Pashupatinath — Lord of the Animals

Pashupatinath — Lord of the Animals

The Holiest Śiva Temple in Nepal

Pashupatinath — on the banks of the Bagmati River in Kathmandu — is the holiest Śiva temple in Nepal and one of the most important Shaiva pilgrimage sites in the world. The name Paśupatināth means "Lord of All Animals" — a reference to Śiva's manifestation as a deer in the Kathmandu Valley, where he fled from Varanasi.

The temple's central pagoda — a two-tiered copper-roofed structure with a gold-painted spire — is surrounded by a complex of 518 temples, shrines, and ghats spread across both banks of the Bagmati. The main shrine houses a cylindrical mukhaliṅga (four-faced Śiva linga) — the only four-faced linga in a major Śiva temple. The four faces represent:

• Tatpurusa (east) — the meditating face
• Aghora (south) — the fierce face
• Sadyojata (west) — the creative face
• Vamadeva (north) — the gentle face

The Bagmati Ghats

The Arya Ghat — the cremation platform directly in front of the temple — is the most sacred cremation ground in Nepal. The Bagmati (a tributary of the Ganga system) flows past the burning pyres; the ash mixes with the river, which flows east into the Gandak and then into the Ganga at Patna. The dead of Pashupatinath and the dead of Varanasi end in the same river.

Maha Shivaratri

Maha Shivaratri at Pashupatinath is the largest Shaiva festival in the world — over 1 million pilgrims and thousands of sadhus (ascetics) gather on the temple grounds. The naga sadhus — naked Shaiva ascetics who normally live in Himalayan caves — emerge only for this festival. The Pashupati Area Development Trust distributes free food and shelter to all pilgrims for three days.