Pharping and Dakshinkali Day Tour

Pharping, about 19km south of Kathmandu is a culturally prosperous and thriving Newai town identified with the sacred site of Hinduism and Buddhism where Guru Rimpoche (Padmasambhava, known as lotus born God) attained the level of a Mahamudra vidyadhara.and an ancient Buddhist pilgrimage sites that have been taken by large number of Tibetans and other Nepalese Buddhist devotees. This village is famous for religious Buddhist monasteries, , Shesnarayan temple,  Bajra Yogini temple, Gorakhnath temple and Guru Padmasambhava meditation cave. It is believed that he got enlightenment at Asur Cave. Recently numerous Buddhist monasteries have been built in the area. The best way to visit the Pharping is to join other pilgrims on the clock-wise pilgrimage circuit (parikrama in Nepalese, kora in Tibetan)

Downhill south of Pharping, there is Dakshinkali temple which is dedicated to Kali, a blood thirsty incarnation of goddess Parvati, consort of Shiva. The name Dakshinkali is composed of the word "dakshin", meaning "south", and the name "Kali" meaning “black female”, and refers to the temple´s position in a spectacular river gorge of Black female goddess of south. To satisfy the blood-lust goddess people drag a menagerie of chickens, goats, sheep, pigs and even buffaloes occasionally to be beheaded and transformed into cuts of meat by the temple priest, who are also skilled butcher. Once the sacrifice is made, the meat goes in pot, the pilgrims bring all the ingredients to make barbeque and feast themselves under the shade of trees. Saturday is the big sacrificial day and also blood flows freely on Tuesday. 

On the way to or way from Pharping and Dakshinkali we can visit Chobar Gorge. According to legends, Buddhist deity Manjushree chopped out the hill with single blow of her mighty sword released the water out creating the Chobar Gorge. Countless nagas were washed out of the valley with the flowing away water but Kartotak, king of nagas (snakes) made it nearby Taudaha pond beside the road to Pharping. Geologist and theologians rarely find common ground but everyone agrees that eons ago Kathmandu valley was a lake and the hill of Swayambhunath was an island.