Tiger's Nest

According to Bhutanese legend the venerated historical figure, Guru Rimpoche, rode into the Paro Valley on a flying tigeress. The tigeress landed high on a cliff, 3000 feet above the valley floor, and Guru Rimpoche spent three months meditating in a cave there. When he came out he converted the entire Paro Valley to Buddhism and the citizens of the valley built a monastery in his honor at the location of the cave. The monastery is named “Taktsang”, or, in English, “The Tiger's Nest”.

Tenzin and I started the climb to Taktsang at 9:00 this morning. We hiked for two hours up steep dirt paths through the forest leading to the monastery. Along the way we stopped for a few minutes wherever there were views of Taktsang. From a distance it looked precariously perched on the cliff, ready to tumble off at any time. After getting completely winded from the hike and stopping a few more times to rest and to enjoy the views, we finally reached The Tiger's Nest. When most people back home think of Bhutan they probably don't think of Taktsang Monastery, and they may not know much about the country at all. Taktsang, though, is undoubtedly the most iconic structure in the country and is also a major source of national pride. It is to Bhutan what the Eiffel Tower is to France. Of course everyone has different opinions as far as what is an incredible sight, but if I had to choose between a visit to Taktsang or a visit to the Eiffel Tower, I'd easily take Taktsang.

I first read about The Tiger's Nest while researching about eighteen months ago for my 2007 trip to India. I considered coming to Bhutan as part of that trip, but the cost of coming deterred me at the time. Since then, I've wanted to find a way to somehow travel to Bhutan, and I've dreamed of hiking to Taktsang to see it in real life. Standing across from Taktsang to enjoy the views and snap pictures of it was an incredible experience today. Bhutan is so far away and so isolated from the United States that I didn't know for sure if I would ever make it here. Even though I knew I would be hiking to Taktsang this morning, it still felt amazing to see it right in front of me.
Unfortunately cameras aren't allowed inside the monastery, but the interior was every bit as picturesque and serene as the exterior. It helped that the only other people inside were Buddhist monks. Tenzin led me into a small, quiet room in the monastery where a monk was molding wax to make ritual cakes to be offered to Buddha. I spent a few minutes walking along the perimeter of the room, admiring the colorful murals covering the walls, the painted woodwork lining the ceiling, and the bright decorative cloths hanging from above. Cypress and sandalwood incense filled the place with an exotic scent. Tenzin took a few minutes to point some things out to me. Several tall ritual cakes, made of wax and colored butter, had been placed as an offering in front of a shrine in the center of the room. Silver bowls filled with holy water sat in a row near the shrine, and the flickering flames of butter lamps created a dim glow. My favorite part of the room was the six brass plated columns in the center. Long, intricate images of dragons had been formed into the brass and covered the columns from top to bottom.

I took a quick peek into a room with hundreds of flickering butter lamps, and then Tenzin took me to the part of the monastery where Guru Rimpoche's cave was located. I left my shoes at the entrance and followed Tenzin into a room similar to the first one I visited, but smaller and with a large brass door on one side. I peered through a small opening in the door and saw the dank cave inside, with one sole, glowing butter lamp placed in the center to give it light. Tenzin told me that the door is opened once a year for local Bhutanese to enter the cave, but otherwise the only person to enter the room is a monk whose duty it is to replace the butter lamp. A monk poured a few drops of holy water into Tenzin's hand and Tenzin drank it and patted his wet palm on his forehead. The monk offered me some holy water as well and I followed Tenzin's example. Back in Paro, Tenzin had arranged for fresh trout to be caught for lunch. The trout was cooked with onions and tomatoes and I ate it with a pork curry dish, curry with peas and tofu, and a spicy lentil soup. As always, there was a huge bowl of rice as well.

The hike this morning left me completely exhausted and I slept for an hour and a half this afternoon. Later in the evening I explored the town with Tenzin. We passed by several Bhutanese handicraft shops and general stores, as well as young kids playing at a local park and a group of men competing against each other in a Bhutanese game similar to billiards. The traditional architecture that is ubiquitous around Paro resembles large, square, Swiss chalets.
Bhutanese people decorate the outside of their buildings with colorful paintings. Some paintings are of demons or tigers or other mythical creatures, but the most common painting is that of a large phallus. The phallus depiction serves two purposes in the Bhutanese culture. First, it is an unmistakable symbol of fertility, but also, the phallus is often painted near the doorway of a house to ward off evil spirits. I can understand their reasoning. If I were an evil spirit about to enter a home and I saw that part of the human anatomy painted so enthusiastically at the doorway, I'd run for cover too. I wondered to myself tonight if the same technique would work in the United States. I think that when I get home I'll paint a phallus on my parents' house and see for myself if it drives the evil spirits away.