Muktinath Temple

Getting there

• By air

  Jomsom Airport has regular flights to Pokhara, and Jomsom is the main hub for onward travel to Muktinath.

• By road

  The temple lies along the Annapurna Circuit, a well-known trekking route. It is not far from Jomsom, the district headquarters of Mustang.

Why devotees come here

Muktinath is an ancient Vishnu temple in Mustang, Nepal, at about 3,800 metres, one of the highest temples in the world. It sits in the Muktinath valley at the foot of the Thorong La pass. Sri Vaishnavites count it among the 108 Divya Desam.

Hindus associate the temple with Vishnu or Shakti, both believed to have manifested here. The complex is called Mukti Kshetra, the place of liberation. Buddhists revere it as an abode of dakinis, the sky dancer goddesses, and count it among the twenty-four Tantric places. Padmasambhava is believed to have built a statue of himself here before leaving for Tibet. That statue is kept at the Mharme Lhakhang Gompa, where nuns look after it. Shaktas count the temple as one of the Shakta pithas, linked to Sati's head.

Local tradition says an earlier clay temple, built by the kings of Jumla, stood on this spot. The central shrine follows the Newari style, with a three-tiered roof and a golden brass pinnacle. Its construction is dated to 1814 or 1815, and Queen Subarna Prabha Devi of Nepal is credited with it. She is said to have visited Muktinath on pilgrimage around 1807. The courtyard has 108 fountain spouts shaped like a bull's head, called the Mukti Dharas.

The temple lies within a poplar woodland treated as a sacred grove. The river Gandaki runs beside it and is known for its shaligrama stones. The ancient Vishnu Purana mentions Muktinath in its Gandaki Mahatmya section. Sri Vaishnavites also count it among the eight Svayam Vyakta Kshetra, self-manifested shrines.

Tips for your visit

• Devotees bathe in 108 streams and two ponds on the temple premises.
• Strong winds blow up the Jomsom valley every day from late morning onwards.

Questions people ask