Rituals in Bhutanese temples

We have visited a lot of temples. Most are located within dzongs.  Our female Bhutanese guide, Shring, knows the Bhutanese history in detail, as well as the Mahayana and Theravada branches of Buddhism

In an earlier post I mentioned that while in Bangkok, Sam had told me about how Buddhism is practiced in Thailand and how most people are not as connected to the mindfulness aspect.  What I learned from Shring is that is true and that there are two main branches of Buddhism:  Theravada, which is practiced in Thailand and Mahayana which is practiced on Bhutan.  All of the people in Bhutan are strict followers of Mahayana Buddhism.  

As we visit the temples, Shring describes in detail all the symbolism and history of the statues,  paintings, as well as the temple itself.  It is so much information and after 6 days I think I may be beginning to understand just a little.  

Sometimes when we visit a temple, we are lucky enough to see a ritual.  The rituals include the monks and a Lama chanting and playing instruments, mainly drums, bells, and horns.  The sound is mesmerizing and I recorded chanting from 3 different rituals.  Photography is not allowed in the temples.

Attending a ritual is my favorite thing so far.  Many of the rituals are open to the public and some are not.  If we happen upon a ritual while we are visiting a temple, we always attend.  We take our shoes off outside the door, then enter the temple and either sit or stand and observe the ceremony.  I have to say that my favorite ritual was one we happened upon in a small village outside of Tanaka.  

When we checked out of our hotel in the morning, we drove a short distance to a small village where Leke, our driver, lives.  The village is known for its temple which is specifically geared toward the concept of fertility.  We parked at the road and walked through the village to the temple (about 20 minutes).  Along the way there were people working in the fields harvesting rice, and wandering cows and dogs, of course.  We also saw lots of phallic symbols painted on the buildings.  This is something you will find throughout the country.  They are painted to drive away the demons. 

Once we got to the temple, a ritual was in progress. We entered and sat on the floor to observe. At first it seemed like most rituals we had seen, monks chanting and eerie music.  We were the only people there other than the monks, or so I thought.

Then, I saw a man and woman who looked American, dressed in native Bhutanese clothes.  As it turns out, the ritual we were watching was their marriage ceremony!  A really cool part was that after they were blessed by the Lama, we were able to also get a blessing from him too. 

One by one we walked up to the Lama and bowed.  We cupped our hands and he put a seed in them and then touched our head with a large wooden phallus! Really! It was so cool! 

After the ceremony we walked back through the village and met Leke's wife.  She is a weaver and works in a store there.  I bought a scarf she had made.  

As I said, happening upon a ritual in progress in a temple is my favorite activity.  I hope to see more of them as we travel throughout the country.