Car/Jeep 10 hours (216 kms via Bardibas)
Airplane 30
minutes (to Lamidanda)
30 minutes (20 kms Lamidanda to Halesidham by
jeep)
Halesidham is considered to be
holy pilgrimage for Hindus, Buddhists and Kiratis. This place bears significant importance
and is associated to Lord Shiva in Hinduism, Guru Padmasambhava in Buddhism and
Raichakule of the Kirat community. Halesidham lies in Khotang
district next to the village of Mahadevasthan.
People strongly believe that Halesi blessings heal
sufferings and leads people towards healthy living. Halesi Mahadev is two feet
tall Shiva Linga that is enshrined inside the Cave. There are two pillars close
to each other on the north of Shiva Linga making for a narrow pass. The place
is also famous for yoga and meditation. The pilgrims light
candles and worship inside the cave. There are two large
caves in Halesi. The Hindus believe that Halesi cave is the abode of Mahadev.
Within the cave, there are many idols - Shiva linga, Ganesh,
Kumar, and Parvati. One will find several bats in the cave too. The cave was discovered by the
ancestor of the Kirati, Raichhakule.
The Tuwachung hill overlooking Halesi is delightful. The
mountain also offers views of the Mt. Makalu. The Kirati ancestors
Toyama, Khiyama and Raichhakule (Hechchhakuppa) are supposed to have
transformed their civilisation into agricultural era. In Tuwachung hill, people
have found ancient remnants of archeological importance like pottery, igniting
stones and weaving.
According to Buddhist texts, Guru Padmasambhava became
Chiranjeevi after meditating in Halesi. Nearby the cave lies the Maratika Takten Chholing Monastery. Ganesh Temple
is also located nearby.
West of Halesi cave lies Basha Cave. The cave mountain is known as
Avalokiteshvara mountain by Buddhists. Basha and the Manjushree mountains are
worshiped. In Halesi, a religious fair takes place during Buddha Purnima, Lhosar, Shiva Ratri, Ram Navami, Bala Chaturdashi, Teej, Ubhauli and Udhauli.
There is a majority of the Kirat community here. The best
time to visit Halesidham is from mid
September to mid May.
How to reach
By road:
Khurkot-Ghurmi via Madhya Pahadi to Halesi is 216 km. Jeep departs from
Chabahil and Koteshwar in Kathmandu which takes around 10 hours.
By air:
30-minutes flight from Kathmandu to Lamidanda. Further, 20 km ahead of
Lamidanda is Halesidham.
हलेसीधाम
हलेसीधाम हिन्दू, बौद्धमार्गी र किराँतीको साझा तीर्थ मानिन्छ । हिन्दूका
भगवान् शिव, बौद्धमार्गीका गुरु पद्मसम्भव र
किराँती समुदायका पुर्खा रैछाकुलेसँग सम्बन्धित ठाउँ । हलेसीधाम खोटाङ जिल्लाको
महादेवस्थानमा पर्दछ ।
हलेसी दर्शनले दुःखबाट मुक्ति, पदोन्नति, खडेरीबाट
मुक्ति, सन्तान लाभ र निरोगी हुने जनविश्वास छ
। यहाँको गुफामा धर्मद्वार, जन्मद्वार र
पापद्वार छन् । योग र ध्यानका लागि हलेसीधाम प्रख्यात छ । तीर्थालुहरू गुफामा पूजा
गर्छन् । बत्ती बाल्छन् । ध्यान गर्छन् । हलेसीमा दुइटा ठूला गुफा छन् । हलेसी
गुफामा महादेवको बास भएको हिन्दू मान्यता छ । गुफाभित्र थरीथरीका मूर्ति छन् — शिवलिंग, गणेश, कुमार र पार्वती । त्यहाँ चमेराको पनि बसोबास छ ।
किराँतीका पुर्खा रैछाकुलेले गुफा
पत्ता लगाएका हुन् । उनीहरू हलेसीलाई पितृ मान्छन् । हलेसीमाथिको तुवाचुङ डाँडा
रमणीय छ । त्यहाँ किराँती आदि पुर्खा तोयामा र खियामासँग सम्बन्धित तान ढुङ्गा छ ।
डाँडाबाट मकालु हिमालको दर्शन मिल्छ ।
बौद्धमार्गीका अनुसार हलेसीमा बसेर
ध्यान गरेपछि गुरु पद्मसम्भव चिरञ्जीवी बने । गुफा छेउमा मारातिका क्षिमेत ताग्तेन
क्षोलिङ गुम्बा छ । नजिकै गणेश मन्दिर पनि ।
हलेसी गुफाको पश्चिमपट्टि बसाहा गुफा
छ । गुफाको पल्लो छेउमा पुगेर हेर्दा माथि आकाश खुला देखिन्छ । गुफा भएको पर्वतलाई
बौद्धमार्गी अवलोकितेश्वर पर्वत मान्छन् । बसाहा अघिल्तिरको बज्रपाणी र
उत्तरपट्टिको मञ्जुश्री पर्वतका रूपमा पुजिन्छ । हलेसीमा बुद्धपूर्णिमा, ल्होसार, शिवरात्रि, रामनवमी, बालाचतुर्दशी, तीज, उभौली र उधौलीमा
मेला लाग्छ ।
यहाँ किराँत समुदायको बाहुल्यता छ ।
असोजदेखि वैशाखसम्म हलेसीधाम घुम्ने उत्तम समय हो ।
