Pashupatinath Temple Map
Pashupatinath is best understood spatially as two connected halves split by the Bagmati River: a western bank holding the main pagoda temple, its fortified inner courtyard, and the majority of the complex’s 500-plus shrines, and an eastern bank holding Guhyeshwari Temple, the hilltop Gorakhnath Temple, the Mrigasthali deer sanctuary, and the viewing terraces most non-Hindu visitors use to see the main temple’s golden roof. Four gates lead into the western precinct, footbridges connect the two riverbanks, and a sequence of cremation and bathing ghats lines the water in between. This page maps out how the complex is physically organized, so visitors and researchers can understand not just what is at Pashupatinath, but where it is and how the pieces connect.
This entry is part of our About Pashupatinath guide. For a full catalog of individual temples and shrines by name, see Temple Directory; for the architectural detail behind the main structures, see Temple Complex.
Quick Answer: Orientation at a Glance
| River dividing the complex | Bagmati River, running roughly north to south through the precinct |
| Western bank | Main pagoda temple, fortified inner courtyard, outer precinct temples, Panchadeval, Pandra Shivalaya |
| Eastern bank | Guhyeshwari Temple, Gorakhnath Temple (hilltop), Mrigasthali deer sanctuary, main visitor viewpoint terraces |
| Main entrance | Western gate, facing the Nandi statue |
| Other entrances | Northern, southern, and eastern gates, generally opened only during major festivals |
| Primary access point from Kathmandu | Gaushala, roughly a five-minute walk from the complex |
| Connection between riverbanks | Footbridges crossing the Bagmati near the ghats |
| Best viewpoint for the golden roof | Terraces on the eastern bank, opposite the main temple |
| Total walking distance to see the core complex | Roughly 1.5–2 kilometers if covering both banks |
The Two Halves: Why the River Matters for Orientation
Unlike temples that occupy a single, self-contained plot, Pashupatinath’s layout is fundamentally shaped by the Bagmati River, which runs through the middle of the precinct and effectively divides it into two functionally distinct zones:
- The western bank is where the main Pashupatinath Temple stands, along with its fortified inner courtyard and the bulk of the outer precinct’s named temples. This side of the complex is where the Hindus-only entry restriction applies most strictly.
- The eastern bank holds Guhyeshwari Temple, the hilltop Gorakhnath Temple, the Mrigasthali forest, and — critically for most visitors — the public viewing terraces that offer the best unobstructed views of the main temple’s gilded roof from across the water.
Understanding this river-based split is the single most useful piece of orientation for anyone planning a visit: most non-Hindu tourism activity at Pashupatinath happens on the eastern bank, looking across at a western bank that remains largely restricted to Hindu devotees at its core. For the religious reasoning behind this division, see Can Non-Hindus Enter?.
Getting to the Complex
Pashupatinath sits roughly 5 kilometers east of central Kathmandu and only 2–3 kilometers from Tribhuvan International Airport. Most visitors approach via Gaushala, a well-known intersection and bus stop a short walk from the complex’s main entrance. Local buses (including routes commonly numbered 11, 22, and 30), microbuses, taxis, and three-wheeled tempos all serve this route, and a metered taxi from central tourist districts like Thamel typically takes 15–30 minutes depending on traffic. For full transport details, see our Travel Guide, How to Reach, and Taxi Guide.
The Four Gates
The fortified main temple courtyard on the western bank is enclosed by walls with four entrance gates, one facing each cardinal direction:
- Western Gate (main entrance) — The primary entrance used year-round, facing the temple’s front façade. This is where visitors first encounter the large bronze statue of Nandi, Shiva’s bull, positioned facing the temple entrance. Security here is notably strict, with metal detectors, bag checks, and lockers available for storing valuables and prohibited items such as leather goods.
- Northern, Southern, and Eastern Gates — These three secondary entrances are generally kept closed outside of major festivals such as Maha Shivaratri, when crowd volume requires opening additional access points to manage the flow of pilgrims safely.
For most visits, all activity funnels through the western gate, making it the natural starting point for understanding the complex’s internal layout.
Inside the Inner Courtyard: A Cardinal Map
Once inside the fortified courtyard, the main temple’s subsidiary shrines are positioned in a roughly cardinal arrangement around the central sanctum — a layout pattern common to Nepalese pagoda temple design, where secondary deities are placed to specific compass points relative to the primary shrine.
| Direction from Main Temple | Shrine or Feature |
|---|---|
| West (front, main approach) | Nandi statue; main entrance gate |
| East (rear façade) | Ganesh Temple |
| South | Unmatta Bhairav Temple; Chandeshwar (7th-century inscribed linga) |
| West façade (specific) | Kirtimukha Bhairav Shrine |
| North | Brahma Temple |
| Northeast corner | Vasuki Nath Temple |
| Within the courtyard generally | Surya Narayan Temple, Budhanilkantha Shrine, Hanuman Shrine, and the dense Shivalinga shrine cluster |
This cardinal arrangement is not incidental — in Hindu temple design more broadly, secondary shrines are frequently positioned according to symbolic directional associations, reinforcing the idea that the inner courtyard functions as a complete devotional map in miniature, not just a collection of buildings placed arbitrarily around a central point.
The Western Bank: Outer Precinct Layout
Exiting the fortified inner courtyard, the wider western-bank precinct fans out around the temple, containing most of the complex’s individually named temples described in our Temple Directory. Key spatial landmarks include:
- South of the side entrance, along the road leading out of the temple complex, sits the Panchadeval — a historic structure now operating as a social welfare center for elderly residents, notable as a rare example of an adaptively reused heritage building within the sacred precinct.
- Further into the outer precinct, visitors encounter the Pandra Shivalaya (a grouped set of fifteen Shiva shrines), beyond which the path opens into a quieter, forested area — a markedly different atmosphere from the dense crowds near the main temple, and a favorite spot for troops of resident monkeys.
- Along the western riverbank itself, near the cremation zone, sit temples such as Raj Rajeshwari Temple and the nearby 7th-century standing Buddha image, positioned close to the water where cremation ceremonies are visible from across the river.
This western-bank sprawl is why first-time visitors are often surprised by how much walking a full visit requires — the complex extends well beyond what’s visible from the main gate.
The Eastern Bank: Guhyeshwari, Gorakhnath, and the Viewpoints
Crossing to the eastern side of the Bagmati via one of the footbridges near the ghats opens up an entirely different section of the complex, laid out as follows:
- Terraces directly opposite the main temple offer the complex’s best public views of the gilded, two-tiered roof and the general layout of the western bank — this is the primary vantage point used by non-Hindu visitors, tour groups, and photographers, since it requires no entry into the restricted courtyard.
- A staircase from the eastern ghat area climbs to a hilltop, where the Gorakhnath Temple sits, generally closed to public entry but visited from outside by sadhus and pilgrims. From this elevated position, visitors also get a broader panoramic view over the ghats, the river, and the surrounding vegetation.
- Further along the eastern bank, a path leads to Guhyeshwari Temple, positioned somewhat apart from the main cluster of eastern-bank sights, within its own walled courtyard — itself subject to similar entry restrictions as the main Pashupatinath sanctum.
- Mrigasthali, the forested deer sanctuary tied to the temple’s origin legend, extends along parts of the eastern bank as well, offering a quieter, more natural counterpart to the dense built environment on the western side.
- At the northern end of the ghats, a series of yogi’s caves are visible from across the river, still occasionally used by meditating ascetics.
The Ghats: A North-to-South Sequence Along the River
The riverside ghats connecting both banks form their own spatial sequence, running roughly north to south along the Bagmati:
- Yogi’s caves — at the northern end, set into the hillside.
- Aryaghat — positioned closest to the main temple, historically reserved for royal and dignitary cremations.
- Additional cremation platforms, including Ram Ghat and Surya Ghat, extending further along the river, historically differentiated along caste lines.
- Gaurighat — associated with ritual bathing, situated within the wider precinct’s ghat sequence.
- Vatsaleshwari Temple, positioned on the riverbank between Aryaghat and the Bhasmeshwar Shivalaya, marking a transition point between the cremation zone and the temples further south.
Understanding this sequence helps explain a detail many first-time visitors find striking: worship, mourning, and quiet reflection all happen along the same short stretch of riverbank, separated by only a few dozen meters rather than being spatially isolated from one another.
A Suggested Walking Route
For visitors trying to see the complex efficiently in a single visit, a commonly used route follows this general sequence:
- Start at Gaushala and walk to the western main gate.
- View the Nandi statue and western façade, then proceed around the fortified courtyard’s perimeter walls where partial views into the courtyard are possible.
- Head toward the ghats, observing Aryaghat and the surrounding cremation area from a respectful distance.
- Cross a footbridge to the eastern bank.
- Climb the staircase to Gorakhnath Temple for a panoramic overview of the site.
- Descend to the main viewing terraces directly opposite the main temple for the best photographs of the golden roof.
- Continue along the eastern bank to Guhyeshwari Temple.
- Return across the river, and if time permits, walk south past the side entrance to see Panchadeval and the Pandra Shivalaya, continuing into the quieter forested section of the western bank.
This route typically covers roughly 1.5 to 2 kilometers of walking and can take anywhere from 1 to 3 hours depending on pace, crowd levels, and how many individual shrines a visitor stops to view along the way.
Best Viewpoints for Photography and Observation
Because access to the main sanctum is restricted, most photography and observation at Pashupatinath happens from a specific set of vantage points:
- The eastern-bank terraces, offering the clearest, most iconic view of the temple’s gold roof against the courtyard below.
- The Gorakhnath hilltop, offering a wider panoramic view encompassing the ghats, river, and both banks simultaneously.
- The perimeter walls of the western courtyard, which in places allow glimpses into the fortified area without requiring entry.
Photography is generally not permitted inside the main sanctum itself, nor during active religious ceremonies, including cremations — a rule strictly enforced out of respect for both religious sanctity and grieving families. See our Photography page for full guidance.
Spatial Directory Table
For quick reference, here is where each major landmark sits relative to the main temple and the river:
| Landmark | Side of River | General Position |
|---|---|---|
| Main Pashupatinath Temple | Western | Center of the fortified inner courtyard |
| Nandi Statue | Western | Facing the western main gate |
| Ganesh Temple | Western | East façade of the main temple |
| Vasuki Nath Temple | Western | Northeast corner of inner courtyard |
| Kirtimukha Bhairav Shrine | Western | West façade of inner courtyard |
| Unmatta Bhairav Temple | Western | South of main temple |
| Brahma Temple | Western | North of main temple |
| Chandeshwar (linga) | Western | South of main temple |
| Panchadeval | Western | South of the side entrance |
| Pandra Shivalaya | Western | Outer precinct, leading to forested area |
| Raj Rajeshwari Temple | Western | Along the riverbank, cremation zone |
| Standing Buddha Image | Western | Near Raj Rajeshwari Temple |
| Aryaghat | Riverside (western edge) | Closest ghat to the main temple |
| Ram Ghat / Surya Ghat | Riverside | South of Aryaghat |
| Gaurighat | Riverside | Within the ghat sequence |
| Vatsaleshwari Temple | Riverside | Between Aryaghat and Bhasmeshwar Shivalaya |
| Yogi’s Caves | Eastern | Northern end of the ghats |
| Viewing Terraces | Eastern | Directly opposite the main temple |
| Gorakhnath Temple | Eastern | Hilltop, reached via staircase from the ghats |
| Guhyeshwari Temple | Eastern | Further along the eastern bank, separate walled courtyard |
| Mrigasthali | Eastern | Forested area along the eastern bank |
How the Map Changes During Festivals
The layout described above reflects a typical, non-festival day. During Maha Shivaratri and other major events, the temple’s spatial organization shifts considerably to manage crowd volume:
- All four gates are typically opened simultaneously, rather than funneling all traffic through the western entrance alone.
- Temple management has, in past festivals, organized multiple queue lines — commonly around eight lines inside the courtyard and four outside — to structure the flow of the enormous crowds toward the inner sanctum in an orderly sequence.
- Additional temporary walkways, barriers, and security checkpoints are added along the ghats and bridges to separate pilgrim traffic from general sightseers and to protect active ritual areas from overcrowding.
- The eastern-bank viewing terraces become significantly more crowded than on an ordinary day, since large numbers of both religious pilgrims and curious visitors compete for the same vantage points.
Visitors planning a Maha Shivaratri visit should expect the walking route described in this guide to take considerably longer, and should anticipate crowd-management measures that may temporarily close or reroute paths that are normally open on a standard day. For the full festival calendar and what to expect, see our Rituals & Poojas section.
Why the Layout Reflects the Site’s History
Pashupatinath’s current spatial arrangement is not the product of a single planning decision but of more than a thousand years of incremental growth. As noted in our Temple Timeline, successive dynasties added shrines, reconstructed structures, and expanded the precinct outward from the original core sanctum, and the resulting layout reflects that accumulated history: an old, dense, tightly organized core surrounded by looser, more sprawling outer development, split by a river that has always been treated as sacred infrastructure in its own right rather than a boundary to be built over. Understanding the map, in other words, is itself a way of understanding the temple’s history — each ring of development outward from the main sanctum roughly corresponds to a different era of the site’s growth, discussed in full in our Origin and History pages.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is the Pashupatinath complex laid out? It is split into two halves by the Bagmati River: a western bank containing the main temple, its fortified courtyard, and most named shrines, and an eastern bank containing Guhyeshwari Temple, Gorakhnath Temple, the Mrigasthali deer sanctuary, and the main public viewing terraces.
How many entrances does Pashupatinath have? Four — one for each cardinal direction — though only the western gate remains open for regular daily use; the other three are typically opened only during major festivals.
Where is the best place to view the main temple if I can’t enter it? The viewing terraces on the eastern bank, directly across the Bagmati River from the main temple, offer the clearest unobstructed view of its gilded roof, along with the hilltop area near Gorakhnath Temple for a wider panoramic view.
How do I get from the main temple to Guhyeshwari Temple? By crossing one of the footbridges over the Bagmati near the ghats and following the eastern-bank path, which also passes the Gorakhnath hilltop and the viewing terraces along the way.
How long does it take to see the whole complex? A typical visit covering both riverbanks involves roughly 1.5 to 2 kilometers of walking and takes between 1 and 3 hours, depending on pace and how many individual shrines are visited.
Where are the cremation ghats located relative to the main temple? Directly along the riverbank closest to the western side of the temple complex, with Aryaghat positioned nearest to the main sanctum and additional ghats extending further south.
For more direct visitor guidance, see our full FAQ section.
Where to Go Next
- Temple Directory — a full catalog of individually named temples and shrines
- Temple Complex — architectural detail behind the main structures
- Guhyeshwari — full detail on the eastern bank’s most significant temple
- Temple Timeline and Origin — how this layout developed historically
- Travel Guide, How to Reach, and Taxi Guide — practical transport information
- Photography and Dress Code — visitor conduct guidance
- Quick Facts — key statistics about the complex’s scale
This entry is part of our About Pashupatinath guide, covering the essential facts, history, mythology, and rituals of Pashupatinath Temple.