Hindu and Buddhist rituals you will meet on the trail

On almost every Nepali trekking route you will pass something that belongs to a religion: strings of coloured flags across a ridge, a whitewashed stupa in the middle of the path, a long wall of carved stones, a small red-smeared shrine under a tree or a spring where people leave marigolds. None of it is decoration. The simple rule is that you keep sacred structures on your right, walk clockwise, never touch or step over offerings, and ask before you photograph worship. This guide explains what you are looking at and what to do, so you can join in without making mistakes.

Two religions that overlap

Nepal is a majority Hindu country with a large Buddhist minority, and on the trails the two are often woven together. Lower hill villages and the Gurung, Magar, Brahmin and Chhetri communities of the middle hills are largely Hindu, with a few Buddhist elements. The high valleys of Khumbu, Langtang, Manang, Mustang and Dolpo are mainly Tibetan Buddhist, and the villages at the foot of the mountains are often a mix of both. Shrines, festivals and holy sites frequently serve both: Muktinath, near the end of the Annapurna Circuit, is sacred to Hindus and Buddhists alike, and the high lakes at Gosaikunda are a Hindu pilgrimage site that Buddhist Tamang and Sherpa families also visit.

The upshot is that you rarely need to know which religion built the structure to behave well. The same few habits cover nearly every case.

Prayer flags

Prayer flags are rectangular cloths in five colours, blue, white, red, green and yellow, strung in lines or hung from poles. Each colour is associated with an element, and the flags carry printed mantras and symbols. The belief is that the wind carries the blessings printed on them to everyone and everything beneath. You see them on bridges, passes, ridge tops, monastery roofs and outside houses.

Do not take them down, move them, burn them or hang other things on them, and do not step on flags that have fallen to the ground. If a flag is lying in the dirt, a villager will tie it back. People who want to hang flags buy them in the nearest village or Kathmandu, and a family usually ties them on a new moon or an auspicious day. As a visitor you are welcome to buy a set and ask your guide where to hang it. Old flags are left to fade; they are not tidied away. When you cross a pass such as Thorong La, you will see thousands of flags layered on top of each other, and your best contribution is to leave them as they are.

Chortens, stupas and mani walls

A chorten (or stupa) is a Buddhist monument, often whitewashed, sometimes crowned with a spire and painted eyes. Some contain relics or sacred texts. Mani walls are long, low walls made of stones carved with the mantra "Om mani padme hum", often with a chorten at one end and a row of prayer wheels along the side. You will pass them at the entrance and exit of nearly every village in Khumbu, Langtang, Manang and Mustang, and they are placed so that the path divides around them.

The rule is to pass them on your right, so that you move clockwise around them. When a wall runs along the middle of the path, that means you walk on the side that keeps it on your right, and you switch sides on the way back. Do not climb on them, sit on them or lean a backpack against them. If you want to leave a stone, ask a local; don't pick up carved stones as souvenirs. The mani wall near Ghyaru on the Annapurna Circuit and the chorten standing on the stone path at Chomrong are good examples of structures to pass quietly and on the correct side.

The exception is the Bon tradition, an older pre-Buddhist religion that survives in parts of Dolpo and Upper Mustang. Bon followers walk anticlockwise around their sacred structures, and your guide will tell you if you meet one in a Bon village. Otherwise, clockwise is correct.

Prayer wheels

Prayer wheels are cylinders filled with mantras, set in rows along walls or in small houses by the path, and turned by hand. Spinning one is believed to have the same effect as reciting the prayers inside. Turn them clockwise with your right hand as you walk past, and do not stop or reverse a wheel someone else is turning. In a monastery, remove your hat and sunglasses before you spin, and do not touch the wheels with dirty or wet hands. Some hand-held wheels belong to individuals; leave them alone. You will meet butter-lamp-lit prayer rooms in the same villages, and our guide to monastery etiquette goes into more detail.

Hindu shrines, tika and offerings

The Hindu shrines you meet on the trail are small and often unmarked: a stone smeared with red powder under a pipal or banyan tree, a trident planted outside a house, a small brick building with a bell. People leave flowers, rice, coins, sometimes incense, and pause to touch their forehead. Marigold garlands, red tika powder and rice grains are the common offerings. Do not touch offerings and do not step over them. If there is no obvious reason to enter, stay outside and take your photo from a distance.

Tika is a mark of blessing placed on the forehead, usually red but sometimes a mix of rice, yoghurt and red powder at Dashain, the biggest Hindu festival, which falls in autumn and often overlaps the trekking season. At Tihar, the festival of lights that follows, you will see garlands on dogs, cows and crows as well as people, and lamps and rangoli patterns outside houses. If a lodge owner offers you tika, receive it respectfully; you can leave it on for the day. Do not wipe it off in front of them.

Cows are sacred to Hindus, and you should not hit or push one, even a cow blocking a path. You may step around it or wait. Leather is often forbidden inside Hindu temples, so remove leather belts and shoes before entering and follow your guide's lead.

Pilgrimage sites on trekking routes

Two trekking highlights are also major pilgrimage sites. The lakes of Gosaikunda, reached on the Gosaikunda trek, are believed to have been created by Shiva, and thousands of pilgrims walk there each August at the festival of Janai Purnima. If you trek there during the festival, expect crowds, singing and offerings in the water, and give worshippers space and do not swim in the lakes. The temple complex at Muktinath draws Hindus, who come to bathe at 108 water spouts, and Buddhists, who revere the eternal flames. Walk quietly, remove shoes where signs ask, and follow your guide.

Other sites are smaller but equally meaningful: a Buddhist cave where a teacher meditated, a cairn at a pass where travellers add a stone, a tree with ribbons tied by pilgrims. In every case, the principles are the same: observe quietly, do not touch, and do not make a performance of it.

Funerals, cremation and death

You may come across a funeral in a lower village, or cremation ghats near a river. In Hindu communities, bodies are burned on a riverside pyre; in many Tibetan Buddhist communities, practice varies by community, and your guide can tell you what is appropriate locally. Do not photograph a funeral, do not walk through a procession, and keep your voice low if you see mourners. If you are asked to step aside, do so. Nepali families will usually tell you directly if you are in the way.

Joining in without overdoing it

Visitors are not expected to perform rituals, but you can take part respectfully if invited. Light a butter lamp at a monastery with a small donation; spin a prayer wheel; tie a khata scarf if a monk offers one; accept tika with a smile. If you want to buy flags, ask your guide where to hang them. If you are unsure, do what the locals do and watch first. Hosts are rarely offended by someone who asks, and almost always pleased.

Dress modestly near any religious site, cover your shoulders and knees, and take off your hat and shoes when asked. Do not use flash inside a prayer room. Do not point your feet at an altar or a person; sit with your feet tucked under you. And remember that these are working religious places, not museums: a monk may be praying while you pass.

Practical rules in one place

• Keep chortens, mani walls and prayer wheels on your right (clockwise).
• Never step over or move prayer flags and offerings.
• Leave carved stones where they are; ask before adding one.
• Ask before photographing worship, funerals or people at prayer.
• Remove shoes and hats when asked, and dress modestly.
• Do not touch sacred cows or offerings.
• Give a small donation at monasteries if you wish; it is never required.

For more on how to behave in villages, read our trail etiquette guide and the piece on Sherpa culture on the Everest trail. Use the Annapurna region page or the Langtang region page to plan a route that crosses sacred sites, browse the culture and customs hub, and use the Gosaikunda partner page to find someone to walk it with.