Nyatapola Temple
Nyātāpola is a five tiered temple located in the central part of Bhaktapur, Nepal. It is the tallest monument within the city and is also the tallest temple of Nepal. This temple was commissioned by King Bhupatindra Malla, the construction of which lasted for six months from December 1701 to July 1702. The temple has survived four major earthquakes and its aftershocks including the recent 7.8 magnitude April 2015 earthquake which caused major damage to the city of Bhaktapur.
The Nyatapola is noted for its unique architecture as it is one of only two five storey temples in the Kathmandu Valley, the other one being the Kumbheshvara in Lalitpur and its five level plinth which along with steps to the top part also contains pairs of stone statues of animals and deities serving as the temple's guardians. Along with the Bhairava temple and other historical monuments, the Nyatapola forms the Tamārhi square, which forms the central and culturally the most important part of Bhaktapur and a popular tourist destination.
The temple itself has religious significance to the locals; it is culturally used as a symbol of Bhaktapur. Its silhouette is used by the municipality in its coats of arms as well as by most of the corporations of the city. Reaching to a height of 33 m, the Nyatapola temple dominates the skyline of Bhaktapur and is the tallest monument there. The Nyatapola Square also divides the town of Bhaktapur into two parts: Thané and Konhé.
The gates of the temple is only opened once a year in July on the anniversary of its establishment during which the Avāla subgroup of the Newars plant a triangular flag on its top and the Karmacharya priests perform a ritual on the deity. Since the public is not allowed in, the deity housed inside is also not known to the public although it is generally accepted that the temple houses a powerful Tantric incarnation of the mother goddess. Even the contemporary manuscript dealing with the construction of the temple does not mention the name of the deity housed inside.
Etymology
Nyatapola is regarded as unique in terms of its name as it one of the only few temples which is not named after the deity residing inside it. Its name is derived from the local Nepal Bhasa name "ṅātāpola", where "ṅātā" means something with five storey while "pola" means roof in the Bhaktapur dialect of Nepal Bhasa. Newar people outside of Bhaktapur use the term "Nyātāpau", where "nyātā" and "pau"has the same meaning as "ṅātā" and "pola".The name " " has been in use since its construction as the temple was referred as such in the ledger of its construction work. Historian Purushottam Lochan Shrestha found a damaged stone inscription being used as a step ladder by soldiers housed in Bhaktapur Durbar Square which uses the word " " to refer to the temple. Raj Man Singh Chitrakar who drew a sketch of the Nyatapola temple in 1844 has inscribed this temple as "Gniato Polo temple of Devi". Similarly, Henry Ambrose Oldfield who painted this temple in 1854 has inscribed this temple as "Temple of Devi Bhagwati at Bhatgaon".
History
Siddhāgni koṭyāhuti yagya
The siddhāgni koṭyāhuti yagya was a yagya ritual where ten million oblations were offered into the yagya fire. A similar ritual was performed by King Siddhi Narasingha Malla during the establishment of the temple of Krishna at Lalitpur in 1636. Bhupatindra Malla had the ritual performed for the inauguration of the Nyatapola temple and the establishment of the deity inside it as well as for religious purposes like to appease the Navagraha and the Ajimā goddesses for the protection of the city. The gochāya ceremony denoting the yagya's start was performed on the second day of the dark half of the month of Vaisakha in Nepal Sambat 822. By then the second roof from the bottom was being tiled. For the occasion, 450 full bettlenuts, 250 half-cut bettlenuts and two coconuts costing 2 mohar and 23 dam were placed in the spot of the yagya. The yagya fire was lit on the ninth day of the bright half of Jyestha in Nepal Sambat 822. Several gilt cooper statues of Hindu deities was consecrated for the occasion out of which a statue of a five headed Hanumāna still survives and was auctioned at Bonhams. People from all over the Kathmandu Valley started coming with their musical instruments and offerings to visit the yagya. As per the siddhāgni koṭyāhuti devala pratiṣṭhā manuscript, only 48 people were allowed inside the yagya including Bhupatindra Malla. The manuscript also contains the details of all the religious rites performed with the yagya.Architectural elements
There are five plinths on the stairways to the entrance of the temple and each of the plinth has a pair of stone guardians. Each of the pair is said to ten times stronger than the one below them. At the bottom are two Rajput wrestlers named Jai and Pratap who are said to be ten times stronger than normal men. Above them are the giant statues of two elephants and above them are the statues of two Singhas, which is a mythical big cat and can be found throughout South and Southeast Asia. Above the cats are the statues of two Sārdūlas, a griffin-like creature of local Newari mythology. And in the topmost plinths are the Tantric deities, Simhanī and Vyāghranī, the lioness and tigress deity who are the strongest of all the guardians.There are also a total of five Ganesha idols on four shrines, one on each corner of the structure
Siddhi Lakshmi
The temple of Nyatapola is dedicated to the Tantric deity of Siddhi Lakshmi, who is considered the ancestral deity of the Malla royal family of Bhaktapur and is also regarded as the mother deity of the Newars of Bhaktapur. Carvings of the goddess can be seen all over the temple. However, as she holds the topmost position in Tantric divinity, her primary visage is kept secret from public. Only Karmāchārya priests are allowed enter the temple.The image of Siddhi Lakshmi inside the temple is said to be of immense beauty, at least 10 feet in height, featuring the goddess standing with her feet on the shoulders of Bhairava—a fierce manifestation of Shiva. Siddhi Lakshmi can be seen with 9 heads and 18 arms. Around the image, lie other numerous deities. It is said that her image was installed using Tantric methods, due to which, her image is hidden from the public.
Cultural significance
Legend tells of the days when the Lord Bhairava, the Hindu God of destruction was causing havoc in society. Bhairava's temple stood in Taumadhi Square. To counteract his destructive behavior the king decided to call goddess Bhagavati, then Bhagavati took the form of Siddhi Laxmi and then carried Bhairava in her hand and built a more powerful temple on the honor of Siddhi Laxmi in front of the Bhairab Temple. To make the brick and wood temple strong and powerful, King Bhupatindra Malla ordered guardians be placed in pairs on each level of the base leading up to the Nyatapola Temple. On the first level is a pair of likenesses of Bhaktapur's strongest man, Jaya mal Pata, a famous wrestler. Next, two elephants followed by two lions, two griffons and finally "Baghini" and "Singhini", the tiger and lion goddesses. After subduing Bhairaba, peace prevailed in the city. The Temple is the tallest temple in the Kathmandu Valley and stands 30 m high. It withstood the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake.The image of Siddhi Lakshmi is locked within the temple, and only the priests are allowed to enter to worship her. The five-storeyed temple, locally known as Nyatapola, stands in the northern side of Taumadhi Square in Bhaktapur. This is the only temple that is named after the dimension of architecture rather than from the name of the deity residing inside. The temple was erected in fewer than five months by King Bhupatindra Malla in 1701–1702 A.D.