Sweet and exotic sojourn with Namo Buddha

Namo Buddha is a very famous Buddhist pilgrimage site of Nepal located at the top of a very beautiful hills, 13.4 km southeast of Dhulikhel. The natural beauty, religious value of the main stupa, and the mesmerizing beauty of the monastery is what attracts most of the visitors to this region.

Namo Buddha is one of three major Buddhist pilgrimage of Nepal after Boudha Stupa and Swyambhunath. Elevated at an altitude of 1,750 meters, Namo Buddha is very quiet and pure which is one of the best short trek from Kathmandu. Clean environment, natural air without any pollution, picturesque views of various mountain ranges, hills, and luscious green valleys is what welcomes you after reaching there.

You can even observe the exotic view of the sunset and sunrise from here. Due to its soulful environment, it is also considered one of the best meditation retreats of Nepal.

There is the presence of one main stupa and one monastery named Thangru Tashi Yangtse Monastery in the Namo Buddha area. Rows of small Buddhist stupas and idols of Buddha at various places adorned with prayer flags also can be seen around Namo Buddha. Mesmeric idols of Lord Buddha in his compassionate manifestation, Buddhist monk’s prayers will surely allure you in here.

Legend

Legend has it that in the previous life of Gautam Buddha he was a prince. He has three brothers. One day they were hunting in the jungle, they saw a tigress sleeping beside her cubs. The other two brothers were ready to kill the tigress, but Buddha stopped them by saying that it is completely wrong. He noticed that the tigress was not able to move, for she had just given birth and she also feared that if she left to hunt for food, another animal might harm her cubs. Tormented by a hunger she was not even able to move.

This touched the heart of Buddha, when he asked his brothers what Tigress eat, they suggested the warm meat and blood. He thought, for this, he would have to take the life of another being, but he was against harming other beings. What real use is this body if not for the Dharma?” he thought and finally decided to offer himself to the tigress. After his brother left, he went back to the den and offered his own flesh to the tigress as she was not able to devour him on her own.

King and Queen were very sad by the action of their youngest son, so they created a small casket covered with seven kinds of jewels in which they laid the bones of their son and a stupa was built over the place in which it was buried and that place is called Namo Buddha. There are also the presence of caves in the monastery and the hills showing the idols of Buddha.

How to reach?
Namo Buddha is located about 40km away from the heart of Kathmandu city in Kavre District. If you take a local bus, it will take around 3 to 4 hours, but if you take a taxi from Kathmandu, it will take around 2 hours.