Maharashtra - South India and Kerala - page 174

6 Hotel Abhishek C1

7 Hotel Samrat B2

8 Panchavati B1

Eating

9 Annapoorna Lunch Home B2

Khyber (see 8)

10 Talk of the Town B3

8 Transport

11 New Central Bus Stand A3

12 Old Central Bus Stand B2

13 Railway Reservation Office A2

Sights

Ramkund
MAP GOOGLE MAP
This bathing ghat in the heart of Nasik's old quarter sees hundreds of Hindu pilgrims ar-
riving daily to bathe, pray and - because the waters provide moksha (liberation of the
soul)- to immerse the ashes of departed friends and family. For a tourist, it's an intense
cultural experience, heightened by the presence of a colourful market

GHAT

MAP GOOGLE MAP

downstream. It's OK to take photographs, but try not to be intrusive.

Temples
( 6am-9pm) A short walk uphill east of Ramkund is the Kala Rama Temple MAP GOOGLE MAP ,
the city's holiest shrine. Dating to 1794 and containing unusual black-stone representa-
tions of Rama, Sita and Lakshmana, the temple stands on the site where Lakshmana sliced
off Surpanakha's nose. Nearby is the Gumpha Panchavati

HINDU TEMPLES

GOOGLE MAP , where Sita sup- MAP

posedly hid while being assailed by the evil Ravana.
The ramshackle Sundar Narayan Temple MAP GOOGLE MAP , at the western end of Victoria
Bridge, contains three black Vishnu deities. The modern Muktidham Temple , about 7km
southeast of the city near the train station, has 18 muralled chapters of the Bhagavad Gita
lining its interior walls.