Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

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Early modern · Hindu · Nepal

Pashupatinath Temple

पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर

Kathmandu, Bagmati · 27.7104°, 85.3488°

Shiva (Pashupati, Lord of Creatures)MallaNewar pagoda (gilt roofs)Paadal Petra SthalamUNESCO World Heritage
Sacred since
400 CE
Licchavi-era inscriptions; national deity of Nepal
Standing structure
current pagoda 1692; Licchavi origins 5th c.
Malla

History & significance

Nepal's holiest shrine and the seat of its national deity: the four-faced Pashupati linga on the Bagmati, served by Bhatta priests from South India in a custom linking Kathmandu to the wider Shaiva world. The riverside ghats are the great cremation ground of Nepal — liberation within Pashupati's sight; part of the Kathmandu Valley World Heritage site. Maha Shivaratri draws a million pilgrims and legions of sadhus.

Sthala katha — the traditional account

What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.

Shiva, weary of Kailasa, fled here as a golden gazelle to roam the Bagmati forests; the gods broke his antler to summon him back, and where the antler fell the linga arose — the lord staying on as Pashupati, refuge of every creature.

Reaching there

East Kathmandu, near airport; Hindus only in main courtyard; PADT administers.

Official site ↗Open in Google Maps ↗Wikipedia ↗View on the atlas map

☏ +977-01-4571828 (from the official site, verified 2026-08-26)

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-26 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Malla