Pashupatinath Temple

Pashupatinath Temple, with its astonishing architectural beauty, stands as a symbol of faith, religion, culture and tradition. Regarded as the most sacred temple of Hindu Lord Shiva in the world, Pashupatinath Temple's existence dates back to 400 A.D. The richly-ornamented pagoda houses the sacred linga or phallic symbol of Lord Shiva. Thousands of pilgrims from all over the world come to pay homage to this temple, that is also known as 'The Temple of Living Beings'.

The Pashupatinath Temple is the largest Hindu temple of Lord Shiva (Pashupati) in the world and regarded as the most sacred. Located on the banks of the Bagmati River in the eastern part of Kathmandu, Pashupatinath Temple is the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu and was established in the 5th century,^[59] and served as the seat of national deity, Lord Pashupatinath, until Nepal was secularized. However, a significant part of the temple was destroyed by Mughal invaders in the 14th century and little or nothing remains of the original 5th century temple exterior. The temple as it stands today was built in the nineteenth century, although the image of the bull and the black four headed image of Pashupati are at least 300 years old.^[60] The temple is listed in UNESCO World Heritage Sites list.^[59][60]. Shivaratri or the night of Lord Shiva is the most important festival, attracting thousands of devotees and sadhus.

Sadhu's in Pashupatinath after the night of Shivaratri.

Believers in Pashupatinath (mainly Hindus) are allowed to enter the temple premises but non-Hindu visitors are allowed to view the temple from the across the bank of Bagmati river.^[60] The priests who perform the services at this temple have been Brahmins from South India since the time of Malla king Yaksha Malla ^[61]. This tradition is believed to have been started at the request of Adi Shankaracharya who sought to unify the different states of Bharatam (Unified India) by encouraging cultural exchange. This procedure is also followed in other temples around India, which were sanctified by Adi Shankaracharya.

The temple is built in the pagoda style of architecture, with cubic constructions, beautifully carved wooden rafters on which they rest (tundal) and two level roofs made of copper and gilded in gold. It has four main doors, all covered with silver sheets and the western door has a statue of large bull or Nandi, again covered in gold. The deity is of black stone, about 6 feet in height and the same in circumference.