December 2016
So, it was an unplanned trip. However, the plan was to go to Kalinchowk and if feasible Dolakha Bhimsen. The main idea was to see the snowfall. But since Kalinchowk is a Hindu shrine, I had to be prepared with the items to be offered to the deity. I had planned to buy them on reaching the temple. I had already been to Kalinchowk once.
Recently, Kalinchowk has become an important shrine of Hindu worshippers. We see people from all over Nepal visiting Kalinchowk, especially during winter. However, I had been hearing about the beauty and stories of Kalinchowk from a long time ago. One of my relatives is from Dolakha (District where Kalinchowk is located). So, I was familiar with Kalinchowk from before. The last time I went there, it was a one day hike of almost 9 hours. The road trail was not so popular and the people did not have the slightest bit of idea that it would soon be a popular tourist area.
So just like a normal Hindu worshipper would, there was a father-son duo who went to Kalinchowk, did their puja, offered a goat to devi and returned back. Halfway through, the father realized he had left the weapon on the shrine. So, being obedient, the son went back to the temple and to his surprise he saw the goddess licking the blood in her Kali avatar. The son was stoned to see the goddess in front of her.
On seeing him, the goddess told him to return back and never tell anyone what he had seen. On doing as told he would be blessed with a happy life. The boy was very much disturbed from the incident and got sick after returning home. He tried his best to keep it to himself but on being repeatedly asked what had happened, he told the story to his father. Sadly, he died right there spilling blood from his mouth.
The locals believe that Kalinchowk became popular after the incident took place. It is said that one should never return to forgetting something in the temple and consider it to have been offered to the goddess. It is also believed that the one who makes Kalinchowk three times in his lifetime gets his wish fulfilled. So, it was going to be my second time. Apart from its religious importance, the excitement was about snow.
The next story I had heard was about the temple being shifted. The temple was not where it is currently located some time back. It was on a hill somewhere at lower altitude. One of the locals dreamed of a goddess asking him to shift her somewhere higher. They say that the goddess demanded so since the birds were able to fly across the mountain crossing over the goddess. After that, the goddess was shifted to where it is located now at a higher altitude.
There might be many other interesting tales about Kalinchowk. However, another popular faith of Hindu is that once you say of visiting a holy place, one should go there. Or else things won't work out.
Talking about my trip, I was not able to make it to Kalinchowk due to a blocked road. I believe that I was not destined to be there this time. So, I offer my faith from here itself. And of course I hope to be there soon and have another story to tell.
