Nepal: Prayer ceremony at Swayambhunath (Monkey Temple), Kathmandu Valley

The date of construction of the Svayambhunath stupa, its origins steeped in myth, is unknown. According to the inscriptions on an ancient and damaged stone tablet at Svayambhunath, King Vrishadeva (ca. 400 CE) was the first to build a place of worship on the site. His grandson, King Manadeva I (ca. 464-505) may have made some additions. The Muslim invasion of 1349 undid all the pious building work, the marauding Muslim warriors dismantling every kafir (infidel) sanctuary that they came across. An inscription at Svayambhunath records the date of the Muslim invasion as 20 November 1349, in all probability a very accurate account. After the raids Svayambhunath was restored, and most of the buildings seen today are from the post-invasion period. Swayambhunath is an ancient religious complex atop a hill in the Kathmandu Valley, west of Kathmandu city. It is also known as the Monkey Temple as there are holy monkeys living in parts of the temple in the north-west. The Tibetan name for the site means 'Sublime Trees' (Wylie:Phags. pa Shing. kun), for the many varieties of trees found on the hill. For the Buddhist Newars in whose mythological history and origin myth as well as day-to-day religious practice, Swayambhunath occupies a central position, it is probably the most sacred among Buddhist pilgrimage sites. For Tibetans and followers of Tibetan Buddhism, it is second only to Bodhnath.