The Sheshnarayan Temple is an ancient Hindu temple complex in Sheshnarayan Village Development Committee (VDC). The site is near the ancient town of

Pharping Pharping (or Phamting) is a small Newar people, Newar town lying above the Bagmati river on the southern edge of the Kathmandu valley, about 23 km from the capital. It is now part of the Dakshinkali , Dakshinkali Municipality. The town and ...

, which lies approximately 20 kilometers south-west of

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

, Nepal.

Mythological Origins

The temple is one of the four

Narayana Narayana (, ) is one of the forms and epithets of Vishnu. In this form, the deity is depicted in yogic slumber under the celestial waters, symbolising the masculine principle and associated with his role of creation. He is also known as Pu ...

temples of the

Kathmandu Valley The Kathmandu Valley (), also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley (, Newar language, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः), National Capital Area, is a bowl-shaped valley located in the Himalayas, Hima ...

, a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

. The other three are Icchangu Narayan, Bishanku Narayan and

Changu Narayan Changu Narayan is an ancient Hindu and Buddhist temple, located on a hilltop of Changu (also called Dolagiri) in Changunarayan Municipality of Bhaktapur District, Nepal. The temple is considered to be built in the 4th century AD and is one of ...

. These temples, which stand in the four cardinal directions, are believed to be built during the reign of the Licchavi king Vishnugupta. Their locations in the cardinal directions and on hilltops was to guard the Kathmandu Valley. Pharping-Sheshnarayan-02-Hindu-Fest-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-04-Hindu-Fest-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-08-Hindu-Fest-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-10-Hindu-Fest-Tempel-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-14-Hindu-Fest-Tempel-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-18-Hindu-Fest-Tempel-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-26-Hindu-Fest-Haendler-2007-gje.jpg Pharping-Sheshnarayan-32-Hindu-Fest-Haendlerin-2007-gje.jpg

References

Hindu temples in Kathmandu District Vishnu temples in Nepal Abhimana temples of Vishnu {{hindu-temple-stub