Top 10 Famous Hindu pilgrimage sites in Nepal

The country of Himalayan Nepal is not only known for natural beauty but also as a cultural melting hotspot for both Hinduism & Buddhist religion groups. Despite the population of the county being dominated by Hindu,Hinduism & Buddhism have co-existed in Nepal. Dating back thousands of years, many oldest religious sites in Nepal are revered as the holiest place for salvation by Hindus. Some lie high above the Himalayan range, it takes some days trek to reach there with an outstanding view of snow-capped mountains & way through the steep valley. So it can be an unforgettable physical as well as spiritual journey.

There are numbers of pilgrimages sites in Nepal, Out of them some famous pilgrimages sites are mention here below.According to the British Diplomat sir Kirk Patrick, “Nepal is a country with more temples than houses, more god and goddess than people and more festivals than days in a year, to describe the essence of Nepal”. Even Though we are going to make clear some of the holiest sacred Hindus religious sites in Nepal as below;

The list of top 10 famous Hindu Pilgrimage sites in Nepal as follows;

Pashupatinath temple;

Pashupatinath temple is one of the most important pilgrimage sites for the Shiva devotees, which was architect in a pagoda-style. It is located in Kathamndu district on the bank of the Bagmati river. There are thousands of Shiva Lingam. Almost 492 temples belong to the Pashupatinath area, with unique art, culture & sculpture. Every year during the Maha Shivaratri & Teej festivals tens of thousands of devotees come here to worship shiva as well as to meet Shadus (person who never gets merry & sacrifices whole life for the god shiva), mostly women visitors can be seen there. On the south of the temple, there is Ghats, where funerals take place for those who follow the Hindu religion. It has been listed in the UNESCO world heritage site since 1979 A.D.

Changunarayan Temple;

The oldest temple of Nepal Changunarayan is located 8 miles away from Kathmandu in the top hill of Bhaktapur district. It was inscribed by the first historical King of Nepal Mahadev. This temple reflects the historical arts & crafts as well as it is famous for stones & metals which are important both culturally & archaeologically.

Muktinath temple;

Muktinath is a unique & famous sacred pilgrimage site of both Hindus & Buddhist pilgrimages. It is located in one of the beautiful districts of Nepal Mustang at the elevation of 3710m behind the snow-capped mountains. It is the revered place for salvation, where devotees worship god Vishnu. There are two Mukti-Kunda (holy ponds) in front of the temple namely, “Lakshmi” and ‘Saraswati“. It is believed that if you plunge in these ponds it will wash off your sin. Bells of Hinduism & the flag of Buddhists in the same place on the site represent the unity of diversity in this temple. Holy bath through 108 taps is also available behind the temple.

Janakpudham;

One of the historical places of Janakpurdham is located in the Dhanusa district of eastern Nepal. This site is not only famous for lord Ram & Sita but also it reflects ancient art, culture & architecture. During the Vivaha Panchami & Ram Navami, ten thousand devotees from different countries like Nepal, India & Srilanka come to celebrate the festival. Ram Janaki temple & Ratna Sagar as well as the sacred pond near to the temple are those attractions for the visitors.

Patan area;

Patan is the pilgrimage site for both Hindus & Buddhists, but it is believed that in ancient times it was known by the name of Buddhist city. Patan Durbar square includes the 55 major temples, 136 Buddhist monasteries & interesting ancient metal crafts. The beautiful ancient city has many attractive places to explore out of the Krishna temple, Baglamukhi temple, Patan museum, Mahabudha & Taleju temples are some of them.

Budhanilkantha temple;

House of sleeping Lord Vishnu, Budhanilkantha temple is situated in the foot of Shivapuri hills in the Kathmandu district. It is the largest stone carving temple in Nepal. Every year there are thousands of Hindus devotees from Nepal & India during the period of Haribodhini Ekadashi, which falls in the months of October- November. This temple is open all the days of the year for all devotees.

 Halesi Mahadev;

Halesi Mahadev (1500m) temple is situated in eastern Nepal at the bank of Dudh Koshi & Sune Koshi rivers in Khotang district. It takes 10-12 hours drive from Kathmandu The temple is inside the cave (67m below) at the bottom of the green hill. It is dedicated to Lord Mahadev, religiously it is believed that Mahadev hid there to get the relief from demon Bhasmasur. Besides religious purposes, Halesi is famous for its natural beauty, amazing landscapes & river banks.

Pathivara Devi Temple;

The goddess Pathivara Devi temple is the holy pilgrimage site for Hindus & Buddhists. It is located in eastern Nepal at the altitude of (3794m) in Taplejung district on the way to Kanchenjunga trek. It is believed that if you reach the temple & worship, the goddess Pathivara will fulfill your wishes. Devotees offer animal sacrifice, gold & silver to please the goddess Pathivara. Drive, flight & trek from Khandbari are the options to reach there. The temple is the best spot to take a panoramic view of Kanchenjunga mountain (8,583m).

 Manakamana temple;

The goddess Durga Bhagwati Manakamana temple (1300m) is situated in the Gorkha district at the top of the hill. The word Mankamana in Nepalese meaning is “mana” means heart & “Kamana” means wishes, so religiously it is believed that if you visit the temple & worship the god Durga Bhagwati, then God will fulfill your heart wishes. There is busy traffic during the Dashain festival in the temple. Three hours drive from Kathmandu to Kurintar & ten minutes cable car from here take you to Mankamna temple.

Doleshwor Mahadev;

It is situated in Bhaktapur district 20 km away from Kathmandu. Doleshwor, Pasupatinath & Kedarnath are the three Shiva devotees sites. It is believed that after visiting all these three pilgrimage sites all your sins will wash off from the lifetime. According to Mahabharat, during the war of Kurukshetra Pandava brothers were searching for forgiveness from the Lord Mahadev after killing many people, but lord Mahadev didn’t agree to forgive them & himself changed as a Bull form. Eventually, Pandava Brothers recognized him, at the same time Mahadev tried to fly away, but they only caught the tail of Mahadev, so the tail & head of Mahadev was separated. It is still believed that the head is in Doleshwor Mahadev & the tail is in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand India. Large numbers of devotees visit the temple every year.