Nepal: Moghul-style Kal Mochan Temple constructed in 1874, was sometimes used as a cremation site, Tripureshwor District Kathmandu (1996)

The Moghul-style Kal Mochan Temple was built in !874 by the then Prime Minister of Nepal, Bhimsen Thapa (1775 - 1839).

Bhimsen rose to power by initially serving as a bodyguard and personal secretary of King Rana Bahadur Shah. Bhimsen had accompanied Rana Bahadur Shah to Varanasi after his abdication and subsequent exile in 1800. In Varanasi, Bhimsen helped Rana Bahadur engineer his return to power in 1804. In gratitude, Rana Bahadur made Bhimsen a kaji (equivalent to a minister) of the newly formed government.

Rana Bahadur's assassination by his step brother in 1806 led Bhimsen to massacre ninety-three people, after which he was able to claim the title of the mukhtiyar (equivalent to prime minister).

Copyright:

CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Photographer:

Rainer Krack

Credit:

Pictures From Asia