Kathmandu city Tour – 1 Day Pashupatinath + Boudha + Swayambhu

Trip Overview

Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal and the administrative zone of the country, has charm and beauty with an ancient history. The uniqueness of the ancient city of Kathmandu is its diverse culture; a culture that has remained not only unique but also enchantingly beautiful.

Today, it is the seat of the world's ancient and living culture. Kumari is a living goddess believed to be the reincarnation of great goddesses. She is known as the daughter of Kathmandu, Sapta Kanya.

The beauty of historical architectural places and the focal international airport reside in Kathmandu city, wishing tourists to start their journey to meet the highest Himalayan ranges.

People can make their day busy by touring ritual and cultural places such as Pashupatinath, Boudhanath, and Swayambhunath. These cultural places have divine history and spirituality. It is also listed on UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

Visitors can try traditional foods of Newari cuisine with a variety of options. From the meat of buffalo, Newars can make 56 varieties of dishes. Also, visitors can try dishes of Tibetan origin.

Divine Origin of Pashupatinath Temple

Lord Shiva and his wife, Goddess Parvati, were walking around the forest, disguised as deer, near the Bagmati River. They came to earth in Nepal to have a pleasant time away from their duties. They thought of staying on earth forever in life.

When the gods and goddesses knew about it, all of them pulled Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvita to return to the real world. Then, one antler of a deer disguised as a deer fell during the fight.

Kamadhenu transformed into a cow and found the antler buried in the soil. Kamadenu watered the soil near the antler with her milk and recovered the antler. When the locals around the forest saw the antler, they made a wooden temple and worshipped the antler as the lingam. It was 400 AD when Pashupatinath came into existence.

Highlights:

Cremation at Pashupatinath leads to heaven and the recycling of birth.
The pagoda and the statue of Lord Shiva are made from gold.
A place to celebrate the festivals of Teej and Shivaratri.
The oldest and holiest Hindu temple of Lord Shiva.
It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

Divine Origin of Boudhanath

In the 5th or 6th century AD, the name Boudhanath" was derived from the name "Khasti Maha Chaitya," meaning great stupa of dew drops. The journey towards the enlightenment of Boudhanath has a story to tell the universe.

During the reign of the Licchhavi dynasty, King Vikramjitkingdom was facing drought. As a solution, he learns from an astrologer that one human must be sacrificed to God. To save a kingdom from drought, he claimed to sacrifice himself at his son's hands.

After his death, with a regretful heart, his son flew a hen from the Sankhu Bajrayogini Temple, intending to construct a stupa. The hen landed where the Boudhanath has now been settled.

Highlights

The Lhosar (Tibetan New Year) festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm, getting a blessing from the Lamas. A large number of devotees can be seen at a time.
Devotees circulate the stupa, chanting "Om Mani Padme Hum."

Numerous monasteries, shops, and restaurants show the Tibetan culture.
The best place to drink butter tea.
People are seen rounding the praying wheels.
It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

Divine Origin of Swayambhunath

As per the Swayambhu Purana, Kathmandu Valley was filled with an expansive lake. From the lake, a lotus started to grow and then became known as Swoyambhu Valley, which means "self-created."

Manjushri, a Budhha devotee, dreamed about the lotus of Swoyambhu. So to make it easier for people to reach and worship, by his wisdom, he cut the gorge. The lake drained away and formed the Kathmandu Valley. After that, a lotus transformed into a hill.

A famous Buddhist, Emperor Ashoka, visited the hill and constructed a stupa in 250 BC but it was destroyed. Nearly 1500 years later, in May 2010, a major renovation was done. The Tibetan Nyingma Meditation Center of California donated the funds. The shrine was re-jewelled with 20 kg of gold.

Highlights

Climb 365 steps to reach the top of the Swayambunath stupa.
Kathmandu Valley and surrounding mountain views can be seen from Swayambunath.
Buddha Jayanti and Gunla are celebrated, and crowds of devotees can be seen.
It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

Make your way to Kathmandu for a day tour with an exclusive exploration of cultural and historical places in Nepal listed by UNESCO World Heritage. Try the typical traditional foods of Newars and Buddhists with a variety of food options.

Trip Itinerary

Day 1:

Pashupatinath Temple is a Hindu temple mostly dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is built 23.6 m above the ground with a pagoda style resembling Newari architecture. The temple includes two-story copper roofs shielded with gold and four silver-plated doors in four directions.

The first person to build the Pashupatinath temple in the 5th century was King Supuspa Deva. Pashupatinath Temple covers 264 hectares of land stretching along both sides of the Bagmati River.

Only Nepali citizens and Hindus are allowed to enter the main temple. However, it is not the only place we can embrace. We can take a tour beneath the Bagmati River, where the dead bodies are burned. They perform rituals, washing their bodies with water, relieving them of their karma and letting their spirits enter heaven.

We will then take a tour of nearby temples, such as Bhuwaneshwori, Dakshinamurti, Tamreshwor, Panchdewal, and Bishwarupa. These temples are prayed to get blessings for fertility and success in their incomplete lives and work. Let us buy the ghee candles and light them in front of the temples to get the blessing you are deprived of.

In the afternoon, we will go see Sandhya Arati perform on the top stairs opposite the main temple. We can sing the chanting mantras along with the Hindu holy priest by clapping our hands. If we don’t know the mantras, we can just clap our hands and repeat when the priest says “Jai Mahadev.” It gives inner peace and raises your spiritual spirit to embrace the mantras.

Day 1:

Boudhanath Stupa is located approximately 11 kilometres from the centre of Kathmandu. Boudhanath signifies the Buddhist stupa, a dome with a white geometric shape standing 36 meters tall.

We can witness the Boudhanath stupa structure with its symbol while we enter the gate with it:

Base as earth
Dome in white as water
Spire as air
Lotus as compassion and purity
Umbrella denotes three protection treasures: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha
Pinnacle as Mt. Sumeru (king of mountains)

When we entered the Boudhanath Stupa, we would take the three rounds swirling the money prayers attached to the stupa. After that, light the candle in the name of Buddha and take a blessing from a Buddhist priest.

We will also go to pray at the nearby Kopan Monastery, overlooking the Boudhanath Stupa. We can see the large golden Buddha statue with its other deities. For a few minutes, we pay respect by crossing our legs backwards on the ground and our heads in front. Then, the priest would bless us with the Wenba feather fan.

The Bouddhanath stupa is also a place for many businessmen who have opened Tibetan shops and restaurants for the cultural exchange of Tibetans. We can buy thankas, Buddha sculptures, Buddhachitta mala (Ziziphus Budhensis), rudraksha, and dresses from Tibetan shops. All shops sell genuine products.

Day 1:

Swayambhunath is the next religious place for you to visit on the hilltop west of Kathmandu Valley. It is known as the Monkey Temple because numerous monkeys reside there.

Swayambhunath sacred sites show both Buddhist and Hindu sculptures in the same place. The white dome-shaped structure of the stupa signifies the Buddha with eyes on all four sides. As you look around, you can also see the small temples of Hariti, Ajima (who heals children), Anantapur, and Pratappur.

We will do a short warm-up on our legs to climb 365 steps of stone to reach the main Swayambhunath Stupa, which takes 15-20 minutes. While taking the steps, we can see monkeys playing around. After we reached the top, we would light the candle and offer flowers. Touch the giant vajra and bow the head to claim power and emperorship.

Take some pictures around. Look down to see the views of Kathmandu Valley and look straight to see the top-point views of mountains such as;

Gauri Shankar Himal
Langtang Himal
Ganesh Himal
Manaslu Himal

We would go to see the major places in Swayambhunath, which are:

World Peace Pond
Shakyamuni Buddha Statue
Sleeping Buddha
Dewa Dharma Monastery

Dewa Dharma Monastery is the prime location for buying authentic rudraksha, Buddhist murals, and scriptures. This place is known for its bronze Buddha icon and traditional paintings.

Cost Includes/Excludes

Includes