Sugriv Parvat (Sugreev Kila), Ayodhya: The Hill Ram Gave to Sugriv, Timings and Visit Guide

ॐEssential info at a glance

ॐSugriv Parvat timings

The site is generally open from 5:00 AM to 12:00 PM and 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM, and entry is free; the outdoor premises are reachable along the Ram Path. It is a small, quiet, raised site, and about half an hour to an hour is enough to take it in, together with the view over Ayodhya. Being right beside Hanuman Garhi, it is very easily seen on the same visit.

ॐSugriv Parvat: the hill Ram gave to Sugriv

Right beside the great temple of Hanuman Garhi, but standing on even higher ground, rises an ancient raised fort-mound called Sugreev Kila, or Sugriv Parvat, and its story is a lovely one of gratitude and friendship. For tradition tells that when Lord Ram returned in triumph to Ayodhya after his fourteen years of exile, having won back Sita with the help of his allies, he gave this very hill to King Sugriv, the monkey-king, his loyal friend and comrade, as a gift and a place to stay. And there is a beautiful pattern in this, for just as Ram gave the neighbouring hilltop to Hanuman, whose temple is Hanuman Garhi, so he gave this one to Sugriv; the two adjacent heights of Ayodhya are the hills the Lord bestowed upon his two greatest vanara allies, the monkey-heroes who had served him so faithfully in the war. To stand on Sugriv Parvat, beside Hanuman Garhi, is to stand among the honours Ram gave to his friends.

ॐSugriv, the loyal ally of Ram

The king this hill honours was one of the great figures of the Ramayana. Sugriv was the king of the vanaras, the monkey-people, of the realm of Kishkindha, a son, tradition holds, of Surya the Sun God, and brother of the mighty Bali. When Ram, wandering the forest in search of the abducted Sita, came to Kishkindha, he made an alliance with Sugriv, helping him to regain his lost kingdom; and in return, Sugriv gave Ram everything. It was Sugriv who sent out his vast monkey army to search the whole earth for Sita, and it was his own minister, the greatest of all his subjects, Hanuman, who found her at last in Lanka; and it was the vanara host, under Sugriv, that built the great bridge and stormed Lanka at Ram's side to win the war. Sugriv's loyalty and friendship were total, and Ram never forgot them. So this hill is a shrine to that friendship, and to the truth that Ram's victory was won not alone but with the devoted love of his allies; and with Hanuman Garhi beside it, the two hills honour the two greatest of the monkey-heroes together.

ॐA center of spiritual learning

Today Sugriv Parvat is not only a memorial but a living place of study. The old fort has become a traditional center for Hindu religious and spiritual learning, and if you climb up you may find students seated in the calm of the height, learning the sacred language of Sanskrit and reading and reciting the holy texts, carrying forward the ancient knowledge in the very city of Ram. King Sugriv is worshipped here by his devotees, and the atmosphere is quiet, studious and serene, a gentle place of learning and devotion set a little above the busy lanes below. It is a reminder that Ayodhya guards not only its temples but its wisdom, and there is something fitting in a hill of one of Ram's wise allies becoming a seat of learning.

ॐThe ancient mounds of Ayodhya and the parikrama

Sugriv Parvat is one of a pair of ancient raised mounds that rise near Hanuman Garhi, its companion being the nearby Mani Parvat, the hill of the Sanjeevani. Together these mounds are a reminder that Ayodhya's sacred landscape is not only its temples but the whole geography of the Ramayana, the hills and grounds where the story itself unfolded; and both lie on the Panchkosi Parikrama, the sacred circumambulation route of the holy city, so that pilgrims walking the parikrama pass among them. From the height of Sugriv Parvat, as from Hanuman Garhi and Mani Parvat, there is a fine view over the rooftops of Ayodhya, especially lovely in the late-afternoon light.

ॐThe hill of a faithful friend, in my own words

By Rajeev Sharma, guide with Experience My India

When I take my guests up to Hanuman Garhi, I always point them to the higher mound right beside it and say: do you know whose that is? That is Sugriv Parvat, the hill Ram gave to Sugriv, the monkey-king. And I tell them the beautiful thing, that Ram, when he came home, gave one hill to Hanuman and one to Sugriv, his two great monkey friends who had helped him win the war, so these two heights side by side are the gifts of a grateful Lord to his allies. People love that; it shows them Ram's loyalty to his friends, which is one of the loveliest things about him.

I tell them who Sugriv was, the king of the monkeys, whose army searched the world for Sita and whose minister Hanuman found her. And I show them how the old fort is now a school of Sanskrit and the scriptures, with students learning up there in the quiet, which I always find touching, that a hill of Ram's wise ally is now a place of learning. It is a small, offbeat spot that most visitors climb past on their way to Hanuman Garhi without knowing what it is; I never let mine miss its story. With Hanuman Garhi and Mani Parvat, it makes a lovely little circuit of the ancient hills of Ramkot.

In more than forty years of guiding, this is the quiet hill whose story of friendship I most enjoy revealing to the pilgrims I bring.

ॐWhat to see and do

• See the ancient raised fort-mound Ram is said to have given to Sugriv, beside Hanuman Garhi.
• Hear the story of Sugriv, the loyal monkey-king ally of Ram, and the war for Sita.
• See the traditional center of Sanskrit and spiritual learning on the mound, and the shrine of Sugriv.
• Enjoy the fine view over the rooftops of Ayodhya from the height.
• Do it together with Hanuman Garhi next door and Mani Parvat nearby, the hills of Ramkot.

ॐHow to reach Sugriv Parvat

Sugriv Parvat is on the Ram Path Road in Sai Nagar, in the Ramkot area, right adjacent to Hanuman Garhi, at the heart of old Ayodhya. It is reached on foot or by e-rickshaw, and best seen together with Hanuman Garhi.

It is a natural add-on to a Hanuman Garhi visit, and part of a little circuit of Ramkot's ancient hills.

ॐBest time to visit and how to plan it

• Pair it with Hanuman Garhi and Mani Parvat, and the core temples.
• Allow 30 minutes to an hour, including the climb and the view.

For Ayodhya, or a combined Kashi and Ayodhya pilgrimage, planned end to end, see our tour packages.

ॐAccessibility for elderly and mobility limited visitors

• It is a raised fort-mound with a climb, on higher ground even than Hanuman Garhi, which can be hard for the frail; take it slowly.
• Come in the cool of the morning or evening, when the climb is easiest.
• Those who cannot climb can still hear its story from below, beside Hanuman Garhi.
• We plan the timing and help so a keen elderly pilgrim can manage the ancient hills comfortably.

ॐNearby sacred sites in Ayodhya

Sugriv Parvat is in Ramkot, among the ancient hills and the core temples.

For the Ram Mandir darshan and its free Sugam booking, see our Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir guide.

ॐOur guided visits and Ayodhya tours

We are a Varanasi and Ayodhya based operator, a unit of Experience My India, with more than forty years of guiding pilgrims across Kashi, Ayodhya, and Prayagraj, and we have our own local guide and pandit in Ayodhya. It is a free, open site, so what we offer is the knowledge and the planning: a guide who tells the story of Sugriv and the hills Ram gave his allies, and weaves Sugriv Parvat into a visit of Hanuman Garhi, Mani Parvat and the core Ramkot temples.

Inclusions and exclusions are stated up front, with any taxes and conditions, and no charge appears later that was not named. Entry is free; our charge is only for guiding and services. See all our tour packages for the full range.

Experience My India is a travel operator, not the site administration. Entry is free; our charge is only for our guiding and services. Timings and access can change.