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| Hinduism in Nepal | |
|---|---|
| Name | Hinduism in Nepal |
| Caption | Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu |
| Followers | Majority religion (historical) |
| Primary texts | Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita, Puranas |
| Languages | Sanskrit, Nepali, Newar, Maithili |
| Major deities | Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, Lakshmi, Saraswati |
| Festivals | Dashain, Tihar, Teej, Shivaratri, Chhath |
Hinduism in Nepal Hinduism in Nepal is the dominant religious tradition historically centered in the Kathmandu Valley, shaped by royal patronage from the Shah dynasty, syncretic engagement with Newar culture, and textual traditions such as the Vedas and Puranas. Its institutions include major pilgrimage sites like Pashupatinath Temple, monastic and priestly networks connected to Khasa Kingdom and Malla dynasty legacies, and contemporary political developments involving the Nepalese Constituent Assembly and the 2006 Loktantra Andolan. The tradition interweaves with ethnic, linguistic, and legal structures in regions such as Terai, Gandaki Province, and Province No. 1.
Hindu religious patterns in Nepal trace to interactions among the Licchavi dynasty, Shah dynasty, Malla dynasty, and trans-Himalayan exchanges with Tibet and India during eras of the Maurya Empire and Gupta Empire influence. Medieval patronage by rulers such as Prithvi Narayan Shah and royal ceremonies tied to the Gorkha Kingdom consolidated rites centered on deities like Pashupati and forms of Vishnu worship exemplified by shrines connected to the Vaishnava revival and movements associated with figures like Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda through 19th-century reformist currents. British-era geopolitics involving the Sugauli Treaty and contacts with the East India Company affected pilgrimage patterns and clerical mobility, while 20th-century reforms under the Rana dynasty and later the Nepalese monarchy shaped temple administration and land grants recorded in royal records. The abolition of the monarchy after the Nepalese Civil War and decisions by the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007 and the Constitution of Nepal, 2015 reconfigured the relationship between state and religious institutions.
Hindu populations concentrate in the Kathmandu District, Lumbini Province, Province No. 2, and the Far-Western Region with dense communities among ethnic groups such as Brahmins, Chhetris, Tharu, Newar, Maithil, and Khas peoples. Census data collected by the Central Bureau of Statistics (Nepal) historically registered majorities in constituencies like Bhaktapur District and Kavrepalanchok District and sizeable diasporic communities in Kathmandu Valley suburbs, migrant labor corridors to Gulf Cooperation Council states, and returnee communities from India. Urbanization around Patan and industrial districts near Biratnagar have altered age and gender profiles among practitioners, while remote highland parishes in Mustang and Dolpo maintain localized ritual calendars.
Belief systems include reverence for Trimurti manifestations, devotional lineages such as Gaudiya Vaishnavism, ritual specialists drawn from Bahun and Newar priestly castes, and scripture-centered study of the Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana, and regional Puranas. Practices encompass daily puja at household shrines, recitation of mantras like the Om and Gayatri Mantra, pilgrimage circuits to Muktinath, and lifecycle samskaras such as upanayana and shraddha performed by pandits sometimes trained at institutions inspired by Saraswati-centered centers. Syncretic elements include incorporation of Buddha-related sites, localized deity forms such as Ajima among the Newar and village goddesses paralleling Devi cults, and tantric traditions linked to schools associated with Kashmir Shaivism.
Major festivals include Dashain featuring blood sacrifices and royal tika ceremonies historically endorsed by the Nepalese monarchy, Tihar with worship of Lakshmi and Karna-related rites, Teej among women linked to Parvati and Shiva observances, and Maha Shivaratri centered at Pashupatinath Temple. Regional observances such as Chhath in the Terai and Jitiya among the Maithil reflect agrarian cycles and lunar calendars that intersect with ritual specialists from Gubhaju and Dhami. Pilgrimage seasons to sites like Gosaikunda, Barahachhetra, and Rameshwaram-linked shrines attract yatris alongside monastic delegations from Vrindavan and Varanasi.
Prominent sites include Pashupatinath Temple, Muktinath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa (site of Hindu-Buddhist co-veneration), Janaki Mandir in Janakpur, Guhyeshwari Temple, Swyambhunath (shared sacred landscape), and the Lumbini complex where interaction with Buddha heritage occurs. Temple patronage historically came from the Malla and Shah courts, with endowments recorded in Guthi documents and managed by trusts such as Pashupati Area Development Trust. Rural sacred groves, riverbanks like the Bagmati River, and mountain shrines on routes through Annapurna and Koshi watersheds form pilgrimage geographies tied to Hindu itineraries.
Social structures feature varna and jati distinctions among Brahmin and Chhetri elites, Dalit communities including the Kami and Badi, and protections enacted by statutes like the Muluki Ain (1854) historically governing personal law until reforms by the Supreme Court of Nepal and legislative measures by the Parliament of Nepal. Movements for legal redress by organizations such as the National Dalit Commission and advocacy from civil society groups influenced constitutional provisions in the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007 and the Constitution of Nepal, 2015. Caste-based rituals intersect with land tenure, guthi management, and access to temple offices contested in cases heard at the Kathmandu District Court.
Hindu practice in Nepal engages closely with Buddhism—notably Newar syncretism involving Vajrayana rites and shared sites like Swyambhunath and Boudhanath—as well as with Islam in Terai marketplace networks, with Christianity via missionary-era conversions debated in the Nepalese Congress era, and indigenous animist traditions of Kirant and Shamanism preserved among Limbu and Rai communities. Interreligious dialogues occur in forums hosted by institutions like Tribhuvan University and NGOs, and legal pluralism over marriage and inheritance is mediated through constitutional review by the Supreme Court of Nepal and legislative committees of the Constituent Assembly.