Patan - Bhimsen Mandir

Bhimsen, a hero of the Mahabharata epic whose exploits are illustrated on a wooden plaque on the temple's south side, is the patron deity of merchants. Appropriately enough his shrine is richly endowed. The temple was erected at the time of Srinivasa Malla and rebuilt after a fire in 1682. Although the site is believed to have been consecrated as long ago as Thakuri times, nothing is known about earlier buildings.

The large, platformless three-storied pagoda has the traditional rectangular plan of a Bhimsen or Bhairava shrine, the devotional image being housed on the first floor. The furnishings are particularly opulent. Small bells hang from the widely jutting roofs, the struts of which are superbly carved. The gilded upper roof supports a pataka, a metal strip by which the gods ascend to the Heavenly Fields.

Generous gifts from merchants and trades people ensure the temple is well maintained, though not every "improvement" is strictly in keeping. The roof struts, for example, have been painted silver, the lower floor clad in marble tiles, and the entrance marred by the use of gold paint.