Search

Begin New Search Topic History Political Geography Bhutan

11. Digging the Past: The State of Archaeological Study of Bhutan

Author:
Dorji Penjore
Publication Date:
03-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
This is only a preliminary note on the current state of archaeology and potential of archaeological study in understanding Bhutan and its past. The author prepared the paper as talking points for an international conference on “The Prehistoric Archaeology of the Tibetan Plateau” (Chengdu, Sichuan Province, 21-24 August 2011) organised by the Centre for Tibetan Studies of Sichuan University and the Institute of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Palaeoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Science. Only a few points have been added. Archaeology or archaeological study of Bhutan is literally nonexistent. The country’s rich archaeological sites await excavation and systematic study to shed much needed light on the history of early settlers. Wedged between the two great civilizations of Tibet and India, settlement of what is today Bhutan must have predated that of Tibetan plateau because of the former’s fertile central valleys and favourable climates. In absence of any systematic archaeological study and findings, presence of stone tools and megaliths found across the country are the only existing evidence of pre-historic people in Bhutan. These stone artefacts and structures are found across the country, and stone tools (adzes) are ubiquitous in Bhutanese homes. Records that could have provided information on early settlers had been lost to warfare, fires, earthquakes, floods, and other natural calamities. The entire historical documents of the Punakha dzong were lost when fire destroyed it in 1832 followed by an earthquake in 1897. Most places and sites with potential association to early or pre-historic people are being lost to time, natural forces, and human activities. Fragility of the Himalayan ecology does not help the situation
Topic:
History and Archaeology
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

12. The First British Book about Bhutan: A Publishing History of Turner’s Account of an Embassy

Author:
Trevor Lipscombe
Publication Date:
06-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
British political (and other) missions to Bhutan spawned scholarly publications. These included addresses delivered to the meetings of learned societies and subsequently printed in scholarly journals, or else published as books. Such publications conjured up an image of Bhutan that fit the aims and interests of the expanding British Empire, and there was a broad audience for such works, whether scholarly or popular. This article explores the publication history of the first British book concerning Bhutan, Captain Samuel Turner’s Account of an Embassy to the court of the Teshoo Lama in Tibet containing a narrative of a journey through Bootan and part of Tibet, which appeared in 1800.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Media, History, and Academia
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, South Asia, and Bhutan

13. Guru Padmasambhava of Odiyana (Odisha): The Founder of Lamaism in Tibet

Author:
Bimalendu Mohanty and Varish Panigrahi
Publication Date:
11-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
Guru Padmasambhava of Odiyana went to Tibet along with his wife Mandarva in 747 CE at the invitation of the King Trisong Detsen (755 CE to 797 CE) of Tibet and established a Buddhist order that was based upon Vajrayana practice developed in Odisha. He brought a synthesis among the Bon religion, which existed in Tibet along with Sahajagyana, and established Lamaism. From the biographical sketches available from the existing documents, it is known that Padmasambhava was the adopted son of King Indrabhuti, the King of Sambala in Odiyana. The second wife of Guru Padmasambhava, Dakini Yeshe Tsogyal, had written a biography titled The Lotus Born: The Life Story of Padmasambhava where the Guru has been described as the son of King Indrabhuti of Odiyana. It is believed that before reaching Tibet, he had visited Bhutan along with his wife, to settle disputes among warring neighbouring countries and to bring peace in the region. He also spent some time in Sikkim and Nepal while en-route to Tibet.
Topic:
Religion, History, and Buddhism
Political Geography:
South Asia, Tibet, and Bhutan

14. Guru Padmasambhava in Context: Archaeological and Historical Evidence from Swat/Uddiyana (c. 8th century CE)

Author:
Luca Maria Olivieri
Publication Date:
11-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
In this contribution, which is based on a collection of data that were earlier presented in different fora1, I would like to first briefly touch upon the fact that last year the Italian Archaeological Mission in Swat2, founded by Giuseppe Tucci in 1955, just celebrated its 60th anniversary. The Mission, which I have the honor to lead3, is still in full activity despite the many dramatic events that hit the beautiful Swat valley between 2007 and 20104. I also intend to pay tribute to Giuseppe Tucci’s seminal essay, On Swat (Tucci 1977), which holds a wealth of suggestions and historical hypotheses that are still stimulating research5. Amongst those historical hypotheses, there are some aspects of mutual importance connecting Swat and Bhutan, i.e. the early diffusion of Vajrayana in Swat, the relationship between Swat and the trans-Himalayan regions, and the role of Guru Padmasambhava.
Topic:
Religion, History, Buddhism, and Archaeology
Political Geography:
South Asia, Tibet, Bhutan, and Himalayas

15. Ahom-Bhutan Relations with Specific Reference to Royal Bhutanese Embassy Visiting Ahom Capital in 1801

Author:
J. N. Phukan
Publication Date:
09-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
This paper is confined to the period when the Ahom power came into contact with Bhutan. This happened towards the beginning of the seventeenth century when the Ahom kingdom annexed Kamrup and Darrang to the north of which lay the territory of Bhutan. Thereafter, for more than a hundred years the relations with Bhutan were primarily dealt with by the Darrang Raja who was made a tributary Raja by the Ahom king. However, whenever required, the Raja was assisted by Ahom force to deal with situation. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, there were troubles in the Ahom kingdom. Among these were the Moamaria uprising that spread even to lower Assam. The rebellious prince of Darrang Krishna Narayan with his supporters took the help of Burendazes, mercenary soldiers from Bengal. When Capt. Welsh came to Assam to take them back, many of them with Krishna Narayan took shelter in the bordering areas of Bhutan and created troubles there. Bhutanese authorities made appeal to the Barphukan of Guwahati. To ascertain the situation he sent an embassy to Bhutan in 1801. In return, the King of Bhutan sent a royal embassy to the Ahom court that arrived at Jorhat, the Ahom capital in 1802. The envoys were well received by the King and the Prime Minister. They brought many presents that were valuable at that time. The Ahom and the Prime Minister also sent valuable presents to the Bhutan King. In this paper, I have devoted to this embassy in the background of Ahom history.
Topic:
Diplomacy, History, and Monarchy
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

16. Masked Dance of Sumthrang Mountain Deity

Author:
Gengop Karchung
Publication Date:
09-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
Masked Dance of Mountain Deity (Tsän Cham) of Sumthrang Samdrup Chödzong in Ura, Bumthang is a unique performing art that has been inherited since the 15th century. When the 23rd ’Nyörab Jam’yang Drakpa Özer (’Jam-dbyang grags-pa ’od-zer; 1382–1442) planned to slip away to Tsari (Tibet) for meditation clandestinely, the Drak Tsän Dorje Dradül appeared and beseeched lama to stay at Sumthrang, simultaneously performing this masked dance along with four of his retinues. Consenting to the plea made by the deity, the lama then taught the dance to his disciples. The dance then became part of annual festival called Sumthrang Kangsöl held from 25th Day of 9th Month of the Bhutanese lunar calendar for 5 days. The dance is known by various names: Lha Cham (dance of god), Tsän Cham (dance of mountain deity), and Ta Cham (dance of horse) as the masked dancers ride horses. Today, some episodes of this dance is performed at Zhongmä lhakhang in Lhuntse Dzongkhag as this lhakhang was built by Jam’yang Drakpa Özer. This paper will try to give detailed information on this unique festival, especially the Tsän Cham as it is critically endangered. Further, it will also try to bring out the historical accounts of the lhakhang and other associated sites. This paper will be based on limited available manuscripts, historical publications and other written sources which will be further supplemented with the existing myths and legends that are available.
Topic:
History, Culture, Tradition, Mythology, and Festivals
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

17. Visions, Prophecies and Leadership: Oral Accounts of the Life and Death of Terton Drukdra Dorji

Author:
Thinley Jamtsho, Dendup Chophel, and Sangay Thinley
Publication Date:
09-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
This section of the paper is based mainly on a review of literature of the subjects under consideration particularly with regard to three existing source materials which present firstly the general theory of Treasure tradition and the visionary masters and then a corroborative account of Terton Drukdra Dorji (gter ston ‘brug sgra rdo rje, the main subject of this paper) and his entanglement with the Bhutanese powers in existing texts. The first modern publication that we refer to is the Tibetan Treasure Literature 1 in which the author, Andreas Doctor firstly puts the ‘Treasure tradition’ (gter lugs) in the context of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism to which it belong. He writes, “This tradition propagates the reverence of religious material known as ‘Treasure’ (gter ma), blessed words and objects said to originate in the enlightened intent of the Buddhas and Boddhisattvas. Broadly, the Treasures belong to a tripartite system of scriptural and oral transmission defined by the Nyingma School as the ‘three great transmissions’ consisting of (a) the long lineage of Transmitted Precepts, (b) the short lineage of Treasure, and (c) the profound Pure Vision Teachings.2” He further mentions that “Central to this process is the figure of the Treasure revealer (gter ston) – the person who acts as a medium for the re-emergence of this inspired material into the human world. Accordingly, beginning in the eleventh century and continuing into the present, the Nyingma School identifies a large number of Treasure revealers and grants authoritative status to their discoveries” (p. 17). Generally, the Terton(s) are categorized under the following even though sometimes such classifications can be untenable or superfluous; three regional master incarnations (mchog gi sprul sku gsum), the five Kingly Terton-s (gter bston gyi rgyal po lngaI), the thirteen Lingpa(s) (gling pa 13), and the thousand Terthren(s) (gter phran stong).
Topic:
Religion, History, and Buddhism
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

18. Early Happiness Policy as a Government Mission of Bhutan: A Survey of the Bhutanese Unwritten Constitution from 1619 to 1729

Author:
Michael Givel and Laura Figueroa
Publication Date:
09-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
Modern Gross National Happiness in Bhutan contains nine domains including: standard of living, good governance, time use and balance, community vitality, cultural diversity and resilience, ecosystem diversity and resilience, health of the population, education, and psychological wellbeing which address modern policy issues. The nine domains also balance material and spiritual concerns in a holistic manner. However, were the nine domains related to happiness policy before and after Bhutan became a nation? The unwritten constitution of early Bhutan, includes Nga Chudruma of 1619, the Tsa Yig Chenmo of 1629, the first Legal Code of 1652, and updated Legal Code of 1729. Happiness policy in early Bhutan promoted a view of a wise ruler providing governmental support so citizens may become enlightened due to Mahayana Buddhism. Happiness policy in Bhutan has evolved from an early Buddhist focus to a range of factors that maintain Mahayana Buddhist traditions balanced with modern societal requirements.
Topic:
History, Governance, Constitution, Buddhism, and Gross National Happiness (GNH)
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

19. Ahom-Bhutan Relations with Specific Reference to Royal Bhutanese Embassy Visiting Ahom Capital in 1801

Author:
J. N. Phukan
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
This paper is confined to the period when the Ahom power came into contact with Bhutan. This happened towards the beginning of the seventeenth century when the Ahom kingdom annexed Kamrup and Darrang to the north of which lay the territory of Bhutan. Thereafter, for more than a hundred years the relations with Bhutan were primarily dealt with by the Darrang Raja who was made a tributary Raja by the Ahom king. However, whenever required, the Raja was assisted by Ahom force to deal with situation. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, there were troubles in the Ahom kingdom. Among these were the Moamaria uprising that spread even to lower Assam. The rebellious prince of Darrang Krishna Narayan with his supporters took the help of Burendazes, mercenary soldiers from Bengal. When Capt. Welsh came to Assam to take them back, many of them with Krishna Narayan took shelter in the bordering areas of Bhutan and created troubles there. Bhutanese authorities made appeal to the Barphukan of Guwahati. To ascertain the situation he sent an embassy to Bhutan in 1801. In return, the King of Bhutan sent a royal embassy to the Ahom court that arrived at Jorhat, the Ahom capital in 1802. The envoys were well received by the King and the Prime Minister. They brought many presents that were valuable at that time. The Ahom and the Prime Minister also sent valuable presents to the Bhutan King. In this paper, I have devoted to this embassy in the background of Ahom history.
Topic:
History and Monarchy
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

20. Was Tobacco Described in Bhutanese Buddhist Texts Before the 16th Century?

Author:
Michael Givel and Rebecca A. Sherry
Publication Date:
10-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
The small Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan has banned tobacco sales since 2004, citing prophets of the country's state religion, Mahayana Buddhism, who described the evils of tobacco 200 years before its introduction to Asia. To address whether tobacco really is the plant designated in these early texts, we commissioned new translations of these documents, including one of the first translations out of Choekey of the first legal code of Bhutan, known as “The Golden Yoke of Legal Edicts.” A set of allegorical stories predict that a demon will make a plant appear that will be smoked, sniffed or eaten, and will cause a myriad of physical and societal ills. The stories in the ancient documents are allegorical and apocryphal (in the sense of mystic and esoteric) and do not describe the plant in enough detail to identify it as any real plant. In some cases, the word “thamakha,” meaning “the very worst black poison,” was transliterated as tobacco. Nevertheless, modern day interpretations in Bhutan of “thamakha” as tobacco are congruent with Buddhist tenets that intoxicants of any type will cloud the mind and inhibit the journey to seek Nirvana.
Topic:
History, Tobacco, and Buddhism
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan