Sworgadwari:The Gateway To Heaven
sworgadwari
Sworgadwari,Pyuthan
Hindus believe that after visiting the seven dhams, one reaches heaven. Sworgadwari is the end point of a religious journey starting from Pashupatinath. According to the religion itself, Sworgadwari, the holy shrine of Pyuthan, attracts about 500,000 people every year. This path to heaven is not only a gateway to Pyuthan but also a gateway to the prosperity of the five states.Swargadwari, one of the seven Dhams of Nepal.
Holy religious and tourist pilgrimage. Everyone who hears the name thinks, ‘You must reach once.’ The most important means of identifying Pyuthan is Sworgadwari. ‘What is Sworgadwari really like?’ It is heard in the minds of many. However, for those who have returned, Sworgadwari feels like a ‘fountain of heaven’. Anyone who arrives here will experience heaven. Sworgadwari Ashram is located at Khal in Sworgadwari Municipality Ward No. 1.
The clean air, the mountain ranges overlooking the mountains make it even more attractive to tourists. Swargadwari was formerly known as ‘Lake of Heaven’. The prestige here has been increasing lately.
All kinds of investments made by Hindus are made at Swargadwari. After Pashupatinath, Swargadwari is becoming the main destination for religious tourists. Swargadwari attracts more foreign tourists than internal ones. More and more tourists are coming from Maharajgunj, Gorakhpur, Balrampur, Krishnanagar and other places in India.
Gifts offered by Indian tourists have become a major source of income here.They offer Indian rupees as gifts. This has helped in raising double the value of the Nepali rupee. According to the Ashram Management Committee, 60 percent Indian and 40 percent Nepali tourists visit Swargadwari.
According to the Ashram Management Committee, about 500,000 tourists return to Swargadwari every year, both internally and externally.The attraction is increasing day by day as it feels like reaching heaven after reaching the temple and performing worship. “The number of tourists visiting Swargadwari is increasing,” said Baburam Neupane, an assistant at the ashram. “Swargadwari was formerly known as the Lake of Heaven.” In the morning, Dhaulagiri, Machhapuchche, Annapurna and other mountain ranges can be clearly seen from here.
What is in Swargadwari?
The main attraction of Swargadwari is the fire-powered Yajna Kunda revealed by Vedmantra. The shrine has been burning since 1952 BS. There is a history that Swargadwari Mahaprabhu found worship materials and built an ashram. The importance of Swargadwari has increased due to the belief that the worship material was performed by five Pandavas. Especially on the full moon day of Baisakh, Gaitihar Aunsi, Vijayadashami, Maghe Sankranti and other festivals, a big fair is held here.At other times, there are daily prayers and fairs.
Historic and picturesque lakes, the five Pandavas, the path to heaven, the cave where Mahaprabhu did penance, the Veda Pathshala, which has been operating continuously since 1952, the Govardhana Hills, the hundreds of cows reared in the ashram .There is a practice of changing the Brahmins as per the need in the Akhand Mahayagya which is conducted in the ashram on the full moon day of Baisakh. On the same day, Vibhuti is also taken out for the whole year. It is believed that the aspirations will be fulfilled after reaching the Swargadwari and observing the worship and the temple.
How to reach
There are two roads to reach Swargadwari. Under the East-West Mahendra Highway, it can be reached from Bhaluwang of Dang via Bhingri of Pyuthan and Ghorahi of Dang through Holeri Road. From Bhaluwang, you have to reach Swargadwari base camp (Swargadwari Gate) Bhingri by taking a 55 km paved road.
Dharmapani Bazaar is reached after crossing 13 and a half kilometers of unpaved road from Bhingri. You have to climb about one and a half kilometers from Dharampani.Horseback riding is also available for those who cannot walk. Indian pilgrims like to walk from Bhingri to Swargadwari. It takes four hours for pedestrians to reach Swargadwari Ashram from Bhingri.
Due to lack of road facilities, most of the tourists used to reach Swargadwari temple on foot. To reach Swargadwari from Ghorahi-Holeri, one has to travel 56 kilometers. The road to Holeri has been tarred.Most of the tourists choose the Bhaluwang-Bhingri road as it is blocked. According to Assistant Kothari Neupane, about 90 percent of the pilgrims reach Swargadwari through this road after the unpaved road from Bhingri to Swargadwari is tarred.
The management of the ashram has arranged a dharamshala in the ashram premises to provide security to the pilgrims staying at night. Smoking and drinking are prohibited inside the ashram premises. After connecting the solar, cold water has also been provided. In cold weather, non-organic greens, cow’s milk, curd and honey are the main ‘khanki’ for the devotees. Free Wi-Fi has also been managed since last April. From October to January, greens are planted on the vacant land of Swargadwari. This vegetable is the vegetable for the pilgrims.
Large-scale planting of gardens also seems to be another attraction here.
As the number of pilgrims coming to Swargadwari is increasing day by day, the construction of physical infrastructure here has not been able to make the leap as expected. There is some hope among the devotees after the unpaved road from the base camp Bhingri to Swargadwari Dharmapani has been blacklisted. Stakeholders have said that the road has been tarred within a few years.
The construction of the stairs is almost complete. A gate has been constructed in Dharmapani courtesy of a devotee from Dang.
The construction of Dharampala in Dharampani, which was started through the District Development Committee of Savik, is in abeyance. After the dissolution of the local body, the concerned body has not taken any initiative in its construction. Although a hospice was built to accommodate hundreds of devotees, it was not completed.The ashram has stated that the construction could not be completed due to negligence of the contractor.
However, a dharamshala has already been built in the ashram premises that can accommodate about 400 devotees daily. As the number of devotees will increase along the blacktop road, it seems that more organized hospices are needed.An atmosphere conducive to keeping devotees for four or five days has not yet been created at Swargadwari. Nowadays tourists also want to enjoy modern style. There is a need to build a garden in the ashram area, a children’s park, a pavilion on the path where the Lord walks and other structures.
By focusing on Resunga, Ridi, Supadeurali of Arghakhanchi in the neighboring district of Gulmi along with Swargadwari, an environment can be created for tourists to walk this route, which can lead to the development of many areas along this route. Lumbini-Swargadwari-Gaumukhi-Dhorpatan-Muktinath can be developed as a tourism route, said Chandra Lal Bhandari, president of the Hotel Entrepreneurs’ Association Pyuthan. “Pyuthan is very rich in tourism potential,” says Neupane.
There should be a common vision in the action plan to turn the tourists coming to Swargadwari around Pyuthan. If an environment is created in which the people of the district can also benefit from the Swargadwari that identifies Pyuthan, then everyone can truly belong to the development and promotion of Swargadwari.
