Nepal: Watch cannabis rituals unfold during Shivaratri in Kathmandu

Published on 15/02/2026 - 16:43 GMT+1

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Crowds thronged Kathmandu’s Pashupatinath Temple for Shivaratri, where worship, music and a rare legal tolerance of marijuana marked the festival.

Nepal marked Shivaratri on Sunday as crowds filled Kathmandu and queued for hours at Pashupatinath Temple. Tens of thousands came to pray, sing and dance in honour of Shiva. Although marijuana is banned most of the year, police allow limited use during the festival, reflecting Shiva’s long link to cannabis.

Across the Bagmati river, ash-covered holy men and mostly young devotees smoked openly on nearby hills. Visitors also travelled from India to join the rituals.

Nepal outlawed marijuana in 1976, after decades of legal sales, and recent efforts to decriminalise it remain stalled. For one day at least, tradition takes priority over the law.

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Nepal: Watch cannabis rituals unfold during Shivaratri in Kathmandu

Crowds thronged Kathmandu’s Pashupatinath Temple for Shivaratri, where worship, music and a rare legal tolerance of marijuana marked the festival.

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