Bouddhanath

One of the most representatives Buddhist stupas is Bouddhanath, on the eastern side of Kathmandu, capital of Nepal. Everybody feels observed by four pairs of eyes situated in the 4 cardinal directions. They are the eyes of Bouddhanath, which means 'the Lord of enlightenment'.

Bouddhanath is a great place of pilgrimage since the 5th century. People come here from many different places in Asia, not only from Nepal, even if Bouddhanath is a place mainly loved by Tibetans.

The construction of Bouddhanath has a sense of cosmic representation, a mantra. The stupa is surrounded by a circle of houses and shops. In the middle, the main dome is risen with five terraces, each of them pointing to the five space directions: north, south, east, west and the azimuth.

The colorful praying flags are flying all the time. They all have a meaning: red is the fire, blue is the sky, the reddish spots of the dome are the consequence of the saffron offered by the faithful. But never forgetting to turn. Always. Reincarnate in a better karma, move the prayer wheels.

To walk around Bouddhanath, always in a clockwise direction, impregnates of faith. To turn the prayer wheels, feel the smell of incense, close your eyes and get overwhelmed in the murmuring of the Tibetan prayers. All is magic and we are invaded of spirituality.

Buddha's eyes are omnipresent. His nose feature represents the number 1 in Devanāgarī script (alphabet of India and Nepal). Buddha doesn't have a mouth because he doesn't need it. He sees everything, but he doesn't talk for the sake of talking.