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by Paola Hanna<\/em><\/p>\n \u2018The dogs are auspicious,\u2019 our guide Tashi said, looking at the two healthy-looking strays who were leading the way up the steep mountain path. It was cool and misty in the lichen-draped forest. Here and there we saw splashes of bright red rhododendrons.<\/p>\n Tashi was, as always, elegantly attired in a gho, the Bhutanese male national dress, a knee-length robe hitched up and tied at the waist with a belt. Under it his hiking books and Argyle socks looked rather out of place. Apart from a few monks tripping up and down the track like mountain goats, we were alone, surrounded by birdsong.<\/p>\n A lot of things are auspicious in Bhutan.<\/p>\n Why did we choose this particular holiday destination? Well, we live in Bangladesh, and had six days\u2019 leave. We wanted a complete change. Dhaka is humid and hot in May (and April, and June, and July, and August, and September, with no sign of a letup until at least mid-October…), and apart from the weather, the traffic, noise and pollution get to you after a while. For much of the year half the country is under water. A cool, quiet, elevated, sparsely populated country less than an hour\u2019s flight away is just too tempting, especially when that country\u2019s progress is based on GNH – Gross National Happiness – rather than GDP. And if you\u2019re looking for different – different from anywhere in the whole world – Bhutan is where you\u2019ll find it. Until fifty years ago, this landlocked country smaller than Switzerland existed in self-imposed isolation, with no currency, no towns to speak of, and no formal education outside monasteries. Despite massive recent reforms, it remains a unique destination, steeped in religion and culture – of an especially unusual kind – as we were about to find out.<\/p>\n Perched at eight thousand five hundred feet above sea level, the monastery today houses the Tango University of Buddhist Studies, which is the most important centre for Buddhist learning in Bhutan. This is where many of the country\u2019s religious leaders have followed a rigorous nine-year training programme.<\/p>\n Inside the main entrance we twirled a few prayer bells (clockwise, as instructed), took off our boots, and crept into the inner sanctum, where we sat down cross-legged in a corner. A group of monks were chanting. On a raised dais, a young teenager sat solemnly in his robes.<\/p>\n We sat with the monks for a while, then made a small donation which secured us a couple of blessed strings to wear around our necks – we are determined never to lose the thread again. As we headed off down the mountain, we were joined again by our friendly dogs.<\/p>\n Tango Goemba has been a place of huge religious significance since it was founded as a monastic school in the 12th century. The monastery that stands on the site today was built in the 15th century by Bhutan\u2019s rather quirky and folkloric hero, Lama Drukpa Kunley, affectionately known by locals as the Divine Madman.<\/p>\n He was born in Tibet in the year of the wood-pig in the eighth cycle, which corresponds to our year 1455. After his father\u2019s untimely death in a feud, he became disenchanted with the world, dedicated himself to religion, and became a monk. But that path, too, disillusioned him, so he became a mendicant, traveling extensively in Bhutan. He spread his teachings against hypocrisy and selfishness rather unconventionally, spending much of his time drinking, making music, and deflowering virgins. It is thanks to his sexual exploits that the outer walls of many houses throughout Bhutan are decorated with delicately decorated frescoes of rather splendid phalluses, which simultaneously ward off the evil eye and enhance fertility.<\/p>\n \u2018I will,\u2019 said he, \u2018but first you must bring me a goat and cow.\u2019<\/p>\n They did as they were told. The animals were killed and roasted on a fire, and he sat down and ate them both, leaving only the bones. He then placed the goat\u2019s skull on the cow\u2019s bones, and said \u2018Abracadabra\u2019 (or the Bhutanese equivalent). The animal came to life, rose to its feet and headed for the pastures. And thus the Bhutanese national animal, the takin, was born. To this day this rather ugly creature has confused taxonomists, who have placed it in a category all of its own.<\/p>\n The day after our Tango trek, we visited Chimi Lhakhang, the Temple of Fertility, in the Punakha Valley, three hours from Thimpu. It was built in the Divine Madman\u2019s honour, by his cousin, in 1499. He was grateful that the holy man had subdued the demoness in nearby Dochu La with his \u2018magic thunderbolt of wisdom\u2019. Infertile couples come to the temple from all over Bhutan, as do families with young babies, to receive blessings.<\/p>\n Definitely the Divine Madman\u2019s work.<\/p>\n We strolled back to the car, grateful for the Madman and for all the holy people scattered over the world\u2019s mountains, praying for the victory of good over evil.<\/p>\n![\"Buddhist](\"https:\/\/travelthruhistory.com\/pix\/bhutan1.jpg\")
We were on our way to Tango Goemba, a few miles north of the capital, Thimpu. Two flashes, one yellow and one scarlet, darted across the path just in front of us in close succession. Tashi stopped in his tracks. \u2018Ssh.\u2019 We followed his gaze, and saw the two small birds on a branch just off to our left. \u2018Long-tailed minivets,\u2019 he said. \u2018The red one is the male. It\u2019s auspicious to see them together.\u2019<\/p>\n![\"Tango](\"https:\/\/travelthruhistory.com\/pix\/bhutan7.jpg\")
As we approached Tango Goemba, we saw a printed paper sign stuck on a brightly-painted wall: (REQUEST) PLEASE COME IN NATIONAL DRESS. INFORMAL DRESSED ARE NOT ALLOWED LA. It seems that the final \u2018la\u2019 takes the edge off any instruction or statement, making it polite. I looked down at my dirty jeans and sweatshirt, but Tashi assured me that the sign only applied to locals. The dogs settled down to rest in front of the monastery entrance.<\/p>\n![\"monks](\"https:\/\/travelthruhistory.com\/pix\/bhutan6.jpg\")
\u2018He is the seventh reincarnation of the fourth desi of Bhutan\u2019, Tashi said. A desi is a spiritual leader. \u2018His previous incarnation died in 1830. We are very lucky to see him.\u2019<\/p>\n![\"phallic](\"https:\/\/travelthruhistory.com\/pix\/bhutan2.jpg\")
Many stories are told about the Divine Madman\u2019s exploits. One day, a crowd his followers asked him to perform one of the magic feats he was famous for.<\/p>\n![\"rhododendron](\"https:\/\/travelthruhistory.com\/pix\/bhutan3.jpg\")
We were blessed by a monk who tapped our heads with two ten-inch plastic phaluses. Since we\u2019re not too bothered about fertility at this point in our lives, we wished for health for our grandson and any grandchildren we may have in the future. Just as we left the temple, I received a text message from my daughter: \u2018Your beloved grandson has just walked his first two steps!\u2019<\/p>\n
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