Halesi

The caves of Halesi are a place of pilgrimage in the hills of eastern Nepal, revered by Hindu, Buddhist and Kirati communities. Hindus associate them with Mahadeva, a form of Shiva. Buddhists call the caves Maratika and connect them with Padmasambhava, while the Kirati Rai honour them as an ancestral place of Raechhakule. The caves are mentioned in Himalayan literature by the twelfth century, including a biography of Padmasambhava revealed by Nyangrel Nyima Ozer.