Pashupatinath

Pashupatinath lies just outside of Kathmandu and is Nepal's most important Hindu (Shiva) temple. Sadhus (Hindu holy men) are everywhere. It's also a popular place to be cremated.

You can walk along the boulevard, for lack of a better term, to get a closer look at the proceedings. Seeing toes and skulls sticking out from a pile of burning wood is not an everyday occurrence for most of us. Taking pictures from the bridge and from across the river is acceptable.

Women have separate rituals to mourn those who died. They are not involved in cremating the body.

Statues of various gods and deities are everywhere.

Erotic art can be found on most lower parts of the temple struts.

Sadhu's seem only interested in tourist enlightenment by relieving you of a few rupees to take a picture. Again the swivel LCD came in handy.

The main temple is off-limits for non-Hindus.

An overview of the site from higher up.

The council of elders looks upon the proceedings below. They appear relatively peaceful here, but just seconds prior, there was a huge skirmish involving about 20 monkeys, with females and babies rushing into the trees as the males fought.