In the presence of the gods
Shaligram pilgrimage in the Nepal Himalaya. All photos courtesy of Don Messerschmidt
For more than two thousand years, the veneration of sacred fossil ammonite stones, called Shaligram Shila… has been an integral part of Hindu ritual practice throughout Nepal and the Indian subcontinent. While ammonite fossils are common throughout the world, these unique types of black shale river fossils originate from a single remote region of Himalayan Nepal, in the Kali Gandaki River Valley of Mustang District. Today, the ritual use of these stones has become a significant focus of pilgrimage, religious co-participation, and exchange between Nepal and India as well as among the global Hindu diaspora.