{{unreferenced, date=April 2011
A Nag Dhunga (or Nāga Dhunga) is a sacred stone worshipped by the people of
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
. These stones - often
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
rocks or erratic boulders - can be found in the centre of many major cities, as well as in remote villages. Sometimes they are enclosed within an ornamental wrought iron fence, with a gate that can only be unlocked by the local priest or elder. In some places, such as
Kathmandu Valley
The Kathmandu Valley ( ne, काठमाडौं उपत्यका; also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley ( ne, नेपाः उपत्यका, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः)), ...
or
Pokhara Valley
Pokhara Valley is the second-largest valley in the hilly region of Nepal. It lies in the western part of Nepal. The cities of Pokhara and Lekhnath are in the valley. It is located in Gandaki zone, west of Kathmandu Valley. The city of Pokhara ...
, the Nag Dhunga can be found on the premises of a shrine, or a small pagoda-like temple. These temples are often popular with tourists.
The
Nāga
The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...
of Hindu mythology are serpent deities, and are the caretakers of lakes and water sources.
Lord Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
has a close association with the Nāga, and is often said to wear them as ornaments. The Nag Dhunga is a rock on which Lord Shiva once rested, identified as such by ancient
Vedic priests
Priests of the Vedic religion are officiants of the ''yajna'' service. Yajna is an important part of Hinduism, especially the Vedas. Persons trained for the ritual and proficient in its practice were called ( ' regularly-sacrificing'). As memb ...
, at a time when
Brahmanism
The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedicism, Vedism or ancient Hinduism and subsequently Brahmanism (also spelled as Brahminism)), constituted the religious ideas and practices among some Indo-Aryan peoples of northwest Indian Subco ...
was spreading out from the Indian Subcontinent into the mountain regions of Nepal's Himalayas and to
Mount Kailash
Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; Standard Tibetan, Tibetan: གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ; ; sa, कैलास, ), is a mountain in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It h ...
in Tibet.
People are usually very proud to have a Nag Dhunga in their vicinity. They have picnics in front of it during festivals and decorate it with vermilion powder, flowers and small amounts of cash, and often offer milk, beaten rice and fruit to the Nāga that live under or inside the Dhunga. If a large snake is seen around the Dhunga they consider it a manifestation of the Nāga. If people in Nepal frequently encounter a cobra or similar snake at a certain spot, for example at a crossing of paths or beneath a holy
Peepal tree
''Ficus religiosa'' or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree, pippala tree, peepul tree, peepal tree, pipal tree, ...
, then they worship the spot where they have seen it by offering milk and boiled eggs. They mark the spot with vermilion as a sign for other passers by that they are at a Nāga crossing. Others will follow suit and place small offerings and conduct a '' puja'' (prayer ceremony). Those who are careless and do not notice such a crossing and who urinate or defecate near it will be punished by disease and bad luck. This belief is deeply entrenched in rural populations all over Nepal.
Many Nepalese villages and places have the word Nag, Naga or Dhunga added to their name. This always signifies that there is a sacred snake stone in their vicinity.