SWAYAMBUNATH & BODNATH - TWO ICONS

SYNOPSIS: About visiting the Swayambunath and the Bodnath (Boudhanath) and Patam’s Family.

STUPA ENTRANCE

If you know the movie “The Little Buddha” with Keanu Reeves, then you know exactly where I am:at the Swayambunath, better known locally as the Monkey Temple.On two consecutive days, I visited it and its bigger, but younger brother, the Bodnath Stupa.These big-bellied, white mounds with their “big brother watching you” eyes, represent the quintessential Nepalese stupa types and can be found in miniature versions around the big ones, as well as in many neighborhood courtyards.Legends rank around the origins of these stupas, but one thing is sure:The Swayam is quite old; possibly 1500 years or so, and the Bodnath is the biggest stupa around.

I know this very common wisdom and that’s why I travel, but at times its truth rings even truer:You have to see things in person to really know what’s up.I had a completely wrong idea about the settings of both of these stupas.In the case of the Swayam, my surprise was to find it atop a hill, surrounded by monasteries, shops, and indeed, hundreds of free-roaming monkeys.In the case of the Bodnath, I had pictured it open and free-standing.Instead, I found it to be encircled by a neighborhood;literally built in a circle, great discoveries for me.

Both stupas had their fair share of damage inflicted by the 2015 earthquake.The Bodnath lost its harmika, the 11-tiered gilded top along with those startling eyes.This was fixed swiftly with international funds.The Swayam still looks battered with wooden stumps where there once was a monastic assembly hall, with debris and missing buildings, and with two adjacent towers, currently under construction.