My first weekend in Kathmandu, I joined friends on a hike to Namobuddha.
After driving an hour and a half from Kathmandu, we reached Dhulikhel, from where I spent the day hiking with friends. the goal was to hike to Namobuddha, a Buddhist holy site, better known by Tibetans as Tag-mo lu-jin ('the place where the future Buddha sacrificed his body to a tigress'), a little village in the mountains, where the beautiful and stunning Thrangu Monastery lies. It is situated on a hill above the village of Panauti. The hike from Dhulikhel to Namobuddha took about three and a half hours. It was relatively easy and passed through some culturally interesting villages such as Kavre and Phulbari before reaching the Buddhist monastery and stupa at Namobuddha.
Accordingly to the Buddhist legend, the King Mahasattva gave his body to a hungry tigress at this place. His shrine stupa remained underground for centuries. One day a hermit called Bhagavan (Sakyamuni) came to this site and got attracted to the unusual hill. It is said that he clapped his hands, and miraculously the stupa appeared.
After a pit-stop for lunch, it was time to hike back down again. It is amazing to find such a beautiful and amazing place in this Himalayan kingdom and get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The pictures are amazing - enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment