What are the social and cultural customs of Bhutan?

Bhutan is a small kingdom full of mystery, influenced by Tibetan Buddhist culture, but different from Tibet.

96% of the local people believe in Tibetan-style Lamaism. What is most surprising is that the Bhutanese's phallic worship can be combined with serious Buddhist beliefs.

Bhutan is located east of the Himalayas, bordering Tibet to the north, and India to the west and south. Bhutan covers an area of ??only 46,000 square kilometers, smaller than the Malay Peninsula.

Bhutan is an alpine region with endless mountains, the peaks of which are covered with snow, and the terrain is very dangerous.

Looking around, there are winding valleys and rapid rivers.

Bhutan's forest coverage area accounts for three-quarters of the country's area, and there are many types of flowers.

When we came here, it was late spring in March. In addition to seeing magnolias all over the mountains, we could also see peach blossoms planted by villagers in front of their homes.

White magnolias and pink peach blossoms bloom at the same time, and the red and white complement each other, which is very beautiful.

A Cultural Shock Bhutan not only has unique natural landscapes, but also has extremely rich cultural landscapes.

Bhutan is a small kingdom full of mystery, influenced by Tibetan Buddhist culture, but unique from Tibet.

96% of the people believe in Tibetan-style Lamaism. People's lives are inseparable from religion. Majestic monasteries and solemn pagodas can be seen everywhere.

The colorful cloth covered with scriptures swayed in the wind, creating a spectacle.

Whether in monasteries or in the streets, young lamas walk together in small groups, looking at ease and contented.

However, what surprised us the most and impressed us most was the worship of the penis by the Bhutanese people.

What is incredible is that the Bhutanese phallic worship can be combined with serious Buddhist beliefs. For us, it is really a cultural shock!

Colorful paintings of male penises, whether in the small town of Paro or Thimhu, the capital of Bhutan, there are colorful paintings of male penises at the door of almost every household.

According to the tour guide’s explanation, there is a phallus painted in front of the door, which is similar to the demon mirror and Bagua mirror hung at the door of our Chinese people. It has the function of exorcising evil and avoiding evil.

In the main halls of some temples, in addition to enshrining statues of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas or Padmasambhava, wooden phalluses are also placed in the main halls. When the abbot of the temple saw us arriving from afar, he specially tapped the wooden phalluses on our foreheads.

The top of the head, it is said that doing this can bring us good luck and also wish us a safe journey.

Mandala Art Legend The reason why Bhutanese people have such a belief can be traced back to the 15th century AD. Its origin is said to come from Lama Drukpa Kunley, one of the most worshiped holy monks in Bhutan.

The holy monk Zunpa Kunli was born in Tibet in 1455 AD and died in 1529 AD.

The deeds of his life are not only recorded in the ancient books of Bhutan, but also preserved on the walls of the temple through paintings. The Bhutanese call it mandala painting art.

Zunpa Kunli's life was full of legend. He was deviant and behaved strangely. Ideologically, Zunpa Kunli was incompatible with the monks in the traditional monasteries at that time. He was called a crazy monk, somewhat similar to the living Buddha Jigong in ancient China.

He traveled throughout Tibet and Bhutan throughout his life, using unique poetry, humorous tone, and absurd means to promote Buddhism to the people of the middle and lower classes and save the common people.

Legend has it that someone once gave him a piece of string to tie around his neck, which he tied to his penis, claiming that doing so would bring good luck.

Since then, in addition to enshrining the statue of Zunpa Kunli, some temples in Bhutan have also begun to place phallic models made of wood on their altars, worshiping them as sacred objects and also treating them as mascots.

This kind of belief of the Bhutanese people is really eye-opening and incredible.

It is indeed hard for us to imagine that enshrining the penis in the majestic Mahavira may seem a bit immoral to us, but the Bhutanese regard it as a sacred object.

From here we also understand that this world is full of wonders. Religion can affect the culture of a nation, and the culture of a nation can also affect the spiritual appearance of religion.

Therefore, we cannot and should not always look at problems from our own perspective.

Supplement from the respondent 2009-05-07 20:26 Bhutan: Flying phallus as door god. All people in Bhutan believe in Buddhism. Every family likes to paint patterns such as flying phallus and dragon, tiger and beast on both sides of door frames, walls and roofs to ward off evil spirits.

, pray for blessings.

Among them, the flying penis tied with colorful silk and spraying semen is the most incredible!

According to locals, the painted flying phallus serves as a door god.

This strange belief and custom originates from Drukpa Kunley (1455～1529), the "Tibetan Buddhist Jigong Living Buddha" most worshiped by the Bhutanese people.

This man was highly cultivated in Buddhism and had boundless Dharma power, but he did not abide by the strict rules and precepts of Buddhism. He was greedy for wine and lust, and had no fixed residence. He traveled around Tibet and Bhutan throughout his life, leaving many anecdotes among the people.

When the people listened to him preaching Buddhism, it was like watching a humorous drama sketch. Everyone laughed so hard that they often understood the true Buddhist scriptures after laughing.

After Drukpa G?nley passed away, various anecdotes related to him became oral myths among the Bhutanese people, and some bizarre customs were generated: flying phalluses as door gods, temple monks tapping wooden phalluses on the heads of believers to pray for blessings, and finally

It is eye-catching and the most shocking.