View over the Durbar Square in Patan. Patan is separated from Kathmandu by the Bagmati River and is the second-largest town in the valley. The photo shows the two most common temple architectures in the Kathmandu Valley. In the front left a Shikhara temple could be see. Temple of this style was developed in India in the 6th century and they first appeared in Nepal in the 9th century. In the background many so called Nevar pagoda temples can be seen, which are the major feature of the Kathmandu Valley skyline. They have a heavy Chinese and south-east Asian influence. The major feature of these temples is the tiered roof, which may have one to five tiers, with two or three being the most common. The Newar pagoda temples may be either Hindu or Buddhist temples and are worshipped different gods. One of the major decorative elements are the wooden struts that support the roof. The intricate carvings are usually of deities associated with the temple deity but quite a few depict explicit sexual acts, something what is impossible to see in the Christian church or in the Islamic mosque. The Hindus believe, that the man can be activated only by union with the female. Thus the gods were given consorts- Laksmi and Shri for Vishnu, and Parvati, Kali, and Durga for Shiva. The human sexuality is viewed as a copy of the sexuality of deities and therefore the sexual act is a sacred act.