Sankhu: siddhas and nagas



Steps to the temple...

 

Sankhu, 1 hour bus ride from Kathmandu. After the patatoe production of the area, a chai in the old town, we climb up the hill to arrive at the temple. The pagodas welcome us, looking at us from their ancient and silent eyes. The carved wood, the metal work, the fountain, all reminds us of a far away past when the siddhas used to come meditate in the near by caves. The wise ones used to come here, such as Nagarjuna, considered to be one of the greatest buddhist philosophers after the Buddha Gautama and the Great Padmasambhava, the Lotus Born, who introduced the tantric tradition to Tibet. Sankhu is filled with ancient legends, kept alive with the temple on top of the hill and the quiet town where nothing has changed for many centuries. From here, the past whispers mysterious mantras to those that can feel them...



Lions guarding the gates

My friend and I went to visit beccause she wanted to write an article on the 4 gates of the town, as well as the many water weel that sit in town. So we took the bus one morning, we had a cup of chai, and we walked around to find all the wells. It was a beautiful type of day, the sun shining on the green hills and the kids repeating their lesson in the local school. On the way to the temple, many little clay cones stamped with lines of mini buddhas stood on the way. The clay is mixed with ashes of the dead, and they are deposited by holy shrines to ensure good luck in the next life. This is ancient buddhist tradition, the closer to the Buddhas and the Teachers the better off one is. The sangha, even after death, is seen in the little clay cones and the red marks on the stone statues.

 A door...

 

The nagas bring messages from the underworld of our unconscient, they float up, carrying with them sutras and secret teachings. The serpent like shaped creatures live by rivers and underground water sources from where they guard the treasures only meant for a few. With their powers, the nagas sometimes take the form of a human, sometimes a dragon, and they bring with them gifts for the humans that did meritous work. They keep the past strong, for the future to be bright. In the moment, we sit with them, listening and Learning.

 

 Temple flags and candle burners

 

Here is a world of sorcerers, magicians, mystics and creatures from out of this world. We go back a thousand years of recorded legends, the legends themselves a few thousand years older. The tradition of the Wise ones of the hindu and buddhist teachers meet in such places as Sankhu. The initiation stories are carved in the stone, wood and metal of the art work. The artists keep the legends alive.

 



The fountain

 

 By the fountain, the rooms that once welcomed the babas, siddhas, and other seekers on the way, are now empty and remain as a memory. The babas and sâdhus have gone somewhere else, some even gave up thhe wandering life, settling in shops and more mundane life styles. Times are changing, yet the temples stand, to remind us of what was once. Once was a place of yogis and siddhas, on top of the mountain...they meditated in their caves. They were the keepers of medecine and more. Through the legends, they shared their knowledge with those that wanted to learn, and taught how to work with their monkey mind. If Sankhu got touched by the april quake, the town remains, full of it's past for the future générations to keep on Learning. So, on your next visit to Kathmandu valley, don't forget to pass by Sankhu, the place where the siddhas and mystics meditated in the caves...if you're lucky, maybe you too will hear the Wind in your ear, chanting a story from a few  thousand years ago...

 

 

Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum

 

Photos of the city now and then to come...