To the right of the complex is a white hospice building where the near death await their final hour so that they might have their feet placed in the holy Bahgmati river while they die, so that their spirit may escape on to paradise.

After this the family wraps the body & prepares to place it on the funeral pyre they've built. The height of the pyre is representative of how wealthy the family was since the wood must be bought & transported to the temple.

There is more to Pashupati than just the temple complex. Up on the hill there is a place called the Sadhu grave yard with idols of Ganesh & holy stones & different buildings & is inhabited by the local monkeys.

Pashupati is somewhat paradoxal. On one side of the river are devout Hindus, worshiping their gods & mourning their loved ones & across the river are peddlers, beggars, tourists & those Hindus who are there just to blow some time. It is of some note that Bob Dylan wrote "Knocking on Heavens Door" while watching the cremations at Pashupati. If you go, spend some time in reflection.

Access is only permitted for Hindus but views of the extensive temple complex are gained from terraces on the opposite side of the river.

This is the must-see temple complex of Pashupatinath --- Temple of the God Pashupati. There are many legends to recount and many stories to be told here --- it’s far better to visit with a professional guide.

As you gaze at the shrine-covered hill rising beyond the holy Bagmati River, a puff of white smoke drifts in from the right. Walking further, you’ll discover that its the smoke from riverside crematory fires. The cremations --- a Hindu tradition --- are worth their own journal entry.

Near the river stand the gaths where the bodies of dead are burned, ashes follow the flood until the holy Gange. During the funeral ceremony I met a strange Sadhu who proposed to lift a 50 kg stone with his you know what! I declined his proposal so I didn't know if he was able to do so.