Temple · Syncretic
Singha Sattal
सिंह सत्तल
Community pilgrim shelter (with small shrine)·Malla period (exact date uncertain)·Kathmandu
A beautifully carved Newari rest house near Kasthamandap, guarded by stone lions — one of the finest surviving sattal (pilgrim shelters) in the Kathmandu Valley.
Dedicated to
Community pilgrim shelter (with small shrine)
Period
Malla period (exact date uncertain)
Hours
Open at all times (public shelter)
Admission
Free
Neighborhood
Maru Tole, Kathmandu Durbar Square
Singha Sattal is a traditional Newari sattal (pilgrim rest house) located near Kasthamandap at the southern end of Durbar Square. The building takes its name from the stone lions (singha) that flank its entrance.
Like Kasthamandap, it was originally built as a dharmasala — a public shelter for pilgrims, travellers, and the community. The two-storey structure features intricately carved wooden struts, windows, and doorframes in classic Newari style, with erotic carvings on some of the roof struts (a common feature of Kathmandu Valley temples believed to ward off the goddess of lightning).
The ground floor is an open pillared hall, following the traditional sattal design that allows people to rest and socialise. A small shrine occupies one corner. The building serves as a gathering place for the local Newar community, especially during festivals at Maru Tole.
Singha Sattal was damaged in the 2015 earthquake and has undergone restoration. Together with Kasthamandap and the nearby Kabindrapur sattal, it forms a cluster of historic public buildings at the Maru Tole entrance to the square — a reminder that Durbar Square was not only a palace precinct but also a hub of civic life.
Folio III
Nearby Sacred Sites
Places within a short walk that help turn this stop into a small sacred cluster.
Kasthamandap
The legendary three-storey pavilion said to be built from a single sal tree — the structure that gave Kathmandu its name, now being rebuilt after the 2015 earthquake.
Sikhamu Bahal (Shreekhanda Tarumula Mahavihar)
The only bahal in Kathmandu's Durbar Square quarter, associated with the legendary teacher Lila Bajra Bajracharya — one of four masters who shaped Valley Buddhism.
Kumari Ghar
The ornate 18th-century residence of Kathmandu's Royal Kumari — a living prepubescent girl worshipped as the incarnation of goddess Taleju.
Ashok Binayak
Maru Ganesh shrine near Kathmandu Durbar Square, one of the city's most visited Ganesh temples but not part of the Char Binayak circuit.
Shiva-Parvati Temple
An 18th-century temple famous for the carved wooden figures of Shiva and Parvati leaning out from the upper window, gazing at the life of Durbar Square below.
Coda
Continue the Pilgrimage
Part of
Kathmandu Durbar Square
Planning this visit? Local operators publishing trips here can arrange it.
Elsewhere in this region
Help us get it right
Know Singha Sattal better than we do?
We write from research and reporting, and the ground changes faster than we can keep up. If something here is out of date, or you have been and would tell it differently, we would rather hear it.