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Pilgrimage Sites in Nepal

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Nepal is one of versatile places to visit on earth.  The most beautiful sightseeing places such as great mountains, scenic lakes, adventures national parks, great valleys, singing rivers altogether make the place that is Nepal. But the one special aspect due to which Nepal is very popular is the various temples and monasteries in the country. They all hold very special meaning in the lives of the people who follow a particular sect and religion. Some of the most famous are as following ones.

Pashupatinath Temple

Mount Kailash is considered to be the home to Lord Shiva and his consort, Goddess Parvati. Hence, it does not come as a surprise when we find several temples dedicated to the two of them. Pashupatinath Temple is one such Temple that is visited by Hindus world over as a holy place. Pashupati in translation means the lord of all living creatures. There is a beautiful story that accompanies this establishment. It is said that the Lord was tired of living atop his abode, Mt. Kailash and he left his abode in search of a new place to live. In doing so, he reached the Katmandu valley.

Finding the valley suitable to be his humble abode, he started residing there. He grew popular as the lord of the animals that inhabited the place. Meanwhile, the other gods were searching for lord Shiva in the mountains. They found him in Katmandu and came down to the valley to fetch him. Shiva, who was not interested in returning, turned himself into a Deer and stayed hidden. Lord Vishnu, who found him, tries to persuade him to return to his abode. When Shiva did not yield, Vishnu forced the deer to go along by pulling at its horn. The horn broke into several pieces under the force. Lord Vishnu is said to have collected these pieces and formed it into a Lingam, which is a representation of Shiva and built a temple in honor of Shiva on the banks of the river Bhagmati.

With time, however, the temple was lost to the world until one day a cowherd saw that his cow was mysteriously giving milk to a particular place in the grounds where it grazed. The curious cowherd dug the place and found the Lingam. The place was then restored to its former glory where it still stands, revered by the locals. This pagoda style temple was said to be glorified and became famous during the times of Adi Shankaracharya. The temple is located on the banks of the river Bhagmati to the east of the Capital of Nepal, Katmandu. Shivratri is celebrated with great aplomb in this temple and Hindus from world over visit to have a look at the lord and seek his blessings. Due to the legend involved, the temple is very important to the devotees of Lord Shiva.

Gosaikunda

This place too holds a special place in the heart of the hard core Shiva devotees. This place too has a very interesting legend attached to the lord Shiva and the way the lake came into existence. In Hindu Mythology, it is said that in order to attain immortality all the gods and demons got together in order to churn the sacred ocean and obtain the nectar of immortality. When the churning began, several objects were churned out which the gods and demons claimed for themselves. As the churning continued, there was poison that was released which caused several demons as well gods to flee in fear of their lives. In order to continue the churning, the gods prayed to lord Shiva who on reaching the place took all the poison and drank it.

Lord Shiva found an unbearable need to quench his thirst after having drunk the poison. He struck his trident on the land of Gosaikunda from where water sprang and formed the lake. He then drank his fill and quenched his thirst. This is how the lake came into existence. This place is mostly visited by the Hindus and is visited mostly during the Gangadashara and Janai Purnima that is celebrated with great grandeur in the country. The lake is located in the Rasuwa District of Nepal. It is also popular among trekkers who trek on the Dhunche Gosaikunda trek path.

Shaligrams /Shalgrams

This is very famous among the Hindus who worship Lord Vishnu. Shaligram is one among the various names that lord Vishnu has. These are ‘shilas’ or stones that are worshipped as a presentation of lord Vishnu. These stones are found in the Gandaki river basin and revered by people who belong to the Vaishnava sect.

There are several stories relating to how the stones came into being. Three most popular stories are as follows:

Vishnu was known to be fond of only his wife Lakshmi. Goddess Saraswati too wanted to be his consort. Vishnu did not yield to the request and as a result of which the goddess put a curse on Vishnu’s beloved that she would turn into a Tulsi plant and will remain on earth forever. Vishnu modified the curse stating that it would be so only till the holy Gandaki started to flow from her body. He then turned himself to the stones as he could not stay away from his beloved. This is how the stones came into being.

Another story states that Gandaki, who was a great devotee of lord Vishnu, after doing a lot of penance got a boon from the lord that he would reside in her womb and be her offspring. The stones are thus Vishnu and the Gandaki River the great devotee who got the boon from the lord himself.

Another popular legend states that Lord Shiva was deep in war with a demon by the name Jalandhar and was finding it very difficult to defeat him. It was believed in olden days that a chaste wife could even provide immortality to the person. The demon’s wife was very chaste and the only way to kill the demon was to destroy the chastity of the wife. However, the lord did not see it fit to dishonor the wife of another being. Jalandhar on the other hand did not see it in the same light. He decided to destroy the chastity of goddess Parvati. However, the goddess saw through his scheme and successfully managed to put an end to his disguise. On doing this, she felt it was not wrong to do the same to his wife. She requested Krishna (incarnation of Vishnu) who mismanaged to spoil the chastity of the wife of Jalandharby disguising himself as Jalandhar, On realizing what had happened, the wife of Jullundur cursed Krishna to turn into stone, grass, tree and a plant. The Shila stone, Kusha grass, Pipal tree and the Tulsi Plant are hence worshipped.

The region of Gandaki, where these stones are found, is called the Shalgram. This place is another very popular place of visit, especially by the followers of Vishnu.

Devghat

Another popular place of visit among the Hindus in Nepal is the Devghat where the rivers, Trishuli and the Kali Gandaki, form a Triveni. The place is also very popular as there are several temples like the temples of goddess Sita who is said to have given up her existence in this very place, Shankaracharya Temple, Lakshmi Narayan Temple, Sita and Ram temple etc. One can also find several ashrams like the Mahesh Sanyas Ashram, Sharan Gati ashram etc.

This place is very popular especially during the period of Makar Sankranti when people visit here in hundreds to take a dip in the rivers as it is considered very holy. This place is located to the North West of Nepal.

Damodar Kund

This is a glacier found on the hills of Damodar in Mustang. This place is another very popular place where the shila stones are found in abundance. Hence, this place is very important to the followers of Vishnu who come here for the stones as well as to take a dip in the waters. The Damodar kund is also the source to the river Kali Gandaki which is another holy river for the Hindu’s.

Ridhi Ghat

This place is very popular among the devotees of lord Vishnu. Ridhi Ghat is located at about 50 km away from Tansen where one can see the joining of the rivers Kali Gandaki and River Ridhi Kola. There are more than 50 temples that can be visited here. However, among them the most popular is the temple of Vishnu called the Rishikeshwara Temple. We can find several vaishnavas here who have made this place their permanent home.

Muktinath

It is very popular among the Hindus as well as the Buddhists as a place to attain salvation. Among Hindus, it is believed to be the place where lord Vishnu finally rid himself from the curse that was put on him by Sati. The best way to reach this temple is via Pokhara from where there is a trek path that leads to the temple. The temple is popular among the Hindus as it is a must visit for the Hindus to attain Salvation. The Buddhists call this place Chumig Gyatsa which in translation in Tibetan means “Hundred waters”. It is said that all the elements i.e. water; air, fire, earth and sky meet here in perfect harmony. Another temple found here is that of Jwala Devi. It is said that the flame that is burning, has been burning constantly from past thousands of years making it another place to visit.

Janakpur

To the southeast, at a distance of about 375 km from Katmandu, is Janakpur. It is a very important place of pilgrimage for the Hindus as it is the place of birth of mother Sita. She was wedded to Ram, an incarnation of lord Vishnu. There are several other smaller temples here like the Janaki Temple, Biwah Mandap etc along with several ponds that are very beautiful. The time when this place is packed is during the Biwah Panchami. It is the time when the wedding of Sita and Ram takes place and processions are held showing the same. Many devotees throng the place to witness the wedding and hence it has become a place of reverence for Hindus the world over.

Barahachhetra

This place is named after the reincarnation of Vishnu who took the form of a wild boar in order to save the earth. Legend has it that the earth was engulfed under the waters and only Vishnu could save the earth. He took the form of a boar and took the earth on his horns out of the waters. At the same time, he managed to kill the demon called Hiranyakashipu who was terrorizing the gods. Vishnu in his Varaha Avatar is said to have killed Hiranyakashipu at this very spot. Hence, this spot is very sacred to the devotees of Vishnu.

There are several people who visit this place to pay obeisance to their elders and to the gods as this place has a confluence which is considered holy among the Hindus.

Valmiki Ashram

This place has significance among the devotees of Vishnu as this was the very place where Sita stayed after she was exiled from her husband’s place. This was also the very place where she gave birth to Luv and Kush the twin sons of Lord Ram. This Ashram also is very special as the place where the great sage Valmiki who wrote the Ramayan took as his home.

The ashram is located in an island near the river Narayani which is close to the Triveni. Lots of Hindu devotees visit here.

Manakamana

This temple is located 12 km to the south of the town of Gorkha. It is the place of the goddess Manakamana who is said to be a wish-fulfilling goddess. Lot of people comes here for the fulfillment of their wishes or to thank once their wish has been fulfilled. This temple is very popular among the locals who reside here.

Lumbini

Lumbini is a very famous place of worship for the Buddhists. It is the very place where Mayadevi gave birth to Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism that is followed by a lot of people the world over. We find a lot of Buddhists who visit the place to pay their respects to Buddha. There is also the Pillar of Ashoka erected to pay respects to the great lord, and Maya Devi temple honoring the mother of Buddha to sanctify the place where she gave birth to Buddha.

Swayambhunath Stupa

It is considered to be one among the most important and holiest site for the Buddhists. The Stupa narrates how the entire Katmandu Valley came into existence. It is said that the entire valley was under water. It was drained, and after which the light that guided the draining of water became the Swayambhunath temple. The temple is beautiful with eyes on all four sides to emphasize the fact that god is everywhere. This place is very important for the Buddhists who come here in thousands and also the Hindus who come here to seek blessings from the lord.

Boudhanath Temple

Located in Katmandu, this temple is very popular among the Buddhists as a holy place of pilgrimage. The temple is frequented by the Buddhists who visit the place to offer their prayers to the lord. It is constructed in the typical pagoda style architecture, which Nepal is famous for. Here too the square structure is seen with eyes on all sides with a symbol representing peace which was the main message that Buddha propagated. This place is even frequented by tourists to catch a glimpse of the beautiful architecture that is unique to the place.

There are several other temples too, located in Nepal, however, the above mentioned are the most important ones among the Hindus as well as the Buddhists worldwide, They consider these places as a must visit at least once in their life time. Hence, they have gained a name as the most important places to visit on pilgrimages for the Hindus as well as Buddhists.

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