The first Nepali woman to climb Mount Everest was Pasang Lhamu Sherpa. She achieved this feat on April 22, 1993. Her achievement is celebrated as a landmark moment for women’s empowerment and a symbol of courage in Nepal.
26july2025
I’m already starting to understand the neighborhood—where the shortcut alleys spill out, which shops open early. I know which corners to cut to avoid the worst of the traffic.
There’s a growing familiarity.
There are still moments I take the wrong turn. The map is forming, yes—but the language of the place, the instinct, the full ease of belonging—that still eludes me.
26july2025
26july25
Monkeys roam freely around Kathmandu. As soon as I arrived, on the ride from the airport, I saw monkeys on the streets, running along the wires up above…
MonkeyMandu!!
23july2025
This is an image of Bhairab (or Bhairava) — a fierce manifestation of Shiva in Hindu tradition and a protective deity in both Hinduism and Buddhism, especially in the Newar culture of the Kathmandu Valley.
This particular mask-style artwork is likely a representation of Mahākāla Bhairab, a form associated with time and destruction — but not evil — more like destruction of ignorance and protection of the sacred. The moon and sun symbols, along with the third eye, further hint at his omnipresence and cosmic role.
23july2025
23july2025
23july25
This mural likely represents figures from Tantric or cremation-ground iconography, often used in Newar ritual art, with deep links to death, rebirth, and transformation:
1. The Skeleton (possibly a Chitipati or a Yamantaka guardian)
Represents death, impermanence, and the cycle of life. In Tibetan Buddhism and Newar Buddhism, skeleton figures called Chitipati are guardians of the cremation grounds and serve as reminders of mortality. Often shown joyfully dancing, they symbolize the celebration of impermanence and the transience of material life.
2. The Female Figure (possibly Kali or a Tantric goddess like Chamunda)
The wild hair, extended tongue, and red attire are classic features of Kali, the goddess of time, destruction, and power. In Nepal, she is often represented in cremation grounds, standing among the dead, symbolizing liberation through death. The green shoots she holds are a reference to life and regeneration, commonly used during Dashain and other harvest festivals, symbolizing life emerging from sacrifice.
3. The Dogs or Jackals
These are sacred animals often associated with Kali and Shiva, known to dwell in cremation grounds. They symbolize guardianship of thresholds, death, and spiritual transition.
In Newar and Tantric art, such imagery is not morbid—it’s deeply spiritual. It reflects the cycle of life and death, the thin line between divine and terrifying, and the idea that liberation comes not through denial of death, but through confronting it directly.
Why you’ll see this in Patan:
Patan has a strong Tantric heritage that blends Hinduism and Vajrayana Buddhism. Murals like this are often painted on walls near temples, rest houses, or cremation sites, reminding viewers of the impermanence of life and the power of the divine feminine.
Patan, Kathmandu 23july25
Most people walk right past it.
They’re looking at their phones, dodging traffic, thinking about groceries… And there it is — on a wall, behind a stack of scooters or a taxi cab — a mural that’s saying something real. Something raw.
But they don’t see it.
Street art gets dismissed as decoration. Background noise. A splash of color in a gray day. But if you slow down — just for a second — it’s often telling you more than the billboards ever will.
Patan, Kathmandu 23july2025
