Auspicious Bhutan

Suspension bridge with prayer flags

(Navyn) We started this week in Bhutan with some unfortunate news. Several of our friends and family have been diagnosed with cancer. Everything here in spiritual Bhutan is in someway connected to Buddhism and it’s teachings. We have done nothing but hike up mountains to temples and say prayers for the many people in our lives fighting the many faces of cancer. We prayed for you to overcome the odds, to continue to be strong in body and mind, and to be well soon. We have spun prayer wheels, prayed with monks, rung prayer bells, walked clockwise around giant prayer wheels, and hung prayer flags.

As if that wasn’t enough bad news, on April 25, six days after leaving Nepal, a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck and destroyed most of the temples and heritage sites we had just visited. Many historic monuments built in the 12^th century now lay in rubble and it is incomprehensible to think we were some of the last people to see them standing. The same goes for those trapped in avalanches on Everest and at Base Camp. Just days ago, their colorful tents and the skies looked bright with promise. Now the same helicopter we flew in is now pictured on CNN working hard to complete recovery missions. And for the first time in my children’s lives, the girls woke up and put on CNN, watching in disbelief. The death toll rises everyday and they are still trying to process how it could be possible. So here is the post I wrote prior to all the bad news that has somewhat clouded my ability to write my normal, happy thoughts about our time here in Bhutan.

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Punakha Dzong

Bhutan, the Land of the Thunder Dragon, is a tiny kingdom in the eastern Himalayas. It is bordered by China (Tibet) and India, and it is entirely mountainous. In fact the only flat valley we have seen is home to the Paro airport. This land-locked country has been closed to the outside world for centuries, with its first road built to India in 1960 and only opening up in 1974 to outsiders. Up until the 1960’s taxes were paid in kind (our guide Ugyen’s mother walked 13 days from her village to help build the parliament building in Bhutan’s capital city of Thimphu) and a barter system was in place.

The currency now is called the ngultram aka the “noogie.” The national sport is archery and television only arrived in 1999. There are on average seventeen curves in the road per kilometer. There are no traffic lights – instead a uniformed policewoman stands in the middle of the intersection in a guardhouse and directs the cars. It is law that everyone wear the traditional clothing called the gho for men or the kira for women. Ugyen greeted us, looking smart in his knee length robe with knee-high socks and polished dress shoes. All the extra fabric in the front creates the world’ largest pocket as he pulled out a bottle of water, a notebook, a Kit Kat. There is no drinking on Tuesdays, no hunting allowed, tobacco is prohibited, and school is free until the 10^th grade then only if you pass the test do you continue to have a your schooling free of charge. Prayer flags are everywhere but mostly found in high places over water, as the wind carries prayers to heaven quicker that way. A 51-meter Buddha stands watch over the countryside. It is clean, not crowded, orderly, and is densely wooded with junipers and pines. The first sensible country we have been through in awhile.

The phrase “Gross National Happiness” (GNH) was coined in 1972 by Bhutan’s fourth Dragon King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck as a signal of commitment to building an economy that would serve Bhutan’s culture based on Buddhist spiritual values instead of the western material development that was represented by gross national product (GNP). In fact, immediate happiness washed over me as soon as we landed. Maybe it had something to do with leaving the Kathmandu chaos behind, but the sky was blue, the sun shining, the mountains green and lush, the air clean, pink flowering apple orchards dotted the hillsides and the masterful Swiss architecture, was pleasing to the eye.

Bhutan has been ruled by monarchs since 1907. One day King 4, who began his rule at age 17 in 1972, married four sisters, instituted many commonsense progressive policies for his kingdom, then in 2006, abdicated the throne in favor of a constitutional democracy and tennis, leaving the Bhutanese shocked and saddened. Little did they know this rare visionary had been quietly laying the groundwork for the country’s first democracy. In order for Bhutan to continue on a path to modernity, he felt it was time to hand the government over to the people. A constitution was drawn up and in 2008 two parties were formed and the first elections held; a democracy born. King 5 now rules alongside a parliament that is not only functional but the people LIKE their government. Well that is a first, how very revolutionary.

We have heard stories of yetis, flying tigers, holy caves, guardian deities, bells that can carry our names, kings, and past lives. The local astrologist/monk informed me I came from the realm of hell, but am doing better in this life and therefore my next life is full of promise, with the possibility of becoming president of an important country – lookout Hillary. My newspaper tells me it is a good day to start a business, roof a house, learn astrology or get married but a bad day for those born in the Year of the Rabbit (that’s Paul). Almost everything around us is rooted in Buddhism; the temples, forts, monasteries, even the mountains themselves. We learn the lessons of trying to rid ourselves of ignorance, greed and hatred. It is OK to appreciate the beauty in things but very important to have no attachment. Even the king lives in a modest bungalow and is driven around in a black Lexus with the license plate that reads simply, BHUTAN. We are on this earth to prepare for the next with the ultimate goal of some day reaching enlightenment. In this life we collect white marbles and black marbles. When judgment day comes it is critical to have more white/good deeds than black /bad so there is much focus on achieving these goals.

Tiger’s Nest

What better way to celebrate today’s holiday, the anniversary of the death of the founder of Bhutan, Zhabdrung than to head outside for a challenging trek. We have been preparing all week for the formidable hike straight up the mountain to the Tiger’s Nest – the Taktsang Monastery. We began at 8,000 feet with the goal of reaching the temple built straight into a cliff side at 10,000 feet. Apparently we were not the only ones with this idea. As I looked around me I saw young people, old people, three year olds, babies, in fact all of Paro seemed to be here to start this pilgrimage to the top. People wore flip-flops, wedges, 4 inch black heels, and nearly everyone wore the kira or gho traditional dress (remember we are going to walk straight uphill for 2 hours!). Our guide Ugyen told me, you get more white marbles (1,000 times more) if you climb to Tiger’s Nest on this most auspicious day. It was not an easy climb, but we at least had sneakers and no babies to carry. The view from the top was incredible – worth every step. Green rolling hills, snow-capped mountain peaks in the distance, waterfalls, prayer candles, monks chanting, and that is the moment when you can start to understand – perhaps everything can have more meaning when there is less of everything.

In case you are still reading and want to know how the girls are doing, they continue to be troopers. Jolie serves us tea in every hotel room at least three times a day. I am thinking she is leaning towards a profession in waitressing. She also is consistently the guide favorite. They all like to squeeze her since she is the smallest. We taught all the girls how to play Wist (card game) and they play in the backseat during long car rides. Jolie seems to win every time even though she just learned, making her sisters crazy. Maya leads all the hikes with enormous amounts of energy and a constant bounce in her step. (I am usually in the back pretending to “stay back” to make sure everyone is fine, but usually the one most out of breath.) Zara is trying to be Jolie’s math teacher, using up enormous amounts of patience. Jury is still out on if this kid is teachable – she is stubborn on all fronts (even the astrologist/monk confirmed this.) Halle caught two fish during her first fly-fishing lesson, then Zara fell in the river trying to hold the fish. Halle continued her athleticism by shooting a bullseye during archery class. Zara has summed things up by letting us all know this is way too much family time and when she gets home we won’t see her anymore because she will be too busy for us.