Pilgrimage, Religious Tours

Spiritual minds are meant to make the world more peaceful

With the majority of Hindus and Buddhists residing in this Himalayan country of Hindu Saints (Sadhu / Saddhu) and Lord Buddha, Nepal houses many world famous religious and pilgrimage sites for Hindus and Buddhists. Kathmandu alone has hundreds of temples and dozens of monasteries where the devotees can stop to cleanse their soul, refresh body, mind and spirit, and pray for eternal peace and world peace.

According to Hindu epics, there are 330 million (33 ‘koti’) gods and goddesses. To honor and pray to their millions of deities, Nepal is known as the spiritual heaven among the Hindus from all over the world. Hindu pilgrims and devotees have very deep aspirations to go on a pilgrimage to the temples like Pashupatinath, Muktinath, Manakamana, Gorakhkali, Janakpur, Gosaikunda, Kailash Mansarovar (Tibet), etc. to name only a few. While traveling in Kathmandu valley and outside, you will see temples of different types and sizes everywhere. During the special occasions like ‘Maha Shivaratri’ (February / March), festival celebrated to honor the greatest Hindu god Shiva (god of meditation), Shiva temples, especially Pashupatinath, are the places to visit and delight yourself. On that day, Hindus perform their holy rituals including the women’s fasting and prayers for their husband’s well-being. There is a tradition of smoking marijuana among most of Hindus on this occasion. In other great festivals like Vijaya Dashami (Dashain) and Deepawali (Tihar), streams of Hindu people pray with their deities at the temples.

Buddhists love to go for a pilgrimage especially to the stupas and monasteries including Bauddhanath, Swayambhunath, Lumbini (birth place of lord Buddha) and Muktinath. But as both Hindus and Buddhists share the historic, cultural and religious attributes, they respect each other equally and they love to visit both Hindu and Buddhist pilgrimage sites. Occasions like Buddha’s Birthday (full moon day of May in Nepal), the stupas and monasteries are the places of attraction and pilgrimage.

Moreover, as in cultural / heritage tours, travelers from all over the world are very enthusiastic to visit those sites, no matter which religion they follow. While the pilgrimage in cities is for luxury tours, we can design the pilgrimage tours to the countryside so as to mix adventure of trekking and nature tour.

Though pilgrimage tours during the holy occasions are more popular, pilgrims come to Nepal all year round and we organize those tours whenever you feel and plan to go religious or spiritual.