Katas Raj Temples

Hindu Temple Complex Around A Sacred Pond In The Salt Range; On Pakistan'S UNESCO Tentative List; Restored By The Government From The 2000s · Choa Saidan Shah, Punjab

The Katas Raj Temples are a complex of Hindu temples clustered round a sacred pond in the Salt Range hills, one of the most important Hindu sites in Pakistan. Legend says the pond was formed from the tears of Shiva, weeping for his wife Sati, and Hindu tradition also places part of the Pandava brothers' exile from the Mahabharata here. The temples date from several periods, from early medieval to the Sikh era, and the site also has the remains of a Buddhist stupa and a haveli of Hari Singh Nalwa, the Sikh general. After Partition in 1947 the Hindu population left and the temples decayed; they were restored by the government from the 2000s, and Hindu pilgrims now come from India for Maha Shivratri. The pond itself has been a scandal: cement factories nearby drew so much groundwater that it began to dry up, and in 2017 the Supreme Court took up the case. The white temples stepping up the hillside above the green water are beautiful, and the site is quiet most days. Pair it with the Khewra Salt Mine nearby.

Katas village, near Choa Saidan Shah, Chakwal District, Salt Range, Choa Saidan Shah, Punjab, Pakistan

Open daily in daylight hours. There may be a small entry fee, with a higher foreigners' rate. Katas Raj is about two to three hours by road from Islamabad or Lahore via the M-2 motorway and Kallar Kahar. During Maha Shivratri, when Indian pilgrims visit, access for other visitors may be limited.

Katas Raj Temples on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos