Travel Tales
Bhutan: Journey of a lifetime
"There are first world countries, third world and second world. But Bhutan is future world. Their way of viewing progress offers good guidance for the rest of us." Deborah Llewellyn, Consultant with Save the Children, USA. Conventional clichés abound on Bhutan. And like all clichés, much merit lies in the gist of the statement. Superlative adjectives also are aplenty on Bhutan. On this count, one would be hard-pressed to find many dissenters. Romantic epithets include: The Last Shangri-la, The Mythical Shangri-la, A Living Eden, The Last Place on the Roof of the World, Jewel of the Himalayas …Mythical epithets include: Magical Kingdom, Land of the Peaceful Thunder Dragon, Kingdom of the Dragon…Spiritual epithets include: Lotus Garden of the Gods, Hidden Holy Land, Heaven on Earth…Royal references include: Kingdom in the Sky, Kingdom in the Clouds, Kingdom beyond the Clouds, Last Buddhist Kingdom, Buddhist Kingdom in the Himalayas…Their nation steeped in myths and rituals, for the Bhutanese their country is Druk Yul or Land of the Thunder Dragon. This off the beaten path mountainous country sandwiched between the geographical giants of China and India is a realm rich at both spiritual and material levels. With a population size of under 700,000 inhabitants, the Kingdom of Bhutan presents a canvas of images that are more fantastic than the one that just swept by. Mountains jam the terrain. They appear simply stacked against one another. This kingdom of some 38,394 sq. km. comparable to Switzerland in size still encompasses three distinct geographical features. On the lower reaches of southern Bhutan lies the tropical jungle terrain yet known as the 'Himalayan foothills.' Above this warm belt lies the temperate region of the 'Inner Himalaya' range. Further north, towering over the rest of the country looms the 'High Himalaya' heights at over 3000 metres. Bhutan within such a tight land mass actually covers an environment that ranges from tropical to alpine. In such a diverse visual backdrop of the bluest stretch of sky, endless span of snow-capped giants, salad-bowl valleys, rivers with serpentine courses, luminous lakes, verdant foliage, bountiful flora; where unscaled peaks and unexplored passes still exist; one may be forgiven for thinking that one has come across Mother Nature's true earthly paradise. And add to it air of pristine quality and purity. Largely a factor of its isolated geographical parameters, Bhutan has engaged in a careful, conscious and calculated engagement with the rest of the world. This slow process of opening its frontiers began in the 1960s. Back then, in the memorable words of E.A. Vas in his book The Dragon Kingdom: Journey through Bhutan (1986), "In 1961 I was given an opportunity to visit Bhutan when the only wheel that existed in Bhutan was the prayer wheel." Prayer wheels are "a well-established religious tradition in Bhutan. Inside each cylinder are rolled long sheets of paper on which the same prayer is written thousands of times. Then passers-by turn the wheels, always in a clockwise direction, the prayer wheels 'recite ' a single prayer thousand of times. This act wins merit, and helps to obtain a good reincarnation", notes Guy van Strydonck in Bhutan: A Kingdom of the Eastern Himalayas (1984). Today, four-wheel drive vehicles swerve around hair-pin bends on mountainous roads as Maruti cars dodge one another and pedestrians in Thimpu city which has no traffic lights. In a true measure of the Theory of Relativity, residents complain of the volume of traffic and lack of parking space. Yet paved roads did not exist in the 1960s. Today, a single principal road runs west to east connecting all major towns. Keeping in mind the mountainous barriers that crop up close, it is a mark of considerable achievement. We saw trails snaking across hill and mountain slopes. These were the 'old roads.' Then we were told of the 'first road' and now this is the 'second road.' In the words of E.A. Vas: 'Roads may change but never the mountains.' As Mankind endeavours to tame Nature and undertake development, the battle between Man and Mountain has been captured vividly by Joginder Singh in his writing on 'Conservation of Himalayan Ecology' in Incredible Himalaya: Environment, Culture, Tourism and Adventure, by M.S. Kohli (2005). "They are superlatives the highest mountain, the highest pass, the deepest gorge, the highest living animals, these mountains confront us with phenomena that exist no where else on earth. Other mountains can be digested by landscape. They are penetrable, have harnessed by roads and railways. But no railways cross the Himalayas, and few roads. They are mountains so stupendous that they can be overflown, but not tunneled, climbed but never tamed, mapped but seldom visited." And we were blessed to catch a glimpse of the central conical snow-clad peak of the 'Great Lodging of the Divine Mountains', a spiritual appellation for the sacred Jhomolhari Mountain that sprawls across the Bhutan-Tibet border and whose eternally white crest reaches for the sky at 7314 metres. At this moment, I recall the lines composed by John Muir, a nineteenth century American naturalist. "Let others orbit the inhospitable moon… I shall stay with my gigantic friends and let Them direct my thoughts to eternal truths." Gingerly, did a nation in medieval time warp till the 1960s emerge into a modern setting. The only education available till then was theological teachings received at Buddhist monasteries. Today, English is widely taught and, importantly, spoken. Some 60% of persons aged 15 plus can read and write. Some students go abroad for higher education, many on government scholarships. Tourism only started in 1974. Pepsi Cola built a bottling plant in 1997. Cable television entered Bhutan in 1999 the last nation on earth to access it. Fast forwarding to 2008, some 47 satellite channels were accessible to Bhutan's remotest villages. According to the 2005 national census, 80 percent of Bhutanese have access to clean drinking water, child immunization is close to universal, iodine deficiency has almost been eliminated and both maternal and infant mortality rates have decreased. The government-owned Kuensel daily newspaper for long has been the sole newspaper. Since 2006, some five other newspapers have emerged from the private sector. Its nascent film industry still was able to secure a nomination for the best foreign-language film for 'The Cup' directed by Khyentse Norbu at the Academy Awards in 2000. The plot centres on a young Buddhist monk's passion for football and his efforts to watch the 1998 World Cup matches. Bhutan's single airport in the Paro valley is the country's point of entry and exit for all Druk Air flights. The single runway has been described as 'the longest stretch of straight road' in all Bhutan. The airline commenced operations in 1983 with an 18-seater aircraft between Paro and Kolkata. Today, flights connect Bhutan to Bangkok, Delhi, Dhaka, Kathmandu and Kolkata via Airbus aircraft. Just when you think that the availability of modern conveniences is what development is all about, Bhutan reminds us that visionary leadership is a core feature of the process. The Wangchuk dynasty established in 1907 has successively and by all evidence successfully and slowly guided Bhutan through the past century. The fourth king (1972-2006) is the author of the unique development philosophy Gross National Happiness (GNH) as opposed to GDP. This all-encompassing political philosophy seeks to balance material progress with spiritual wellbeing. In the words of Eric Weiner, author of The Geography of Bliss: "With three simple words, Gross National Happiness taps into a deep and ancient truth, even if it is one we sometimes forget; that there is more to life than money." The prime minister of Bhutan at the 5th GNH International Conference in Brazil in November 2009 in his keynote address noted that "the balance between economy and ecology is a key consideration in GNH." Since Buddhism reveres Nature, 'Spiritual Ecology' is a relevant notion. We travellers to Bhutan in the twenty-first century are still privileged to witness Nature's realm. Bhutan was an early proponent of the Climate Change factor. Deliberate environmental precautions over decades have ensured green coverage and biodiversity. Unrestrained felling of trees is prohibited. Some 30 percent of the country is protected as wild reserves. Forest cover is at around 70 percent. The National Environment Commission was set up in 1992. Importantly, the central theme of the forthcoming 16th SAARC Summit to be held in Thimpu at the end of April 2010 is 'Conservation of Environment and Climate Change.' As developing nations seek to attract global tourism; Bhutan has once again demonstrated a unique path. Limited high-value and low-impact tourism is the Royal Government of Bhutan's national policy and has been so since the country opened its borders to regulated tourism in 1974. In brief, Bhutan's pursuit of happiness underlines quality and not just quantity. In an unexpected move, the Fourth Druk Gyalpo, the Fourth King abdicated the Golden Throne of the Kingdom of Bhutan in 2006. Into the twenty-first century, Bhutan has evolved into the world's newest democracy with its first parliamentary elections held in March 2008. The Fifth Druk Gyalpo crowned with the Raven Crown in November 2008 is today the youngest reigning monarch in the world's newest democracy. We flew into Paro on the 'Wings of the Dragon' from Dhaka in the month of mid-March. Transported in two hours from the din of Dhaka to the palpable peaceful Paro valley was akin to landing on another planet. With Nature as its master choreographer and its jaw-dropping scenery as its constant backdrop, the focal point at every site of human habitation is Bhutan's iconographic image the dzong. The Paro dzong is visible from the aircraft window as we approach Paro airport. The fortress cum monastery is at the very heart of Buddhist Bhutan's religious and social fabric. Mahayana Buddhism is Bhutan's state religion and Bhutan is the world's sole Buddhist kingdom. Once defensive structures built on high strategic ridges by the ruling Buddhist theocracy of the time; they also served as administrative offices, monasteries and residences for the head abbot, senior monks and the rank and file monk community. Extravagant details and gilded decorative features adorn doors, windows and roofing supports. In a blaze of red, yellow, orange, green, blue and black palette of colours Bhutan's unique and magnificent architecture comes alive. The same vibrant colours mark all dzong interiors; men's clothing, the knee-length robe named gho; women's dress, the floor-length dress called a kira. In typical dzong design we find the sloping high-walled white-bricked exterior, steep entrance stairway, massive central tower and courtyards that lead off to inner sanctums of prayers and offerings. Outside, Buddhist prayer mantras in the form of prayer flags blow in the wind while reaching across to all living sentient beings. Sharing blessings 'May my prayer reach those far and away; for their well-being is my well-being as well' is the heart-felt prayer wish.
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