Myths and legends

In the Langtang region, at an altitude of about 4200 meters above sea level, there is one of the highest mountain lake-bog systems: Panch Pokhari. Actually, the very name of the place, translated from Nepali, means "Five Lakes". Here, in a small plato, like on a balcony, above a deep gorge, there are five lakes, from which the Indravati River begins. Like many other Nepalese rivers, Indravati is part of the watershed of the sacred Ganges.

This is a stunningly beautiful place: the sky and mountains are reflected in the mirror surface of the water, and the gorge filled with clouds creates the feeling that the lake system itself is floating in the air ...

Panch Pokhari is considered one of the most important pilgrimage sites for Hindus. There is a small temple of Shiva, next to which the Hindus take ablutions. It is believed that Shiva fasted here for five nights, taking bath in five ponds of water.

It is said that a couple of thousand years ago, the hunter Bumba Ruva Waiba went to these places for prey. Catching nothing, he was about to go home when he noticed a strange bird that had a stripe around its neck, like a white collar. The bird seemed to be calling for it. In pursuit of the bird, Bumba climbed higher and higher into the mountains until he found himself near the Panch Pokhari lakes. And suddenly he saw people next to the lakes who were planting rice (according to another version, they were threshing already harvested rice). But when Bumba came closer, people suddenly disappeared. But in one of the disappearing images, the hunter managed to see God Mahadeva.

Since then, pilgrims have come to the shores of the lake at Panch Pokhkari to look for the grains of this divine harvest (and it is said that some still find rice in the marshy soil). Local farmers come here to ask Mahadeva for a harvest and protection from bad weather.

Local people, Tamangs, have their own view of Panch Pokhari. According to one of the local legends, a shaman drown in the "Serpent Lake", who challenged the snake demon (Nag) of this lake. And in another larger lake, there is a ghost town that only shamans can visit.