page_title: Pratap Malla
section_title: Rani Pokhari
hierarchical_section_title: Pratap Malla / Legacy / Rani Pokhari
caption_attribution_description: English: Matrikeshwor Mahadev building in the middle of Ranipokhari Pond in Kathmandu, Nepal
context_page_description: Pratap Malla, of Malla dynasty of Nepal, was the ninth king of Kantipur after the division of the Kathmandu Valley into three kingdoms. He attempted to unify Kathmandu Valley by conquering Lalitpur and Bhaktapur, but failed in the effort. He was successful in extending and securing the borders of Kantipur and was responsible for the monopoly over trade with Tibet. The resulting prosperity was responsible for the construction of majority of the buildings around Durbar Square during his reign. His reign is seen as a cultural and economical high point of the Malla dynasty.
  A statue of Pratap Malla is found standing on a column facing the palace in the square. His image can also be seen in the niche above the Hanuman Dhoka Palace gate. The niche above the gate is Krishna in his ferocious tantric aspect, flanked by more gentle, amorous Krishna surrounded by gopinis, and by King Pratap Malla playing a lute, and his queen.
context_section_description: Ranipokhari lies in the heart of Kathmandu, with about fifteen minutes walk from Kathmandu Durbar Square. Rani Pokhari, meaning Queen's pond, is the artificial square-shaped pond with the temple of Shiva in the middle. The Rani in question was Pratap Malla's queen who in 1667 commissioned its construction in memory of their son, Chakravatendra Malla, who, following his father's abdication in favor of is four sons each of whom would rule for one year, died on the second day of his reign, apparently having been trampled by an elephant.
  The water with which the pond was originally filled was taken from fifty-one sacred rivers throughout Nepal and India, thus ensuring its sanctity. The temple in the middle of the  pond has a domed roof reminiscent of classical Indian Mughal architecture and is surmounted by a copper spire. The main image is of the Shiva lingam, but other deities also feature. Four small shrines at each corner contain images of Bhirab, Harishankar, Shakti, and Tarkeshwari. On the southern embankment is a statue of an elephant carrying three passengers on its back, thought to be three of the male members of the Pratap Malla's family, while a fourth person is held in its trunk.
  Various myths and legends have come to be associated with Rani Pokhari over the years. It is said to be haunted by ghosts, including one especially seductive female spectre which managed to unnerve even the great Pratap Malla.
  The pond is fenced with iron bars, apparently to prevent suicide by drowning, and opened once a year during Bhaitika, the fifth and final day of Tihar.
caption: Ranipokhari, commissioned by Pratap Malla in 1667, with Trichandra college and Ghantaghar (clock tower) in background.
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