On the northwest corner of the Gaddhi Baithak, this triple-storey, triple-roofed temple is easily missed since it surmounts the building below it. The temple is actually part of the Hanuman Dhoka palace courtyard. Like the nearby Gaddi Baithak, the temple sustained some damage in the earthquake but the main structure is intact.
The temple was built by King Jagat Jaya Malla and originally had an image of Narayan. This image was stolen in 1766; when Prithvi Narayan Shah conquered the valley two years later, he simply substituted it with an image of the goddess Bhagwati. In April each year the image of the goddess is conveyed to the village of Nuwakot, 65km to the north, then returned a few days later.
The building below is lined with shops selling thangkas (Tibetan religious paintings) and their Newari equivalents, called paubha .
