Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu – Priests

Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu – Priests

The unique feature of this temple is that only 4 priests can touch the idol. Daily rituals of Pashupatinath are carried out by two sets of priests; one being the Bhatt priests and other Bhandari. Bhatta or Bhatt are the one who performs the daily ritual and can touch the lingam, whereas Bhandaris are the helper and temple caretaker priests who are not qualified to perform pooja rituals or to touch the deity.

Bhatta:

Bhatta also spelt as Bhat are highly educated Vedic Dravida Brahmin Scholars from Karnataka. Unlike other Hindu temples, priesthood of Pashupatinath is not hereditary. Priests are selected from a group of scholars educated by Shri Shankaracharya Dakshinamnaya Peeth Sringeri on Rig Vedic Recitation, initiated in Pashupata Yoga by Kashi Math, Shiva Agama and learned Recitation of Samaveda from Haridwar. After qualifying and fulfilling all those criteria they are selected for Priesthood by Raj Guru of Pashupatinath Temple undergoing strict examination on Vedas and Shiva Agamas and then the chosen priest is sent to Kathmandu for performing Puja and Daily Worship of Lord Shri Pashupatinath.

The unique feature of this temple is that only 4 Bhatta priests can touch the deity.

Current Bhatt priests of the temple are;

·    Ganesh Bhat (15^th head priest of the Pashupatinath Temple aka Mool Bhat) from Udupi.

·        Ram Karanth Bhat from Mangaluru 

·        Girish Bhat from Sirsi

·        Narayan Bhat (Recently appointed) from Bhatkal

·        Raghavendra Bhat (Priest for Vasuki Nath Temple only)

Bhandaris:

Also called Rajbhandari are the treasurers, temple caretakers, and assistant priest of the temple. These Bhandaris are the descendants of helper priests brought up by early Bhatts, but were allowed to settle in Kathmandu valley and later assimilated in existing Newar caste of Rajbhandari - a high-caste Chathariya/Kshatriya clan of Kashyapa gotra. Their main function is to help the Bhatta priest and perform maintenance of the inner Garbhagriha. They can have little or no Vedic knowledge but still qualify as assistant priests if they belong from the same family lineage and undergo some basic criteria like caste, gotra, lineage purity, educational qualification, etc. They work in a set of three and change in every full moon day. There are total of 108 Bhandaris.

Controversy of 2009:

In January 2009, after the forced resignation by the chief priest of Pashupatinath temple, the Maoist-led government of Nepal "handpicked" Nepalese priests of Khas-Gorkhali ethnicity to lead the temple, thus bypassing the temple's long-standing requirements. This appointment was contested by the Bhandaris of the temple, stating that they were not against the appointment of Nepalese priests but against the appointment without proper procedure. After the appointment was challenged in a civil court, the appointment was overruled by Supreme Court of Nepal.

However, the government did not heed the ruling and stood by its decision. This led to public outrage and protests over a lack of transparency. The paramilitary group of the CPN (Maoist), called YCL, attacked the protesters, leading to over a dozen injuries. Lawmakers and activists from opposition parties joined protests, declaring their support for the Bhatta and other pro-Bhatta protesters. After long dissatisfaction and protest by Hindus both in and outside Nepal, the government was forced to reverse its decision that had been declared illegal by the Supreme Court of Nepal and reinstate Bhatta priests.