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BUdhanilkantha ; Located here is a Deity of Lord Vishnu, Vishnu (Narayan)
Jalasayana, lying on Ananta Sesa,
 in
the cosmic ocean. The Deity is over 1,000 years old. Lord Vishnu is
about 5m (17 ft) long and is lying in a 13m (43 ft) long tank, as if
floating, with His legs crossed. His four hands hold the four symbols
of Vishnu: the chakra (disc), club, and conch-shell and lotus flower.
Budhanilkantha literally means “old blue-throat.” Ananta has 11-hooded
heads. It is believed that the deity was carved in the 7th or 8th
century during the Licchavi period.Hindus can walk down the steps and
touch His feet, but foreigners cannot. The main festival of the year
is when Lord Vishnu, who sleeps on the cosmic ocean during Caturmasya
period wakes up on the Haribondhini Ekadashi day in late October or
early November. Many thousands of people come on this day. Three other
images of Lord Vishnu were carved at the same time. One is here at
Budhanilkantha and is considered the most important and original, one
is at Balaju Gardens, and one is at the old Royal Palace in Kathmandu,
but can not be viewed by tourist. The king of Nepal is not allowed to
see the deity at Budhanilkantha, but he can see the other two deities.
It is believed if the king sees this deity of Vishnu he will die
immediately. The deity of Budhanilkantha was lost for a while and was
later rediscovered by a farmer. It is believed that the farmers struck
the buried deity with his plough and that blood came out from the
ground.The morning puja between 9 and 10 am is interesting. |
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