Budhanilkantha Temple

Looking at the mighty scale sculpture of Ananta Shahin Narayan at Budhanilkantha, one might as well say that a pit of snakes is no less than a bed of roses. Really, lying on the coiled body of the Ananta Sesa, or the eleven hooded serpent, this stone carving of Lord Bishnu represents profound serenity and utmost peace of mind as it seems to float amidst the natural spring on the lap of the Shivapuri hill range.

Budhanilkantha Temple Photo by Amit Raj Sapkota

Literally meaning "old man-blue neck", the epithet is given to Lord Bishnu who volunteered to drink the venomous poison of the seas when filtrated by the god and the "asuras" in the famous epic of "Samudra Manthan" for the supreme elixir of "amrit" contested by both the two groups for eternal life. Thus Bishnu saved all his allies; the god and goddesses form certain annihilation.
Budhanilkantha is a gigantic sculpture carved on a five-meter-long boulder. Indian Photographer Madanjeet Singh in his book, "The Himalayan Art," states that the inscription in the temple mentions the statue to have been carved by the Koli sect of people. The historically important settlement called Koli Gram or the village of the Kolis existed in the present-Day heart of Kathmandu City.


Dedicated to the ruler Bhim Arjuna Deva and his regent Bishnu Gupta, this statue is a masterpiece creation and is an excellent example of artistry and perfection. It is belied that this sculpture is actually the grand scale replica of the smaller Vishnu Vishwa starup located at the Changu Narayan Temple in Bhaktapur. However, both works of Art are distinct in there own sphere while they share the similarity of lying on a coiled snake bed.
It is more than probable that visitors get awestruck by the size and the expression of this statue that distinctly holds shankha (conch), chakra (disc), gada (club) and padma (lotus flower).
As per a geologist at the Department of Mines and Geology, Budhanilkantha is carved ona black stone mainly found in the southern parts of Kathmandu.

"The Budhanilkantha area has a lot of granite but not black stone. So it's a amazing as to how stone of this size was brought to the area," he expressed in a conversation with the City Post.
Apart from this magnum opus in Budhanilkantha, the one in the Balaju Gardens and the other inside the Narayanhiti Royal Palace also have similar carvings. While the latter one in the palace is prohibited for general public view, the foremost Ananta Shahin at Budhanilkantha is restricted to be viewed by the royals, especially by the reigning monarch and the crown prince as the heir, for various inauspicious religious notions.
According to one of the locals, the legend states that the statue was once amazingly lost.
"It was rediscovered when a farmer accidentally hit the sculpture while he ploughed his fields and the statue started bleeding," he says. "On further mining, the statue was finally exposed for the second time," he maintains
Well, true or not, but all in all and above everything else, this statue here is not as lifeless as a stone!

Situated below Shivapuri hill at the northern end of the Kathmandu valley, Buddhanilkantha temple is 9 km from Kathmandu city. The temple consists of a pond in which lies a great stone figure of Lord Vishnu reclining on the coils of a cosmic serpent. The huge statue of sleeping Vishnu is carved from the single block of black stone of a type not found in the valley. It is believed that in a by-gone age, many years before there were two hardworking farmers (husband and wife) who maintained a farm here, and one day they discovered the Deity when they were ploughing their field.

Located here is a Deity of Lord Vishnu, Vishnu (Narayan) Jalasayana, lying on Ananta Sesa, in the cosmic ocean. The Deity is over 1,000 years old. Lord Vishnu is about 5m (17 ft) long and is lying in a 13m (43 ft) long tank, as if floating, with His legs crossed. His four hands hold the four symbols of Vishnu: the chakra (disc), club, and conch-shell and lotus flower. Budhanilkantha literally means “old blue-throat.” Ananta has 11-hooded heads. It is believed that the deity was carved in the 7th or 8th century during the Licchavi period.

Hindus can walk down the steps and touch His feet, but foreigners cannot.

The main festival of the year is when Lord Vishnu, who sleeps on the cosmic ocean during Chaturmasya period wakes up on the Haribondhini Ekadashi day in late October or early November. Many thousands of people come on this day.

Three other images of Lord Vishnu were carved at the same time. One is here at Budhanilkantha and is considered the most important and original, one is at Balaju Gardens, and one is at the old Royal Palace in Kathmandu, but can not be viewed by tourist. The king of Nepal is not allowed to see the deity at Budhanilkantha, but he can see the other two deities. It is believed if the king sees this deity of Vishnu he will die immediately.

The deity of Budhanilkantha was lost for a while and was later rediscovered by a farmer. It is believed that the farmers struck the buried deity with his plough and that blood came out from the ground. The morning puja between 9 and 10 am is interesting.

The image of Vishnu in Narayanthan is about 5 meters long and 2 meters wide.

About 6 km (33/4 mi.) north of Kathmandu, in the village of Narayanthan at the foot of the Shivapuri hills, stand the oldest and certainly the most important group of temples in the Kathmandu Valley. Budha Nilkantha is dedicated to Vishnu in the form of Jalashayana Narayan, usually depicted asleep on a bed of snakes in the primeval ocean. Shrines such as these once marked the four cardinal points and center of an ancient kingdom, the capital of which is thought to have been in the area of Harigaum. The kings of the Kathmandu Valley, it is said, were required to pay their respects to all four images daily.

The name Budha Nilkantha represents something of an oddity. It means "Old Blue Neck" and actually refers to Shiva, who drank the poison of the ocean which turned his neck blue. To soothe the burning he threw himself into Lake Gosainkund, from whence, it is said, comes the water in Budha Nilkantha's tank. The shrine itself however is dedicated unambiguously to Vishnu.

Practicalities
Budhanilkantha is about 8km northeast of Kathmandu and 15km from Thamel, at the base of Shivapuri hill. Buses to Budhanilkantha depart every half-hour from Rani Pokhari or the City bus stand (1 hr, bus #5, Rs 7) in Kathmandu. From where the bus stops the temple is around 100m away. Tempos depart from Jamal on the north side of Rani Pokhari to here.

A taxi is around Rs 175. It is a hard uphill bike ride to here from down town. The ride back is pleasant.