This one sat endlessly twitching his drum beside a staircase between the Gujeshwari temple and the main Pashupatinath complex, accepting donations from and giving his blessing to passing pilgrims, like this boy.
A couple bathing in the frigid water of the Bagmati river, a tributary of the Ganges, at Pashupatinath. The holiest site for Hindus in Nepal, it is where the ailing devout come to die and be cremated.
One need not be a Hindu to feel the deep spiritual resonance of this place.
Paramahamsa Ram Krishna Das, the "Milk Baba."
A Hindu ascetic who lives in a one-room cell in the Pashupatinath complex, he has eaten nothing but milk (supplemented with One-A-Day vitamins and tea) for many years.
The erotic bits have been painted silver, presumably for the convenience of camera-toting tourists. The larger spiritual context intended by the carvers is suggested here by the menacing skeletal figure to the left.
It was walking past this spot in 1985, after visiting as much of the temple complex as non-Hindus are allowed to see, that I had a spiritual experience that changed my life.
Not something I can present on a web page. Anyone who sees this & is interested can email me at jimgCHANGE_TO_AT_SIGNwell.com.
