Records & People

The Temple Where Fire Burns on Water — and Two Religions Call It Holy

At 3,762 metres in Nepal's Mustang district, natural gas burns continuously above a spring inside Jwala Mai temple, part of a shrine both Hindus and…

By Laxman Rawal · Aug 17, 2026

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Inside a small stone temple at 3,762 metres, a flame burns on top of water and has done so for as long as anyone can record. It isn't a trick and it isn't lit by hand. Natural gas seeps up through an underground spring inside the Jwala Mai temple at…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

One shrine, two religions, two names

For Hindus, Muktinath is one of the 108 Divya Desams, the holiest shrines of Vishnu, and its name literally means place of liberation, moksha from the cycle of rebirth. For Tibetan Buddhists it's Chumig Gyatsa, meaning Hundred Waters, a site blessed by Guru…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Why the water burns

The flame is a genuine geological phenomenon, not a maintained lamp. Natural gas trapped in the rock beneath Mustang finds its way up through a fracture beneath the temple and bubbles through the spring water; once it reaches the surface it ignites and keeps…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

What this means for trekkers

What this means for you Muktinath isn't a side trip bolted onto a trek, it's the natural high point of the classic route. The Jomsom–Muktinath trek ends here, and the full Annapurna Circuit crosses Thorong La and drops straight into the temple courtyard…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

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