Ranipauwa · Mustang District, Gandaki Province
Sri Muktinath Temple (Thiru Salagramam / Chumig Gyatsa) — Ranipauwa, Mustang District, Gandaki Province, Nepal (at the foot of the Himalayan Thorong La pass)
Sri Muktinath / Mukti-Narayana / Salagramam / Salagram-Kshetra — the 108th of the 108 Divya Desams (the only one outside the Indian mainland); among the 8 Swayam Vyakta Kshetras; included in the 51 Shakti Pithas as Gandaki Chandi-Pitha + Chakrapani-Bhairava; included in the Vajrayana Buddhist 24 Tantric pithas (Tibetan name 'Chumig Gyatsa' = 'Hundred Waters'); the world's only natural source of the Shaligram shila; a Pancha-Bhuta site (earth + water + fire + air + sky)
अन्य नाम: Muktinath · Mukti-Narayana · Thiru Salagramam (Tamil name) · Murthi Perumal · Chumig Gyatsa (Tibetan) · Salagram-Kshetra · Mukti-Kshetra
इस मन्दिर की विशेषता
Vishnu — Muktinath / Mukti-Narayana (the Liberator); life-size gold/copper murti in padmasana, yellow attire; consorts Sridevi (Lakshmi) and Bhudevi in the sanctum; Garuda, Ganesha, Saptarishi, Janaki-Sita with Lava-Kusha, Andal and Sri Ramanuja (consecrated 2009) and Gautam Buddha enshrined in subsidiary shrines; in the Buddhist tradition revered as Avalokiteshvara/Chenrezig (the bodhisattva of compassion)
Swayam Vyakta (self-manifested) kshetra; pagoda-style multi-tiered roof Nepali architecture; an active Tibetan Buddhist nunnery adjoins the Vishnu shrine — a rare living example of Hindu-Buddhist cohabitation in the world
सम्प्रदाय: Vaishnava — Sri Vaishnava sampradaya (a Divya Desam; sung by Kulasekhara Alvar in the 7th-9th century; the Sri Ramanuja connection) + Buddhist — Vajrayana / Tibetan Buddhism (blessed by Padmasambhava; presided by the 21 Taras and Dakinis; included in the 24 Tantric pithas) — a world-unique two-faith convergence
Brahma, Indra and Shiva prayed to Vishnu that he take residence as a stone-form; Vishnu declared that he would reside as Shaligram at Chakra-Tirtha (the Mukti-Kshetra). Vajrakeeta worms etch the chakra-spirals in the shilas. This is the world's only natural source of Shaligrams; black ammonite fossils ~165-400 million years old are found in the Kali Gandaki riverbed; the source lake is Damodar Kunda (in Upper Mustang ~5,400 m).
108 bull-faced water-spouts flow continuously with Kali Gandaki glacial water; per Hindu tradition bathing under all 108 grants the merit of the 108 Divya Desam pilgrimages and removes all sins, granting moksha; per Buddhist tradition it cleanses the 108 mental defilements (kleshas).
Below/adjacent to the main temple the Jwala Mai shrine has three perpetually burning flames; methane gas self-ignites from beneath the ground beside an adjacent spring of water — water and fire in the same chamber. Both Hindu and Buddhist traditions hold this a marvel for its completeness of the five elements (earth + water + fire + air + sky).
Tibetan name 'Chumig Gyatsa' (Hundred Waters); Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) blessed the site en route to Tibet; presided by the 21 Taras and Dakinis (sky dancers); included in the Vajrayana Buddhist 24 Tantric pithas.
Thiru Salagramam is the 108th Divya Desam; the only one located in Nepal; the deity Murthi Perumal; sung by the 7th-9th century Alvars.
Counted among the 51 Shakti Pithas — a site where Sati's body part fell; Gandaki Chandi Shakti + Chakrapani Bhairava; the Gandaki-river-source pitha. The precise body-part attribution is source-inconsistent.
05:00 (seasonal) से 20:30 (seasonal) तक
विशेष नियम: Temple at ~3,762 m altitude — AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) risk (acclimatisation necessary); winter (December-February) carries snowfall + road risk; the 108 Muktidhara water is glacial-cold year-round; Nepal entry needs no visa for Indians (only ID); Shaligram export is regulated by the Nepal government; photography forbidden in the garbhagriha; traditional dress code
Life-size gold/copper idol darshan; Sridevi + Bhudevi by the side.
Sequential bath under 108 bull-faced water-spouts; glacial-cold water; per Hindu tradition removes all sins and grants moksha; per Buddhist tradition cleanses 108 defilements.
The two named tanks of the Mukti Kunda; a triple-bath tradition before the 108 Muktidhara.
Below/adjacent to the main temple; methane self-ignition + an adjacent spring of water in the same chamber; a geological-spiritual marvel.
The world's only natural Shaligram source; pilgrim collection is permitted under Nepal-export regulation; the perpetually-worshipped aniconic Vishnu form.
An active Vajrayana Buddhist nunnery adjoining the temple; a rare Hindu-Buddhist cohabitation darshan.
Installed in the main garbhagriha; with Andal and Sita-Lava-Kusha.
17-19 August 2026 (around Shravan Purnima); 3-day horse-racing + archery; a testimony to the long-standing Mustang horse-people relationship; the summer-conclusion.
Brahmin/Kshatriya sacred-thread renewal day; combined with the Yartung Mela.
Rishi tarpana.
Nepal's national festival of Dashain.
Rama Jayanti.
'Muktinath' = the liberation-bestowing Lord; a moksha sankalpa tirtha by name; the Mukti-Kshetra is included in the 4 Salvation Kshetras of Puranic tradition
स्रोत: Wikipedia + Vedicfeed + Sacred Sites multi-source
108-bath grants the 108 Divya Desam yatra-merit + the removal of all sins and moksha; per Buddhist tradition, the cleansing of 108 defilements; a two-faith darshan sankalpa
स्रोत: Wikipedia + Muktinath Darshan + Nepal Tourism Board
The world's only natural Shaligram source; Kali Gandaki ~165-400 million-year-old ammonite; the Puranic Vajrakeeta-chakra-etching narrative; the perpetually-worshipped aniconic Vishnu form
स्रोत: Wikipedia Shaligram + Hinduism Today + Down To Earth multi-source
Completeness of the five elements — earth + water + fire + air + sky; methane self-ignition + an adjacent spring in the same chamber; a geological-spiritual marvel darshan
स्रोत: Wikipedia + Sacred Sites + Hinduism Today multi-source
The only site in the world simultaneously a Vaishnava Divya Desam + Swayam Vyakta Kshetra + Shakti Pitha + Vajrayana Tantric Pitha + Pancha-Bhuta site; a living symbol of Nepal's Hindu-Buddhist religious harmony
स्रोत: Wikipedia + Chumig Gyatsa + Hinduism Today multi-source
Counted among the 51 Shakti Pithas; Gandaki Chandi Shakti + Chakrapani Bhairava; the Gandaki-river-source pitha
स्रोत: Wikipedia Shakta pithas
Included in the 8 Swayam Vyakta (Ashtakshara) Kshetras; an Ashtakshara-yatra chain
स्रोत: Hindu Blog + Puranic tradition
Methane self-ignition + an adjacent spring of water in the same chamber; a world-unique completeness of the five elements
108 bull-faced water-spouts; glacial-cold water; a Hindu-Buddhist two-faith bath sankalpa
The triple-bath tanks before the 108 Muktidhara
An active Vajrayana Buddhist nunnery; a world-rare Hindu-Buddhist cohabitation
An ancient pilgrim-halt town; a pitra-tarpan site
Mustang district centre; the main access point
Famous for apples + apple brandy (Marpha Calvados); traditional Thakali culture
The originating source lake of the Shaligram shilas; a high-altitude trek (experienced only)
The highest point of the Annapurna Circuit; the trekkers' route
The 108th Divya Desam 'Thiru Salagramam'; the only one outside the Indian mainland; sung by Kulasekhara Alvar
108 मंदिर
Included: Srirangam + Tirumala + Naimisharanya + Pushkar + Salagrama (Muktinath) + Badrinath + Sri Mushnam + Totadri
8 मंदिर
The Gandaki-river-source pitha; the only Shakti Pitha in Nepal
51 मंदिर
Included in the Tibetan Buddhist 24-Tantric pithas; blessed by Padmasambhava; presided by the 21 Taras and Dakinis
24 मंदिर
Manang → Thorong Phedi → Thorong La (5,416 m) → Muktinath → Kagbeni → Jomsom → Ghorepani trek
5 मंदिर