Patan, Kathmandu Nepal

It was Saturday morning in sunny, warm and smoggy Kathmandu.  Randy and I decided to show Joost a bit more of ancient Kathmandu with a tour of Patan, which is the second largest city in the valley. Patan is sometimes referred to by the locals as Lalitpur or Yala, which means 'city of beauty'.  Patan is the city that is renown for exquisite craftmanship in copper and bronze casting, particularly for religious idols.

Of the 3 cities within the Kathmandu valley, Patan has the strongest Buddhist influence and a long Buddhist history. The influence can be clearly seen as there are a large number of monasteries including the famous Hiranya Varna Mahavihar ('the Golden Temple').  Patan has a central square which is full of ancient temples, moments dedicated to the kings of Patan years ago and various shrines which devotees swarm to, called Patan Durbar Square.  Joost took in the sites with stops and photos of the Royal Place, the Krishna Temple and some of the beaten path sites and shops. The Krishna temple was constructed by King Siddhinarsingh Malla in the 16th century.  The temple is the only of its kind in the valley made completely of stone and has 21 golden tipped pinnacles. On my previous visit to the temple, I remember seeing paintings from the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. 

However, my favourite is the Golden Temple. It is truely a magnificent sight, a 3 story golden pagoda of Shakyamuni (Lord Buddha) which was built in the 12th century by King Bhaskar Verma.   Based on 3 pillars, 'The Buddha' (wisdom), 'The Dharma' (the right path), and 'the Sangha' (the unity of virtuous people), is popularly known as the Tri Ratna (3 jewels).  It is said that if we human beings follow the Tri Ratna, our life will be peaceful and we can ultimately help all others as well.  The temple is beautiful and a sight that is at times somewhat confusing because infused with all the Buddhist images and prayer wheels, there are symbols and images of Hinduism. What is truly amazing is that this 3rd world country could teach the world so much about religious tolerance and acceptance. I guess some lessons for some countries will have to be learnt the hard way!