran away from his palace and came to live in the Valley. He gained great fame there as Pashupati, Lord of the Animals, before the other gods discovered his hiding place and came to fetch him. He disguised himself as a majestic deer and would not help the other gods when they asked for his help. When Shiva did not yield to their pleas, they planned to use force. God Vishnu grabbed him by his horns and they shattered into pieces. Vishnu established a temple and used the broken horns to form a linga on the bank of the Bagmati River. As time went by, the temple was buried and forgotten. Then a cow was known to have secretly sprinkled her milk over the mound. Apparently, when the cow herders dug around the spot, they found the lost lingas and again built a temple in reverence.

The temple had a similar layout to the Monkey Temple, with a large courtyard surrounding an inner temple housing the statue of the deity. However, here, the scale was simply much larger. We performed the same ritual offering and then exited. While the inner temple was peaceful enough, the exterior was a mix of crowds and squalor, a depressing site.

We had more places to see in Kathmandu on this day, but soon began to think about the peaks that teased us over the horizon.