Pashupatinath Temple

Pashupatinath Temple
श्री पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर
Pashupatinath Temple, associated with Shiva as 'the lord of all beings'
Religion
Affiliation	Hinduism
District	Kathmandu
Province	Bagmati Province
Deity	Shiva (as Pashupati)
Festivals	Maha Shivaratri, Teej
Features	Temple tank: Bagmati River Temple tree: Ancient Banyan Tree
Location
Location	Kathmandu
Country	Nepal
Location in Nepal
Geographic coordinates	27°42′35″N 85°20′55″E / 27.70972°N 85.34861°E / 27.70972; 85.34861
Architecture
Type	Pagoda
Date established	5th century CE
Specifications
Site area	2,460,000 m²
Temple(s)	519 Pagodas
Elevation	817 m (2,680 ft)
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Criteria	Cultural: (iii)(iv)(vi)
Designated	1979 (3rd session)
Part of	Kathmandu Valley
Reference no.	121bis-006

The Pashupatinath Temple (Nepali: पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Pashupati, a form of Shiva. It is located in Kathmandu, Nepal, on the bank of the Bagmati River. The temple was classified as a World Heritage Site in 1979. This "extensive Hindu temple precinct" is a "sprawling collection of temples, ashrams, images and inscriptions raised over the centuries along the banks of the sacred Bagmati river", and is one of seven monument groups in UNESCO's designation of Kathmandu Valley.^[1] The temple, considered one of the holiest pilgrimage sites for Hindus, is built on an area of 246 hectares (2,460,000 m²)^[2] and includes 518 mini-temples and a main pagoda house.

Pashupatinath temple is given a status of one of the most sacred Shiva Kshetras (abodes of Shiva) in Skanda Purana, and is also one of the Paadal Petra Sthalams (Tamil Tevara Sthalam) of Tevaram.^[3][4] The linga of Pashupatinath, as described in Shiva Purana, is the bestower of all wishes.^[5][6] The temple is worshipped as the head of Shiva with his body in Kashi Vishwanath in India,^{[7][8][9][10]} and is also spiritually connected to the temples of Kedarnath, Rudranath, Kalpeshwar, Madhyamaheshwar and Tungnath as per the legend of Mahabharata.^[11][12][13] The main temple priests are, as a tradition, Vedic Dravida Brahmin scholars from Karnataka educated by Śrī Śaṅkarāćārya Dakṣiṇāmnāya Pīṭha, Sringeri.