Patan Durbar Square (Nepal Bhasa: /यल लायकु, Nepali: पाटन दरबार क्षेत्र) is situated at the centre of the city of Lalitpur in Nepal. It is one of the three Durbar Squares in the Kathmandu Valley, all of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The square contains formal royal palace of Malla Kings of Lalitpur and a dense concentration of temples, shrines, courtyards and traditional Newar buildings.

The Durbar Square is a marvel of Newa architecture. The square is paved with red bricks bordered by stone. There are many temples and statues in the area. The main temples are aligned opposite the western face of the palace. The entrance of the temples faces east, towards the palace. There is also a bell situated in the alignment beside the main temples. The Square also holds old Newari residential houses. There are other temples and structures in and around Patan Durbar Square built by the Newa People. A center of both Hinduism and Buddhism, Patan Durbar Square has 136 (courtyards) and 55 major temples.

The square was heavily damaged by the earthquake in April 2015.

History

The history of Durbar Square is not clear. Although the Malla Kings of Lalitpur are credited with the establishment of the royal square, it is known that the site was an ancient crossroad. The Pradhanas, who settled around the site before the Mallas, have connections with the Durbar Square. Some chronicles hint that the Thakuri dynasty built a palace and made reforms to the locality, but there is little evidence of this. Scholars are certain that Patan was a prosperous city since ancient times. There is also an evidence that the Patan was founded during the 3rd century BC by the Kirat dynasty and was later expanded in the sixth century.

Archaeological and epigraphic evidence indicates that the palace area had an important role before the Malla period. The Patan Museum records a stone inscription dated to 643 AD in Keshav Narayan Chowk, within the present palace complex, and another inscription dated to 560 AD in the nearby Manidhara area. These inscriptions provide evidence for the area's importance during the early medieval period, although the precise development of the royal complex before the Malla period remains uncertain.

The Malla Kings made important changes to the square. Most of the current architecture is from the 1600s, constructed during the reign of King Siddhi Narsingh Malla and his son Srinivasa Sukriti. Some of the notable Malla Kings who improved the square include Purandarasimha, Sivasimha Malla and Yoganarendra Malla.

Important buildings Patan is one of the oldest Buddhist cities. It is a center of both Hinduism and Buddhism with 136 or courtyards and 55 major temples. Most of these structures are in the vicinity of the Durbar Square.

Krishna Mandir

Krishna Mandir is one of the most important temple in Patan Durbar Square. A three-storied structure, it was built in the local variety of Shikhara style called Granthakuta.Nepalese Architecture (2019). N.R.Banerjee. The stone carvings along the beam above the first and second-floor pillar are most notable. The first-floor pillar carvings narrate the events of the Mahabharata, while on the second floor there are visual carvings from Ramayana.

The temple was built in 1667 by King Siddhi Narsingh Malla. It is said that one night the King saw Lord Krishna and his consort Srimati Radha standing in front of the royal palace. He ordered a temple to be built on the same spot. There are 21 golden pinnacles in the temple. Below the pinnacles are three stories. The first floor holds the main shrine of Lord Krishna with shrines of Radha and Rukmini at each side. The second floor is dedicated to Lord Shiva and the third to Lokeshwor (Avalokiteshvara).

The square is crowded with thousands of Hindu Pilgrims and devotees during Krishnastami.

Bhimsen Temple Bhimsen (Bhin : dya) Temple was built by Srinivasa Malla in 1680. It is renowned for its three interconnected golden windows. Bhimsen is a great personality in Mahabharata. He is the second-born son of Kunti and King Pandu, and one of the five Pandavas, known for his bravery and strength. Newa people worship him as a god of business and trade.Gudrun Bühnemann. "Bhīmasena as Bhairava in Nepal." Zeitschrift Der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft, vol. 163, no. 2, 2013, pp. 455–476. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.13173/zeitdeutmorggese.163.2.0455. Tourists are not allowed inside the temple. Photos are also not allowed to be taken inside the temple.

For Newar communities, Bhimsen is particularly associated with strength, protection and commercial activity. His worship has therefore traditionally been connected with merchants and traders, giving the temple a significance that extends beyond the character of Bhima in the Mahabharata. The Nepalese conception of Bhīmasena also incorporates aspects associated with Bhairava and local religious traditions.

Vishwanath Temple Vishwanath Temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. It was built in 1627 AD during the reign of Siddhi Narsingh Malla. The roof supports are decorated with erotic carvings similar to imagery widespread in Shiva temples in India. The temple is guarded by two stone elephants in the front entrance. On the other side of the temple is the sculpture of a bull, Shiva's vehicle. A stone linga is enshrined inside the temple. It is located between Krishna Mandir and Bhimsen Temple.

Taleju Bhawani Temple

Taleju temple was built by Siddhi Narsingh Malla in 1640 and rebuilt by Srinivasa Malla in 1667 after a fire. Taleju Bhawani was the personal deity of the Malla kings. It is a five-storey temple with triple-roofs. The 14th century chronicle of Gopala kings hints that the Taleju temple was built by the Pradhanas before the Mallas. The temple is not open to the public.

Char Narayan Temple The Char Narayan Temple, also known as the Jagat Narayan Temple, is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu. It is one of the oldest surviving temples in Patan Durbar Square. The temple is traditionally dated to 1566 and has been attributed to Purandar Singh, a prominent nobleman of Patan, although some scholars have proposed a later date. The two-tiered pagoda-style temple is built mainly of brick and wood and is noted for its carved wooden struts depicting forms of Vishnu and other religious imagery. The temple was completely destroyed above its plinth by the 2015 Nepal earthquake and was subsequently reconstructed using documented and conserved original wooden elements.

Chyasing Deval The Chyasing Deval, also known as Chyasin Dega, is an octagonal shikhara-style temple dedicated to Krishna. It stands at the southern end of Patan Durbar Square. The name refers to its eight-sided form. The temple dates to the early 18th century; sources variously associate its construction with King Vishnu Malla or with members of the Malla royal family. The structure is distinguished by its stone construction and octagonal plan, making it different from the predominantly pagoda-style temples elsewhere in the square.

Narsingha Temple The Narsingha Temple is a small shikhara-style Hindu temple in Patan Durbar Square dedicated to Narasimha, the man-lion avatar of Vishnu. The temple was built by the nobleman Purandar Singh in 1589. Its relatively small size and shikhara form distinguish it from the larger pagoda-style temples surrounding the square. The temple forms part of the historic group of monuments associated with the former royal centre of Patan.

Garuda statue The Garuda statue is a gilded image of Garuda, the divine bird and mount of Vishnu, mounted on a stone pillar in Patan Durbar Square. The pillar stands near the Vishwanath and Krishna temples and forms part of the group of monuments surrounding the former royal palace. Historical documentation of the square records the Garuda pillar alongside the major temples, including Krishna Mandir and Vishwanath Temple.

Layout of the Palace The three main courtyards in the palace are Mul Chowk, Sundari Chowk and Keshav Narayan Chowk. Besides these courtyards, the complex boasts impressive temples, religious shrines, and historical places, all noted for their exquisite carvings and beautiful display of ancient Newari architecture.

Keshav Narayan Chowk Keshav Narayan Chowk is, inside the Patan Museum, to the north of the Mul Chowk. Keshav Narayan Temple is located at the center of this chowk and gave the chowk its name. The courtyard preserves elements of the historic palace complex while housing collections of Nepalese religious art and artefacts. Its main entrance and upper-storey windows are richly decorated, including gilded architectural elements and representations associated with Avalokiteshvara. The conversion of the courtyard into a museum formed part of the long-term conservation of the Patan royal palace complex.

Mul Chowk Mul Chowk was established by King Srinivasa Malla in 1666 is the central courtyard. It is the most famous and largest courtyard among the three main chowks. Vidya Temple is located at its center and Taleju temples stand around the courtyard. The doorway to the Shrine of Taleju, on the southern side of the courtyard, is confined by the statues of the river goddesses Ganga, on a tortoise, and Jamuna, on a carved makara (mythical crocodile).

Sundari Chowk Sundari Chowk is to the south of the Mul Chowk. It is designed with a sunken tank known as Tusha Hiti. Smaller than the Mul Chowk, it is now open to the public. The entrance of the chowk is guarded by the stone statues of Hanuman, Ganesh, and Nara Singha, man-lion forms of Vishnu. As one enters through, the chowk, they can see various local shops selling typical Newari cuisine. The Newari cuisine consists of yomari, kachela, chhoila, black beans, beaten rice, vegetables along with the Newari drink called chhyang which is made from rice. Sundari chowk is known for the nightlife and recently there is a gigantic self-illuminating moon placed in the chowk which has now become the attraction for tourists as well as the local people.

Gallery

References

Further reading von Schroeder, Ulrich. 2019. Nepalese Stone Sculptures. Volume One: Hindu; Volume Two: Buddhist. (Visual Dharma Publications). . Contains SD card with 15,000 digital photographs of Nepalese sculptures and other subjects as public domain.