Dakshinkali Temple

Dakshinkali, set in a forested gorge at the confluence of two streams south of Pharping, is one of the most important temples of the fierce mother goddess Kali in the Kathmandu Valley. Pilgrims throng the open shrine on Tuesdays and Saturdays, the days traditionally dedicated to the goddess.

Worship here is attributed to the Malla period, with the present arrangement of the open-air shrine developed over later centuries. The temple sits within a wider sacred landscape around Pharping that includes important Hindu and Vajrayana Buddhist caves and shrines.

Dakshinkali is among the best known sites of the blood-sacrifice tradition in Nepali Hinduism, particularly intense during the Dashain festival, when devotees offer goats and fowl to the goddess in fulfilment of vows.

The shrine is an open, canopied structure rather than a towered temple, with a black stone image of the six-armed Kali standing on Shiva, sheltered by a gilded canopy on serpent pillars. Stone steps and rest-houses descend to the shrine through the gorge.

Current condition: Active and heavily visited pilgrimage site

Managed by a local temple committee; the surrounding forest and approach are part of the protected sacred landscape of Pharping.