In the Land of the Dragon

It’s not every day that your pilot announces through the intercom, “And, in roughly twenty minutes, we’ll be passing by Mt. Everest, which can be viewed from the left side of the aircraft.”  My side!  Um, wow?  As the aircraft entered Bhutan, the terrain and climate immediately shifted to a mountainous, cold one amidst blankets of blue pine and cypress trees.  The pilot unsuccessfully attempted to pre-empt a sense of alarm in us passengers as we descended into Paro airport, cautioning us of the usual heavy turbulence.  Shortly before touchdown, it appeared we would crash right into the side of a mountain as the plane veered to the left before miraculously hitting the run way in a final moment of perfection.  This was clearly not the first time this pilot had flown into Paro International airport.  Panic was suspended and replaced with awe.  We had reached the Land of the Dragon at last.

Mt. Everest from a Druk Air aircraft

Day one in this breathtaking country has been magnificent!  Paro is a tiny, barren town cushioned in its namesake valley with a population widely dispersed across paddy fields and apple orchards.  White prayer flags for the dead (manidhar) emerge vertically from the pine covered mountain slopes, blowing vigorously in the wind, while the colorful flags of the live (lhadhar), garlanding trees, fences, bridges, and temple courtyards dance vivaciously.  Their reflections can be seen in the crystal blue waters of the Paro Chhu, its banks lined with white pebble stones of all sizes, as it flows through the middle of the town.  Houses built in the traditional style, as decreed by Bhutanese law, are either white-washed or made of stone and are ornamented with intricately carved, wooden arched windows, usually two rows of three arches, one atop the other, painted in maroon, orange, and yellow hues.  The arches are typically filled in with purple, blue, or turquoise curtains or shutters, making each set of windows appear like marvelous ornaments.  The walls of the top level of a home are only of a waist-level height ad used for storage of household goods, straw, and animal feed.  Each home, to me, seemed worthy of being a national monument.

I suppose that was the king’s purpose.  Bhutan only recently opened its doors to tourism, and roads, telephones, the internet, and television followed only shortly after.  While its leadership has accepted that an isolated existence is no longer viable, it has, with tremendous thought and prudence, strategically embraced what is considers are necessary aspects of modernization while minimizing any compromise of national identify and culture to the extent possible.  Men and women are required to wear the national dress, gho and kira, respectively, when at work, school, and religious and state functions.  Selling cigarettes is illegal, and Bhutan was the first country to ban plastic bags and smoking in public places.  Most noteworthy is the country’s method of measuring its development--- through gross national happiness (GNH) --- an index reflecting the fourth king’s dream of a country where “compassion is favored over capitalism and wellbeing is measured alongside productivity.”

Paro (Rinpung) Dzong on the banks of the Paru Chhu

Paro Valley and the Drukgyel Dzong

Drukpa chewing paan near the Dzong

General store in the typical Bhutanese architectural style

The country’s history is a vibrant mix of modern fact with an ancient one deeply rooted in Buddhist folklore and mythology.  Many monuments, temples (lakhang), and monasteries (guemba) are hundreds of years old and have origins linked to the most significant and famous saint of all, Guru Rinpoche (also known as Padhmasambhava), who is believed to be an incarnation of Buddha.  My first stop in Paro was to Bhutan’s oldest and most beautiful temples, Kyichu Lakhang, which houses one of the largest statues of the Guru, alongside a red Tara holding a bow and arrow made of flowers.  According to lore, when the Tibetan king, Songtsen Gampo, believed that a demoness embedded in the earth was blocking the transportation of what is now Bhutan’s most sacred treasure, the Jowo Sakyamuni statue, he ordered for one hundred and eight temples to be erected in a single day to pin down the demoness to the earth forever.  The Kyichu Lakhang is believed to be the temple built on the left leg of the demoness, the most troublesome part of her body.

We wrapped up the day at one of Bhutan’s many significant dzongs (fortresses), the Drukgyel Dzong, which has largely been destroyed after a butter lamp accident set it ablaze in 1951.  The Dzong was built in 1659 to commemorate the victory over Tibetan invaders.  I was told that Tibet is only a two-day trek from there, just through the two mountains in the Dzong’s backdrop. 

Prayer wheels of Kyichu Lakhang

Walls of Kyichu Lakhang

Lhradha prayer flags in Paro Valley

Knob of the Kyichu Lakhang entrance door

A Drukpa circumambulating the Kyichu Lakhang 

As we made our way back to the guesthouse, I gazed up at the Taktshang Goemba, perched 900 meters above on the side of a cliff.  The Tiger’s Nest Monastery is Bhutan’s most famous site, and I’ll be exploring it in about twelve hours!