Bahal · Buddhist
Karunapur Mahavihar (Musya Baha)
करुणापुर महाविहार
Kathmandu
A Newar Buddhist courtyard monastery known locally as Musya Baha, in the Jyatha quarter of central Kathmandu, a short walk from Thamel.
Hours
Open courtyard (accessible during daytime)
Admission
Free
Neighborhood
Jyatha, Ward 25, central Kathmandu (near Thamel)
Karunapur Mahavihar, known locally as Musya Baha, is a Newar Buddhist courtyard monastery in the Jyatha quarter (Ward 25) of central Kathmandu, a short walk from Thamel and close to the other old-city bahals around Kantipath.
Like the valley's other bahals, it is a living courtyard shrine maintained across generations by its resident Buddhist community, part of the dense network of Vajrayana monastic courtyards that give this part of the old city its character.
This is a short entry; further detail on the monastery's founding, its enshrined kwapah-dyah, inscriptions, and festival calendar will be added as it is confirmed.
Folio III
Nearby Sacred Sites
Places within a short walk that help turn this stop into a small sacred cluster.
Kwa Bahal (Maitripur Mahavihar)
The 'mother bahal' of Kathmandu's 18 principal monasteries, home to Kwapa Dya — the presiding deity of the entire mahavihar network — and one of the Valley's oldest scholastic centers for Vajrayana Buddhism.
Dharmakirti Bahal (Sighal Bahal / Kathesimbhu)
A Newar Buddhist courtyard just south of Thamel, built around the 17th-century Kathesimbhu Stupa — a miniature replica of Swayambhu — and today home to the Dharmakirti Theravada nunnery.
Chusya Bahal (Gunakar Mahavihar)
A well-preserved 1662 monastery built by a Nepal-Tibet trader, one of the finest surviving examples of traditional Newar Buddhist monastic architecture in Kathmandu.
Bhagwan Bahal (Vikramashila Mahavihar)
Claimed to be the oldest monastery in the Kathmandu Valley, rebuilt by the great Indian master Atisha in 1041 CE and home to a 7-foot gold statue and a priceless Prajnaparamita manuscript.
Takse Bahal (Suratshree Mahavihar)
A foundational monastery of the Kathmandu Acharya Guthi system — home to teacher Surat Bajra Bajracharya, from whom many Bhaktapur bahals trace their Buddhist lineage.
Coda
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