Balaju - Water Gardens

The park, laid out in the mid 17th c. by Pratapa Malla as a pleasance for the queen, has a wildlife preserve with red deer and a rich variety of birds. It also boasts one of the only two swimming pools in the Kathmandu Valley. The Water Gardens take their name from the Baais Dhara Balaju, a spring-fed tank into which water pours from twenty-two makara-shaped gargoyles (makara 5 crocodile). As well as being used for washing clothes and daily ablutions, the spring serves various ritual purposes. Pilgrims make their way here in large numbers, particularly for the festival of Balaju Jatra at the time of the full moon in April, on which day the water is said to come from the Trisuli. The most notable feature of the Water Gardens is the figure of the Sleeping Vishnu, Bala Nilkantha. A second, smaller figure, also of Budha Nilkantha, was long thought to be a 17th c. replica. Historians are now agreed that it too dates from the 7th c.

In front of the Sleeping Vishnu stands a two-storied pagoda, built in the 19th c. and dedicated to Sitala, Goddess of Leaves. In addition to the multi-limbed figure of Sitala (14th c.), numerous other Hindu and Buddhist deities can be seen. They include an interesting 16th c. sculpture of Harihara combining the attributes of two gods: Vishnu's wheel and Shiva's trident.