Tirtha Atlas

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

3031 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
High medieval · Hindu · Nepal

Sankata Temple

Te Bahal, Kathmandu · 27.7024°, 85.3122°

Sankata (identified by Buddhists with Chanda Maharoshan)Undetermined
Sacred since
1000 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
dating unrecorded; founded by King Gunakama Dev
Undetermined

History & significance

A shrine at Te Bahal in central Kathmandu, credited to King Gunakama Dev, whose deity is petitioned to turn away misfortune and sickness; Hindus worship the goddess as Sankata while Buddhists identify the image with Chanda Maharoshan.

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.

A Bajracharya guru named Bandhu Ratna is said to have used tantric power to confine Sankata and a Yogini inside holy pitchers, which were then enshrined in the temple built for them.

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Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-28 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Undetermined