Buddhas, a Madman & a Nunnery

We left Thimphu this morning and first visited the 177 foot seated Buddha temple. The interior contains an astonishing 120,000 Buddha statues lining the walls with more added all the time.

We next ascended to the stunning Dochula pass at 10k feet with sweeping views. Clouds obscured the Tibetan Himalayas to the north, but occasional glimpses of snowy peaks gave hope that we'll see them when we go back over this pass Saturday. There are 108 beautiful shrines to honor the deceased at the summit, and the whole atmosphere was spectacularly surreal.

We then descended to the village of Teoprongchu, and the landscape changed dramatically. It's much warmer down in this valley with blooming jacaranda and bananas everywhere. But the highlight is the 15th-century Temple of Fertility. Let me condense this wild and convoluted tale as best I can. It seems a Tibetan superhero came to this region around 1480 along with his overheated libido. That he liked the ladies is an understatement as he managed to have 5000 children, reportedly. He was given the name of the Divine Madman. When he died, he became a deity of Fertility. A Temple of Fertility was erected here,if you'll forgive the pun, after his death and ever since, couples unable to conceive have come to practice rituals which will help them have a baby. The woman, alone, must wear a cloth sling at her back used to carry children, but instead of a child, she carries an enormous wooden phallus and circumambulates the Temple a prescribed number of times. The Temple monk then lets her know if it will be a boy or a girl, and they choose a name. I asked about the success rate and they showed us books with photos of happy couples and bouncing babies as proof. The whole town is penis crazy and you can buy everything from penis tea towels to key chains to model airplanes with a penis nose.

Ironically enough, our next stop was at a Buddhist nunnery notable for its incomparable 360 degree view. The interiors of these shrines are indescribable but unfortunately one cannot take photos.

Finally we descended further to the lovely town of Punakha which is much warmer than Thimphu. We are in a charming hotel along the banks of the river and will be here two nights with more hiking tomorrow.---gearing up for the more challenging Tiger's Nest hike on Sunday!

In the meantime, "om mane padme hom" as we say in Bhutan.もっと詳しく