Kathmandu’s Udupi line-up

It is exactly one year since the south Indian Brahmin priests were stripped of their right to perform pooja at the Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, one of the eight holiest Hindu shrines. This act by the then Maoist Government not only shook the confidence of a tradition carried forward for centuries, but was also a great reminder of consequence of change.

The Pashupati Area Development Trust — following the order from the Maoist Government Culture Minister Gopal Kiranti — broke the lock placed by the protesting Bhandaris at the southern gate of the temple and escorted the new priests to the temple under police security and the Young Communist League support.

This incident and the September 2009 attack on Indian priests at Pashupatinath temple by Maoists again have sent shock waves down south of the Vindhyas in India. The attack was just not on the priests but also on the centuries old tradition between India and Nepal. For three centuries, Indian priests have been in the Pashupatinath temple conducting daily poojas.

In January 2009, Mahabaleshwara Bairy, who served as Pradhan Archak (chief priest) of Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, confirmed that three priests, including him, had quit their jobs there. Scared with the prospects of his family being attacked by Maoists, Bairy had said then that he quit on September 25, 2008, as he was “suffering from acute backache” and the doctor had advised him to take it easy. His resignation was accepted on December 28, 2008. Bairy, who served the temple for 16 years, is a native of the Belve village in Kundapura taluk of Udupi district. He even gave another excuse that his parents were getting old and he had to look after them.

A controversy has been brewing at the shrine, which culminated in the Maoists replacing the Indian priests with a local man, Bishnu Prasad Dahal. Apart from Bairy and two other priests, there were another two from coastal Karnataka at the temple, one of whom was Krishna Bhat from Gokarna in Uttara Kannada district. Another priest was KP Ramachandra Bhat of Hebri village in Udupi district, but it could not be confirmed if they both had resigned.

The Supreme Court later issued a stay order over the new appointments and directed the authorities concerned to let the old priests carry on their duties. Though the SC order barred the new priests from performing the daily holy rituals, the ruling was not implemented then.

Tradition also has it that some of the Nepali Brahmins are in India offering poojas in the many Hindu temples like Kashi and other pilgrim centres. Even though the Nepal Government has reinstated the Brahmin priests from the South Indian State of Karnataka, this incident stirred virtually a hornet’s nest. Even though all the five priests, including the chief priest, Mahabaleshwara Bairy, have been reinstated by the Temple board under the approval of the new democratic Government of Nepal and have been provided 24 hours security, these incidents remain a blot on the cultural relationship of both the countries. Even though this had evoked sharp reactions from the Indian Government, even today the families of these priests down south of India live in uncertainty over the plight of the Indian priests at Pashupatinath Temple.

When the Maoist-led Government sacked the three south Indian priests serving at the temple and replaced them with Nepali Brahmins, the major controversy that erupted affected the relationship between India and Nepal.

The Nepal Government later reinstated the priests and today, they continue their rituals at the Temple. In fact, the trained priests from Udupi, a coastal district in Karnataka, have been performing Linga Pooja at Pashupatinath. These priests are appointed based on their interview and other tests by the chief priest and subsequently approved by the Temple Board and the Government, again a practice followed for centuries.

At present the chief priest, Mahabaleshwara Bairy and his assistants Ganesha Bhatta, Ram Karanth Bhatta, Raghavendra Bhatta and Girish Bhatta all are from Karnataka and are the five priests performing pooja at the Temple. These priests believe that it was only God who has allowed them to perform the traditional Pooja. Even though they have been provided security cover, they believe it is Lord Pashupatinath who will protect them.

On September 2, 2009, a group of Maoists posing as worshippers beat up two newly-appointed Indian priests. Priests Girish Bhatta and Raghamendra Bhatta were the ones who were injured in the incident while another four policemen suffered injuries when they tried to rescue these priests. The Maoists were protesting against Indians being hired as priests and insisted that locals should be recruited for the purpose. Members of Maoists supported ‘Struggle Committee’, formed to place Nepalese priests at Pashupatinath even threatened an agitation if Indian priests were hired.

But these priests, especially after the September attack on them, don’t believe in worrying about the future but pray for the present to run smoothly. “We have been reinstated. It is one year since that incident happened. We are here only to perform pooja and our job is to continue the tradition. We have been given 24 hour security and everything is fine here. But we can’t predict the future. We are depending always on Lord Pashupathinath,” said chief priest, Mahabaleshwara Bairy, from Kathmandu in a matter-of-fact tone.

Another assistant priest who was witness to all these controversies finds the present a continuation of the past and didn’t want to comment on the future. But he too believes he is in Kathmandu at the behest of the Lord.

According to historians, the Pashupatinath Temple is the oldest Hindu temple in Katmandu. The temple was first established in the 5th century. The priests who perform the services at this temple have been Brahmins from South India since the time of the Malla king Yaksha Malla. This is believed to be the initiative of Adi Shankaracharya who sought to unify the different States of Bharatam (Unified India) by encouraging cultural exchange. This procedure is also followed in other temples around India which were sanctified by Adi Shankaracharya. The Malla kings honoured the request of Adi Shankaracharya, who is believed to be one of greatest Hindu saints. It is also believed that priests from South India were recruited to stop the practice of animal sacrifice, which was prevelant in those days. The king then wanted the “Vamachara” tradition to be stopped and “Satvik” poojas to be done. “Vamachara” meant offering meat and animal sacrifices to the God.

Another interpretation is that Indian priests are stationed at Pashupatinath because when the King passes away, the entire Nepali people are supposed to stop religious services and enter a year long period of mourning and as Pashupatinath needs to be eternally worshiped, Indians were brought in to make sure that the rituals are carried out even at the time of official mourning. The unique feature of this temple is that only four priests can touch the idol. The priests are called Bhattas and the Chief Priest is known as Mool Bhatt or Raval.

It is interesting to know the history of how these South Indian Brahmins Karnataka, ended up being priests of the Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu. According to some of the experts in Karnataka a five-headed Shivalinga in the temple’s sanctum being installed in AD 1360, although the temple itself is believed to date back to the 5th century. In the 14th century, it had been plundered by Turkish invaders, but was then rebuilt and given its present pagoda form, with its resplendent golden roof and silver doors, in the 17th century.

According to sources these ‘Bhatta-Brahmanas chosen by King Yaksha Malla and his successors for presiding over the pooja are Smartha Brahmins, most of them attached to the Sringeri Math in Karnataka. They follow the ‘srividya’ pooja tradition of the Shankaracharya, who founded the math. Traditionally, these priests have come from the present-day Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts of Karnataka. As told by the chief priest there are no hereditary or family rights to being priests at the Pashupatinath temple. But the only precondition is that one has to be a ‘Bhatta-Brahmana’ or a Smartha Brahmin from south India.

Sharing their thoughts on the issue the family members of Raghavendra Bhatta, one of the priest at Pashupathinath temple, from a village near Suratkal near Mangalore finds the priests were only continuing their tradition under the guidance of chief priest, Mahabaleshwara Bhat Bairy. Bhaskar Bhatta, a local priest and father in law of Raghavendra Bhatta says his son-in-law was selected on the basis of an interview conducted by the Chief Priest and, according to him, was well qualified for his job. He feels these priests were only performing their duty towards God. They are, of course, a little bit scared after the incident, but believe that their God will protect them.

This tradition has been a part of history and not only strengthens the bond between the people of both the countries but also plays a vital role in binding other issues facing both the governments and cultures. With such strong ties, one hopes that history and tradition is not disturbed; only making the bond stronger to last for more centuries.

As the legend goes…

Pashupatinath Temple is the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu. It is not known for certain when Pashupatinath Temple was founded. But according to Nepal Mahatmaya and Himvatkhanda, one day Lord Shiva grew tired of his palace atop Mount Kailash and went in search of a place where he could lead a solitary life. He discovered Kathmandu Valley and, without telling anyone, he ran away from his palace and came to live there. He gained great fame there as Pashupati, Lord of the Animals, before the other Gods discovered his hiding place and came to fetch him.

He disguised himself as a majestic deer and would not help the other Gods when they asked for his help. When Shiva did not yield to their pleas, they planned to use force. Lord Vishnu grabbed him by his horns and they shattered into pieces. Vishnu established a temple and used the broken horns to form a linga on the bank of the Bagmati River. As time went by, the temple was buried and forgotten. Later, a cow was known to have secretly sprinkled her milk over the mound.

Apparently, when the cowherds dug around the spot, they found the lost lingas and again built a temple in reverence. The temple that was made served as the seat of national deity, Lord Pashupatinath, until Nepal was secularised. The temple is also listed in UNESCO World Heritage Sites list.