Where We Be
Changu Narayan Temple is just enough off the
beaten path that not many tourists make it here
This mythical beast has a lion face,
ram horns, and eagle wings
You're not Hindu! Don't even think of entering!
Robin looks relaxed and happy despite Garuda
eating snakes just over her head (Garuda hates snakes)
Robin's a sucker for elephants with painted eyelashes
Changu Narayan is one of seven structures cited by
UNESCO that make the Kathmandu Valley a World Heritage Site
This image of Vishnu astride winged Garuda is illustrated
on the Nepali 10 rupee note (minus all the paint!)
This kneeling statue of Garuda dates from the 5th century AD
Oldest stone inscription in the Kathmandu Valley, dating from AD 464
In this 7th century carving, Vishnu, disguised in dwarf form, asks his enemy King Bali if he can
possess an area as far as he can stride in three steps. Bali shrugs, says why not? Vishnu
becomes a giant and takes three enormous strides across the universe to defeat his enemy!
The facade of the temple is a feast for the eyes
HIndu gods are busy gods so all those hands come in handy!
Two stone lions guard the main entry to
the temple. Inside, Hindus make offerings.
Three bulls pay obeisance to Shiva.
(The first two look more like rabbits than bulls!)
The pace of life in the village of Changu
Narayan is sedate even by dog standards
Changu Narayan Temple, Nepal
Changu Narayan Temple is a Unesco World
Heritage site filled with ancient Hindu carvings
from the Licchavi Period (4th to 9th centuries
).
Some of the oldest statues in Nepal are located
here
at this temple 6 km north of Bhaktapur. A
kneeling statue of Garuda dates from the 5th
century and a stone pillar nearby is the oldest
stone inscription in the valley, dating from 464

AD
. The lovely two-tiered temple is covered
with intricate wood carvings of multi-handed
gods and guarded on all sides by pairs of stone
creatures -- lions, elephants, griffons, sarabhas.

The temple is still very much in use today
. We
s
aw Hindus making offerings and performing
devotions. Hinduism
is a very tactile religion,
with devotees smearing red and saffron
pigment directly onto statues, tracing their
fingertips across temple walls, and ringing the
bell when they make an offering of food.

Around the courtyard are statues of Vishnu.
Our favorite is a 7th century statue of Vishnu
astride the winged human Garuda -- the same
image illustrated on the Nepali 10 rupee note.
Another favorite is Vishnu changing form from
a dwarf to a giant and taking three h
uge strides
across the universe to defeat his enemy.
It's only half an hour by local bus from Bhaktapur,
and you'll get a great taste of Nepali village life