Pashupatinath
Temple, Bouddhanath Stupa,Patan Durbar and Swayambhunath.
After breakfast, we start an interesting tour around Kathmandu city. Escorting by an
English speaking guide (we can provide any language speaking guide on your
request), try to give them a full taste of our culture, heritage and local
people. In our sightseeing tour we go to Pashupatinath Temple, Bouddhanath
Stupa,Patan Durbar and Swayambhunath.
Pashupatinath Temple:
Dedicated to Lord Shiva, this is Nepal’s most sacred Hindu shrine and
one of the subcontinent’s great Shiva sites. The supreme holiness of the site
stems from the Shiva linga enshrined in its main temple. It expresses the very
essence of Hinduism as pilgrims, priests, devotes, temples, ashrams, images,
inscriptions and cremation ghats intermingle with the rituals of daily life,
all sprawled along the banks of the sacred Bagmati River. The temple’s origins
are obscure. An inscription here dates from 477 AD, but the shrine may have
stood there for 1000 years before that.
Bouddhanath Stupa: This great stupa is one of Nepal’s most
distinctive monuments and one of the most important Buddhist sites in Nepal.
With a diameter of over 100 meters, it is amongst the largest stupas in the
world. There are a number of legends accounting for the stupa’s construction,
but it is generally believed to date from the 5th century. All stupas contain
holy relics and Bouddha is said to contain the remains of the past Buddha Kasyapa.
Patan Durbar Square: Patan Durbar Square offers the finest display of Newari urban architecture in Nepal. There are temples devoted to Shiva, Krishna, Ganesh and Vishnu all actively visited by residents and visitors. At the northern end of the square the ancient sunken water tap has been restored and is still in use with young girls filling huge jugs from the carved stone waterspouts. The courtyards of the Royal Palace with their ornamented windows, columned arcades, shrines and sunken royal bath are amongst the most beautiful in all of Kathmandu valley.
Swayambhunath Stupa: Located at 6.5
kilometers West of Kathmandu, this great temple is just on the outskirts of
Kathmandu. No one actually knows who built it. Many believe that the Lichavis
constructed it while others believe that emperor Asoka had already visited it
in the 3rd century. The Swayambhunath Temple complex consists of a giant
Stupa, a large ensemble of shrines and temples, and also includes a Tibetan
monastery, a museum and a library. This site has two access points: a long
stairway, claimed to have 365 steps, leading directly to the main platform of
the temple, which is at the top of the hill to the east; and a car road around
the hill from the south leading to the southwest entrance. The first sight on
reaching the top of the stairway is the Vajra.