Guru Lhakhang

 As a Buddhist nation, Bhutan is dotted with many blessed places. The country is also blessed with monasteries and temples established by great masters and communities to benefit sentient beings.
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One such place is the Guru Lhakhang in Begana, Thimphu. According to
the caretaker, the great master Jamyang Chokyi Lodre requested the Dalai lama to construct a huge Guru Nangsel Zyelnon in Potala in Tibet. This, as prophesied by the master, was to protect Tibet from external threats.  As the time was running out, HH the Dalai Lama constructed a smaller version of the statue in the hope that a larger one would be built later. Later in 1959, Tibet was conquered by China, and HH the Dalai Lama and Tibetans fled the country for their safety.
A group of people settled down in the present place as refugees. It was during this time that His Majesty the late Druk Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuck commanded the Tibetans who had temporarily settled in different places in Bhutan to come to Begana and granted them land kidu. However, according to the caretaker of the lhakhang, the community got scattered due to the land allocation. 48 families were blessed with land in the present place. The new community consisted of Buddhist masters of different sects and people of different backgrounds.
At the time, HH the Dalai Lama was in India and was still not happy as the bigger statue could not be built. To this end, HH advised HH the Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, who was then living in Bhutan, to fulfill the prophecy in Bhutan. HH the Dalai Lama advised that the project be carried out for the benefit of the Himalayan region from external threats. HH the Khyentse Rinpoche presented the option of constructing the statue in any of the seven places the Tibetan refugees have settled: Paro, Bumthang,
Bjimina, Hontso, Khatsakha, Begana and Kabesa. HH the Dalai Lama, through his meditative radiance, found Begana the most suitable place.
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The land for the lhakhang was offered by the new settlers in the community out of respect for His Majesty the King and as a symbol of unity among the different sects of Buddhism in the community. The construction began in 1970 and was completed in two years. During the consecration in 1972 by HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, the Guru statue is said to have grown by about a foot. This, according to the caretaker, was a symbol of the power of faith people had in Guru Rinpoche. The caretaker of the lhakhang clarified that the story of the statue still growing is not true. (The story has been circulating among the people for some years). It is also said that the HH Dalai Lama instructed the statue to face north to protect Bhutan from the northern enemies.
Today, the community serves as a center of faith among the followers of different sects of Buddhism. It also plays a vital role in uniting the people in universal Buddhism and as a place to come together. The lhakhang is looked after by the community, and the caretaker is also from the same village.
Although the lhakhang doesn’t have a monastic school, it observes all the auspicious days of the month, which are managed by the community, especially the 48 households. After the consecration, HH the Dalai Lama advised the refugees there to pay respect to HM the Third King and Bhutan. HH commanded people to observe and conduct rituals on a regular basis.
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Apart from the huge Guru statue (which is about 10 feet), the lhakhang also houses a Buddha statue on the right and a Chenrizig statue on the left. The lhakhang has a statue of a Buddhist master (Lam Choney Rimpoche) and Tara. According to the caretaker, the lhakhang was offered to Lam Choney Rimpoche, but he refused to take it. The lama, by then, had a family and didn’t want to involve his descendants in the possession of the property. The walls of the lhakhang are adorned with murals of all the Buddhist sects, another gesture of unity.
The lhakhang is a one-storied structure with a few rooms for the caretaker and a store surrounding it. The lhakhang is just about 100 meters from the Begana bridge, which is about 15 kilometers from Thimphu town.

 


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