The Welcoming Party

He was lounging on the step about halfway up, distracted by an empty water bottle and took no notice of us as we stopped to catch our breath, one hundred and fifty steps completed, still more than two hundred to go.

We’d timed our early morning visit to follow the hundreds of Buddhist and Hindu pilgrims who tour the site as the sun rises each morning. We also wanted to be ahead of the day’s heat which was forecast to reach twenty five degrees celsius.

Looking back down, the Kathmandu Valley was semi obscured by haze, part smoke from the nearby burn offs, part smog from the vehicles and a little low cloud. 

The incessant tooting of thousands of cars, buses, trucks and scooters drifted on up to us from the congested roads below. It looked like mayhem but somehow, it all seemed to work with vehicles zipping in and out and around each other with scant regard for the apparent direction of the lane. 

We’d been forewarned he might be aggressive, and who wouldn’t be? If someone said I’d been transformed from head lice, I’d have been a bit cranky too.  Maybe I’m overthinking it, perhaps in his opinion, the fact he was considered holy, more than outweighed the the rumours of nits.

Filming the valley below, I turned slowly, in what I thought was a subtle manner to face him directly, hoping to include him in the clip, as if by accident. 

Raising my eyes from the camera’s viewfinder, I gazed into his scornful brown eyes as he sat there on the step, bottle now forgotten and the irritation at being filmed, yet again, clear. Oops, perhaps not so subtle, onwards to Swayambhunath before I offended more locals. 

Swayambhunath is also known as Swayambu or Swoyambhu, all of them a mouthful for non Nepalese speaking tourists and which may explain why the temple complex has been called the Monkey Temple by visitors since the 1970’s. 

That, and the aforementioned welcoming party waiting on the three hundred and sixty five steps that comprise the eastern access.  

A Communal Space

As we waited for our guide Krishna to make payment of the entrance fee, there was a small commotion further down and I turned to see another tourist, all tight singlet and fashionable jogging pants, racing up the steps. 

I watched with astonishment as he swept on past us and the monkeys and then noticed his friend further up the steps, filming the spectacle, no doubt to be shared on Instagram  for the admiration of all. 

It was indeed unfortunate that they didn’t think to get their entrance tickets before his magnificent display of strength and vigour which I’m sure will remain a highlight of the day as their second ascent of the steps was at a far more decorous pace.

Breathless and more than a little warm, we completed the last of the steep steps and almost stumbled on to the temple platform. Immediately in front was a huge brass Lightening Bolt or Vajra set on a stone plinth engraved with boar and dragons, and behind it, the largest Buddhist stupa I’d ever seen. 

To the left, enterprising sellers had set up their stalls offering folklore items and souvenirs to us tourists. At a glance I could see magnets, key-rings, healing bowls, prayer flags, carvings and jewellery for sale. 

A man approached me from behind his table, holding out an intricately carved wooden animal “Madam, madam, stop, look, just one minute, look at this, I promise you, this is the finest carving”. He was right, it was beautiful, and so were the carvings on the next table, and the next.

Every day, the sellers carry their tables and all their wares up to the temple complex, I can only assume they use the south west entrance which is a road rather than the steep steps we’d so recently come up.

Swayambhunath is amongst the oldest religious sites in Nepal, the stupa being built about fifteen hundred years ago. More recently and relatively speaking, a Tibetan monastery, museum and library have been added to the complex. 

Tourists from all corners of the world intermingled with pilgrims who were praying at the shrines and the occasional monk moving between the monastery, temples and monuments. 

Looking over Andrew’s shoulder as he posed for a photo, I saw two workmen on top of the stupa dome, applying fresh whitewash to it. Holding what appeared to be a cloth rag attached to a handle the length of a broomstick, they swirled the rag in the bucket of whitewash then leaning precariously out from the dome applied it using long sweeping movements. 

Before commencing this work, the workmen would have collected the chalk white soil, cleaned and sieved it then mixed it with glue in preparation for all this whitewashing. Given the scale of the dome and the traditional method of whitewashing, this would appear to be an almost endless task

Religious Harmony in Nepal

The entire stupa is symbolic, the dome represents the world, and above it is a cube structure painted with the eyes of Buddha looking in all four directions with wisdom and compassion. 

Then there’s the four pentagonal toranas with buddha reliefs, topped by a gilded tower representing the thirteen stages of spiritual realisation to enlightenment or Buddhahood. 

Swayambhunath is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For the local Buddhist Newars, it is their most sacred pilgrimage site and for Tibetan Buddhist, is second only to Boudha. 

Besides the Buddhist, the site is revered by Hindus with many carvings and iconology representing their religion. Swayambhunath is the Hindu name and I loved the way both Hindu and Buddhist religions were often represented on the same monument, an acceptance of other sadly absent from much of our society.

Walking around the stupa in a clockwise direction, we spun the brass prayer wheels at it’s base, sending good vibes into the surrounds. Tiers of tiny candles burned below the wheels, the smell of incense drifted lazily on the air and the trance inducing music competed with the chatter of stall holders, tourists, guides and pilgrims. 

Within the complex are numerous temples, stupas and shrines and you could easily spend a day there absorbing the atmosphere. Krishna had an encyclopaedic knowledge which he shared with us to enhance our overall understanding and experience. 

Born of a Lotus Flower

Mythology has it that the entire Kathmandu Valley was once a lake until Manjusri had a vision of the holy Lotus that grew there and travelled to worship it. 

Seeing that the valley had potential for a great settlement, he cut a gorge at Chovar, immediately draining the lake, leaving the valley in which Kathmandu now lies. The Lotus was transformed into the hill which the Swayambhunath Temple complex is on and the flower became the Buddhist stupa. 

Which brings us back to the monkeys. Manjusri was far too busy draining the lake and turning the lotus into a hill rather than keeping his hair short as he was supposed to, instead he let it grow long and with it, the head lice grew. Wikipedia

If you think nits are a problem, just wait till they transform into cranky monkeys. 

Kathmandu City Tour

The Monkey Temple is a thirty minute walk from Thamel, the vibrant tourist centre of Kathmandu and an iconic landmark seen easily from many corners of the city. 

On a clear day, the views are fabulous and expand right across the Kathmandu Valley though the day we visited, the low cloud obscured the views of the Himalayan Mountains.

On our guided Kathmandu City Tour, we’ve included a visit to the Swayambhunath (Monkey) Temple along with Durbar Square, a major hub of the city, the Pashupatinath Temple which is an important Hindu pilgrimage site and the Boudhanath Stupa, another site of historical and religious importance. 

This day makes for an excellent introduction to Kathmandu and the Nepalese culture and religions. We’ve included it with many of our trekking tours however you can also take part in the city tour without joining the longer trekking tours. 

Freewheeling Kiwi has partnered with Himalayan Recreation and Treks to help you create lifetime memories in the Himalayas. 

Find out how you can join a Group Trip hosted by Sharon, Founder of Freewheeling Kiwi here. If the date of our next trip doesn’t work for you, we can sort out an alternative date that aligns with your preferences. Contact Sharon directly to book your preferred dates. 

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