Nepali devotees offer Shrawan month prayers from outside gates of Pashupatinath temple

Kathmandu [Nepal], August 10 : The Nepali citizens on Monday, the last day of the Shrawan month, thronged the Pashupatinath temple even though the government is yet to lift the COVID-19 restrictions.
It has been over five months since the Pashupatinath temple had shut its doors for the public due to the restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection. Among several other restrictions, the government had also ordered closure of religious places for public and no large-scale mass gathering.
"We have been worshipping the god from the gate. Previously we used to worship by going inside the temple," said Suresh Shrestha, a devotee.
"Every year during the month of Shrawan, about 5,000 devotees used to visit the Pashupatinath temple in an hour. However, this year around 1,500 people are visiting the temple in a day," Shrestha added.
Echoing similar sentiments, another devotee Shrijana Dhungel said, "The main thing I missed this year was getting a glimpse of Lord Shiva in the temple. Due to the coronavirus restriction, we could not get inside the main temple where the function is held. We prayed from outside."
As per the lunar calendar, there are five Mondays in this year's Shrawan month whereas there are four Mondays as per the solar calendar. The month of Shrawan will end this week, according to the lunar calendar.
The Pashupatinath temple, which would attract thousands of devotees worldwide, is losing millions of rupees as it is still shut for the coronavirus pandemic.