About Asia's trident

Shivaratri (Maha Shivaratri): Shivaratri or the night of Lord Shiva that falls sometime between February-March is one of the major festivals of Nepal. This day is dedicated to the Lord of the Lords – Lord Shiva or Mahadev who lived in Mt. Kailash in the Himalayas. Lord Shiva is the most worshipped God in the Hindu religion. More than 100,000 of Hindu devotees from India and Southeast Asia throng weeks ahead of the festival and gather in and around Pashupatinath temple – one of the holiest shrines of the Hindus in Kathmandu to pay their homage to Lord Shiva on his birthday. “Pashupatinath” literally means “the Lord of animals” as Lord Shiva is considered as the guardian and protector of everything that exists in the Himalayan Kingdom. On this holy day, worshippers take dip and bath in the holy river at early dawn and fast for the whole day and stay around fire to keep them warm as it is still winter in Nepal. The devotees also freely indulge in using marijuana and other intoxicating su...

The rich cultural heritage of Nepal is best expressed in the many large and small festivals that occur throughout the year. Though the Nepalese have diverse beliefs and ethnic background, all unite in the celebration of the year's major festivals. There are many kinds of festivals: some honor certain Hindu and Buddhist gods or goddesses, some recreate important events from ancient mythology and epic literature, some herald the seasons or mark important times in the agricultural calendar, and others propitiate the minor deities that populated the spirit world of the country. Festivals such as Dashain and Tihar are of national significance; some such as Bisket or Red Machhendranath Jatra, belong to the traditions of the old Valley towns; and still others, such as Mani Rimdu, are celebrated only in particular countryside community. It has been said that in Nepal, every other building is a temple and every other day is a festival. Whatever time one visits Nepal, there is certain to ...

Mount Everest Base Camp has been a popular destination for trekkers since the very first expeditions to the Nepalese side of Everest in the 1953. To reach this part of the Himalaya within a limited time, we have devised this two week trek to Everest Base Camp which runs directly to and from Lukla. The Everest Base Camp trek, a very well known mountain trek, starts at the Lukla and follows the Dudh Kosi valley which climbs up to the Sherpa capital of Namche Bazzar, a bustling bazaar that’s a junction for trekkers, the local Sherpa and expeditions route to the mighty Mt. Everest. All along this part of the trail, villages are interspersed with magnificent forests of rhododendron, magnolia and giant firs. In both the early autumn and late spring, the flowers on this portion of the trek make it the kind of walk you will remember for a long, long time. From Namche, we trek along a high traversing path where we have our first good views of Everest and then head towards Thyangboche Monastery...

Places to see in Tansen Tansen Bazaar See here Rana buildings, Newari houses, carved windows and pagoda style temples, also meet folks at shopping in one of the highest and busiest bazaars in Nepal! Palpa Ranighat Palpa Ranighat: Visit the ancient building (palace) set on a massive rock bed at the bank of the Kali Gandaki river for viewing palace garden, stone walls, and a small shrine. This palace was built in 1892 by Governor Khadka Shamser in memory of his wife Tej Kumari, and is often called the Taj Mahal of Nepal. Tansen Durbar / Palace In the center of the town lies a 64 room Palace, a representation of arts and crafts of the ancient Palpa. On the saddest morning of 31st of January 2006, Nepal's Maoist Rebels launched attacks in Tansen with no apparent reasons. They fought with local authorities and bombarded many ancient buildings including the Palace which had housed government offices. Many historical buildings including the Tansen palace was destroyed. Tansen Palace has ...

Draped along the greatest heights of the Himalaya, Nepal is where the ice-cold of the mountains meets the steamy heat of the Indian plains. It’s a land of yaks and yetis’, stupas and Sherpas, some of the best trekking on the earth and the closest thing that backpackers have to Disneyland. The Himalaya’s most sophisticate urban cultures took shape here, in the three great mini kingdoms of the Kathmandu valley-Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur-Home to a world class artistic and architectural heritage. Behind the palaces and pagodas of the Kathmandu valley rises the ‘abode of Snows’ (Himalayan in Sanskrit), a magnet for trekkers and mountaineers the world over. Only in Nepal can you trek for weeks without the need even for a tent. No longer does your name have to be Tenzing or Hillary to set foot in Everest Base Camp. Out of the mountains, get your adrenaline kick from world class white water rafting, paragliding, ultra light aircraft, kayaking and mountain biking, or from the spine-tinglin...

First Buddha Film from Nepal Alarmed by Bollywood training its lenses on the Buddha, Tulsi Ghimire is now making the first Buddha film from the Himalayan republic to bolster its claim to the founder of Buddhism. Ghimire, who moved from India’s hill town of Kalimpong to Mumbai first to learn acting and film-making and then made Kathmandu his home, has begun making “Gautam Buddha”, the first Buddha film from Nepal, the birthplace of the apostle of peace. The 60-year-old, who gave the Nepali film industry such hits as “Kusume rumal” and “Balidaan”, says he was inspired to make the film after a conversation with Buddhist monks from Sri Lanka and other places. “First, there was this Bollywood movie, ‘Chandni Chowk to China’, that claimed the Buddha was born in Nepal,” Ghimire told IANS in an interview. “Then there are reports of renowned Bollywood director Ashutosh Gowarikar making an epic film on the Buddha. “We are concerned whether there isn’t some political motivation - to lay claim to...

In Lumbini,Nepal Lumbini, Gautam Buddha was born in Lumbini in southern Nepal. Now accessible by road from the southern town of Bhairahawa 13 miles to the east. Lumbini rests on the plains of Kapilavastu, the ancient kingdom of the Sakya clan of rulers. There are numerous buildings of religious significance of Lumbini. A massive stone pillar was erected by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka in 250 BC. The Maya Devi shrine houses a stone sculpture of Buddha's nativity scene and is said to be located in the exact place Buddha was born in a palace garden. Tilaurakot was the capital city of the Sakya kingdom now in ruins. This is the place where Lord Buddha spent 29 years of his life before he left the comforts of his palace on the quest of "Nirvava". The area is about one sq. miles. In the eastern side we see the remains of the Mahaviniskramana Dwara (the gate from which Buddha departed seeking the Truth, leaving behind all worldly life). There is a museum which at the moment ...