Changu Narayan
The Narayan (Vishnu) temple at Changu is the most ancient and revered Vishnu shrine in Nepal. It is located on top of a hill just north of Bhaktapur, in the northeast corner of the Kathmandu Valley. The temple is in a large courtyard amongst a small village of Newar houses, and its position atop the hill affords a commanding view of the valley below. Though non-Hindus aren't allowed to enter the main temple itself, they can still enter the courtyard to view the ornate wood and stone work around the outside. The temple dates back to the 4th century. Some 100 or so years after its establishment in the year 464, the King Manadeva ascended the Licchavi throne and he chose the site atop the Changu hill to place a famous pillar which bears the oldest dated inscription found in the Valley. Over the course of history, the temple has been continually restored and embellished by later Licchavi and Malla kings as a result of fires and earthquakes that often damaged it. The present building that stands has design and structure from the 16th and 17th centuries.
The myth about Changu is the story of when Vishnu beheaded a demon in an act that he thought was out of benevolence to humankind. Unfortunately for Vishnu, the demon was a Brahman, one of the highest classes in Nepal. So, Vishnu became guilty of the heinous crime of Brahman murder, and after he discovered this terrible truth, he then wandered the earth on his mount, Garuda, a half-man half-bird vehicle. Eventually, he came to the summit of Changu hill, where he dwelt in anonymity for a while and lived on milk that he stole from a cow that belonged to a hermit-sage called Sudarshana. One day Sudarshana caught the stranger milking his cow, so he attacked and beheaded Vishnu. (Actually, Sudarshana's name is the Sanskrit term for one of Vishnu's weapons, the disc.) After getting his head chopped off, Vishnu was finally expiated for his crime, and he, mounted on Garuda, gloriously emerged from the human body. As a result, he declared that from now on, the site atop Changu hill would be a place to worship him in this form. There are a few other variations and myths that explain why Vishnu was beheaded, but the beheading is the main theme at Changu.
The myths of beheading are re-enacted at Changu in the daily ritual. In the temple, the central image of Garudasana Vishnu (Vishnu mounted on Garuda) is covered by a gilt metal sheath with two sections. The upper section that covers the head was donated by Bhupalendra Malla of Kathmandu in the late 17th century, and the lower part of the sheath that covers the body was donated much earlier by Amshuvarman in 605. The daily worship of the image involves removing and then replacing the head section of the sheath to probably symbolize the decapitation and then the recapitation of Vishnu. The spirit of Changu Narayan is held in a silver water vessel. Twice a year, priests carry the water vessel to Kathmandu to visit the old royal palace at Hanuman Dhoka, and then return it back to the hilltop temple.
The main temple is a two-tiered pagoda of beautiful Newar architecture in a square courtyard surrounded by two story dharmashalas. The top roof tier is covered with gilt copper, while the lower roof is covered with red tiles. Ornately carved, wooden struts with figures of gods, sages, and saints hold up both roofs. There are elaborate wooden doors on all four sides of the structure, and stone statues of griffins and lions protect each set of doors. The temple is incredibly embellished with intricate wood and metal work, and the courtyard environs also contain many other elaborate items of special value.
- Main Temple
- Lakshmi-Narayan shrine
- Shrine to Shiva as Mahadev or Pashupati
- Vishnu Vishvarupa sculpture
- Shiva shrine
- Bhagavati shrine
- Ganesh shrine
- Figures of Bhupatindra Malla and Riddhi Lakshmi
- Garuda
- Sculptures of Vishnu, Avalokiteshvara, Durga and Garuda
- Plinth with Lakshmi-Narayan sculpture
- Bhairav shrine
- Shiva shrine
- Shiva Narteshvar or Uma Maheshvar shrine
- Plinth with Vishnu image
- Mahavishnu or Krishna shrine
- Garudasana Vishnu sculpture
- Vishnu Shridhar sculpture
- Pillar with inscription of Manadeva, supporting Vishnu's chakra
- Column supporting Vishnu's conch
- Narasingh sculpture
- Vishnu-Vikranta sculpture