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Bhutan's national flag is a
white dragon on a diagonally divided background
of golden yellow and reddish orange. The yellow
represents the secular power of the King, the
orange the Buddhist religion. The white of the
dragon is associated with purity, and the jewels
held in the claws stand for the wealth and
perfection of the country. The national emblem
is composed of a double diamond thunderbolt
placed above a lotus, surmounted by a jewel and
framed by two dragons, all contained within a
circle. The thunderbolt represents the harmony
between secular and religious power resulting
from the Vajrayana form of Tibetan Buddhism, the
lotus symbolizes purity, the jewel expresses
sovereign power and the two dragons, male and
female, stand for the name of the country,
Drukyul, the land of the thunder dragon.
Bhutan is the only country to maintain Mahayana
Buddhism in its Tantric Vajrayana form as the
official religion. The main practicing schools
are the state sponsored Drukpa Kagyupa and the
Nyingmapa. Buddhism transects all strata of
society, underpinning multiple aspects of the
culture. Indeed, religion is the focal point for
the arts, festivals and a considerably above
average number of individuals. The presence of
so many monasteries, temples and stupas, monks
and tulkus (reincarnations of high lamas) is
indicative of the overarching role religion
plays throughout the nation.
Although the Shabdrung is regarded as the
founder of the nation, the secular realm has
achieved an unprecedented degree of unity under
the influential guidance of a Twentieth Century
monarchy. Within a cultural context where the
spiritual and temporal spheres are intimately
connected, political leadership remains
interpreted as divinely determined. The royal
family traces its roots to the great Sixteenth
Century saint Pema Lingpa, and the present
monarch still enjoys a god-like status
throughout much of his Kingdom. The Forth King
Jigme Singye Wangchuck as the head of state now
rules the Kingdom, with the throne retaining its
position as the fulcrum of the political system.
Bhutanese art possesses a major Tibetan
influence, although it has developed some of its
own derivations. It has three main
characteristics: it is anonymous, religious and
performs no independent aesthetic function.
Intricate wall paintings and Thangkas (wall
hangings), most historical writing and fine
sculpted images all have a religious theme.
Given their role, these may be interpreted as
created by artisans rather than artists,
although there exist many extremely fine
examples. All are viewed as sacred, and newly
commissioned paintings and sculptures are
consecrated through a special ceremony whereby
they come to personify the respective deities.
Although both Buddhism and the monarchy are
critical elements, it is the general extensive
perpetuation of tradition that is possibly the
most striking aspect of Bhutan's culture. This
is most overtly reflected in the nature of dress
and architecture. All Bhutanese continue to wear
the traditional dress: for men and boys the Gho,
a long gown hitched up to the knee so that its
lower half resembles a skirt, for women and
girls the Kira, an ankle-length robe somewhat
resembling a kimono. Generally colorful apparel,
the fabrics used range from simple cotton checks
and stripes to the most intricate designs in
woven silk.
The Bhutanese architectural landscape is made up
of Chortens, stonewalls, temples, monasteries,
fortresses, mansions and houses. Associated with
a number of clear-cut architectural concepts and
building types rooted in Tibetan Buddhism, there
is a strong association between state, religious
and secular forms. What makes it quite unique is
the degree of uniformity, with all structures
corresponding to traditional designs. Thus
ancient monasteries and fortresses appear to
merge with more modern popular dwellings to
create a setting that is fully internally
consistent.
The Buddhism of Bhutan
Although all the Buddha’s teachings form one
unified body, they may be separated into
different layers of the same entity. Buddhists
refer to these layers as “vehicles,” which may
be defined as systems of practice by which one
progresses to a higher spiritual state.
Not everyone has the same emotional,
intellectual, or spiritual capacities. We are
the product of our pasts thoughts and actions,
or Karma, and since our varies, so do our
inherent abilities. It is with these differences
in mind that the Buddha propagated his various
teachings. That is, he did not teach everyone in
the same way. To some he taught simple truths,
to others more complex ones, and even the simple
and the complex had their own gradations.
Rather, they graduated from simplicity to
complex city, even while dealing with the same
subject.
Bhutanese Buddhists believe that the three main
vehicles of Buddhism can be arranged in their
increasing order or complexity and advancement
as follows:
Hinayana or the lesser vehicle, which is
dedicated to the propositions that each person
has work out his own salvation through monastic
self- discipline. Hinayana has been compared to
his slow but fruitful walk towards a state of
liberation from cyclic existence, which,
however, falls short of Buddha hood.
Mahayana or the Great vehicle, which proposes
salvation for the entire universe through the
intervention of Bodhisattvas- potentially divine
Buddha’s who, out of compassion, refuse to enter
Nirvana until an sentient beings have been
saved. Mahayana has been compared to traveling
in a car, where progress is quicker but, at the
same time, an accident can be more serious.
Tantrayana, or Vajrayana, or the secret mantra
vehicle, which may be said to be a higher
expression of Mahayana, and is both esoteric in
nature and the quickest path to enlightenment,
affording precise techniques to advanced and
initiated pupils for attaining the supreme
spiritual goal in a single lifetime. Tantrayana
has been compared to taking a trip on a
supersonic plane – an intoxicating experience
granting that no accident occurs, which may very
well prove fatal!
Buddhist scholar-saints have brought out the
interdependence of the three “yana” in the
following observation:
Outward conduct is practiced in accordance with
vinaya (Hinayana).
Inwardly, mental activity is practiced with
bodhimind (Mahayana).
Practiced in secrecy, Tantra (Vajrayana).
The state religion of Bhutan is Buddhism of the
Mahayana tradition, including vajrayana. In the
light of what has been said above, it may be
added that, from the Mahayana point of view, it
is erroneous to talk, as many non practicing
scholars do, in such terms as “original
Buddhism” and “later developments of Buddhism,”
since all the various tradition of Buddhism have
coexisted since the time of Buddha and from
different strands of the stream.
It may also be noted that Buddhists do not
normally speak of their own religion as
“Buddhism” but usually refer to it as the
“dharma” a Sanskrit word that in this context,
means “to hold one back from impending
disaster”. |
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