Sacred Navagraha Temple boosts Syangja tourism

By Arjun Kafle, Syangja, May 11: With the construction of Nepal’s first Navagraha Temple in the Jalbarah Religious Forest of Arjun Chaupari Rural Municipality-1, Syangja has transformed into a religious tourist destination, shedding its 60-year-old identity as a transit point.

Maiya Devi Lamichhane, 68, of Pokhara Metropolitan City-27, who recently visited the temple, said she had long used this route while travelling between Butwal and Pokhara.

Lamichhane said she had never found a reason to stop in Syangja before and that this was her first visit to the villages of the district, which was made possible because of the Navagraha Temple.

She added that she had been eager to visit the site and would continue to come here regularly.

Thousands of devotees like Lamichhane, who once overlooked Syangja, now consider their journey incomplete without visiting the Navagraha Temple.

Thousands of devotees visit the temple every Saturday, and the number increases significantly during special fairs and festivals.

Prakash Tiwari, Chairperson of the Rural Municipality, said that with the construction of the Navagraha Temple, even religious tourists travelling to Muktinath, Baglung Kalika, and Gorkha Manakamana have started including the temple in their travel itineraries.

Local hotel entrepreneur Sanjay Dhakal said the growing influx of tourists following the construction of the Navagraha Temple has brought an economic transformation to Arjun Chaupari and the surrounding areas.

The number of customers at shops, hotels, and restaurants along the highway and roads leading to the temple has increased, while organic vegetables, fruits, and handicrafts produced by local farmers have found a market.

Syangja has now gained a new identity as the “district of Navagraha,” rather than simply being known as a roadside district. Tiwari said the Navagraha Temple has proven to be a “game changer” in redirecting Pokhara-centric tourism not only northward but also toward the villages of Syangja.

For Syangja, the temple is not only a centre of faith but also a strong foundation for restoring the district’s lost heritage.  A 27-foot-tall Navagraha Temple, shaped like a nonagon and open to the sky, has been built in this religious forest spread across eight hectares of land.