Raghunath Temple

Himachal Pradesh


Though little to look at, this is Kullu's pre-eminent temple enshrining the valley's major deity, a tiny bronze idol of Raghunath Ji (Rama), star of the annual Dussehra celebrations.

The sanctum is on an easily missed courtyard entered between two houses beneath a wooden, three-stage mini tower with twin Hanuman statues. It's around 150m southeast of the former Kullu Palace (Raja Rupi) on the hill-ridge above the bus station: a stairway leads up from the south end of Akhara Bazar, almost opposite Monarch's Menswear.

The temple is at its liveliest during the well-attended pujas (7am, 10am, 5.30pm and 8pm mid-April to mid-September; 8am, 11am, 4pm and 7pm other times). The main shrine closes for several hours in the middle of the day, but you'll probably still be able to peer in from the courtyard.