Bhutan: A beacon to the Realm of Human beings and a key to conundrum “To be or not to be”

A prodigious paradox of life is that it seems like an incessant journey of battling polarities within self. The polarities of like-dislike, love-hate, generosity-greed, happy-sad, success-defeat, gain-loss, build-break, scatter-gather, tear-mend, war-peace, silence-speech, plant – uproot, hurt- heal, laugh – weep, dance – mourn , birth- death, to be – not to be. These exasperating polarities, inexhaustible opinions, imbecile judgement, rigorous rules & regulations of the external world jostles us off from our inner equilibrium that we were born with.  No wonder in this jolted state, living merely stoops down to being engaged in the ceaseless conquest for material, crawling through crowded cities with take away boxes, where virtual world and fake relationships takes precedence over real world and real relationships, self worth is sum of social media likes and life’s net worth is balance statement of bank accounts, reality compressed to a unfortunate collective concoction of mindless media reports and wikipedia records, where metaphysics is defined by google search hits and everything else that is a “unknown” is banished as “non-existent”, which all makes one wonder if it was even worth cutting off our umbilical chords to mother nature, the source of wisdom on the essence of life and art of living?

As much as we deny it , the conditioned living has pushed us to the wall leaving us screeching and screaming for some sunshine, solitude and simplicity in life. How many times in a day do we think about Quitting jobs, Quitting relationships, Quitting this rat-race, Quitting our own lust and indulgences? We think about it much more than we acknowledge it even to ourselves. We screech and scream in our heads about quitting but we never do? Why?

Are we afraid? If so what are we afraid of? Is it shame of defeat? Is it a perception of a loser in the eyes of inconsequential people? Or is it simply a fear of unknown? The unknown of “what do I do next if I quit my job?” , “can I do nothing for a while, not be earning and not be anxious?”,  ” where do I go if I quit this place?”, ” do I have enough money?” , ” will I be lonely if I quit my relationship and can I handle loneliness?”, “am I just good enough and enough for living a fulfilling life – solitary?”, ” do I have it in me to break these rusted chains of social order and simply live and be alive to each moment”, ” am I just a figment of people’s perception, expectations and obligations? ”  and so many such questions which stems from our conditioned living in a cage without realizing how, when and why we ended up here, where we just suffer our own intellect and memory.

Amidst the battle ground of my mind with deafening war whoops from within, 35000 feet above sea level, a rendezvous with mother nature at the summit of Mount Everest, unloaded me of all memory from the material world that had weighed me down and the offloading process itself was rejuvenating, leaving me with nothing but the experience of life at its pure essence. Everest stood as a hallmark of life’s wisdom which is just “existence”. Many a times with all the melodrama around us, we wonder if essence of life is just “existence” and it seems too insufficient and undermining — but the beauty is that life indeed is just “existence”. When just one sight of Mount Everest along the flight to Bhutan, nestled in Himalayan Valley can resolve the “To be or not to be” soliloquy and mend our cut umbilical chord with mother nature, you know its just a great beginning for a enriching journey.

Welcome to Blissful Bhutan!

Getting Here:

Delhi and Kolkata has direct flights to Paro via Druk Air or Bhutan Airlines.

Travel Tips

Travel Bookings: Its best to use government approved tour operators in Bhutan to get the trip arranged. They are trustworthy and usually do a great job of building itinerary as per tourist preferences and take care of hotel, chauffeur car and guide bookings. The  chauffeur driven car and guide are available through out the duration of the trip 24×7 which makes it very convenient and effective.

        Suggested Tour operator: https://1-derfulbhutantours.com/ 

Food: Bhutanese food is very very spicy and ensure to mention “less spicy” as an instruction while ordering food. The whole country feasts on organic food (Yes as eyebrow-raising as it may seem, not a spray of chemical is used in any food grown across Bhutan) and feast of local delicacies such as Red rice, Fried Rice, Rice noodles, Kewa Datshi, Mushroom Datshi, Saag Datshi and other Vegetable curries. Non- Vegetarian is options available in plenty for meat lovers.

Dress Code: While visiting temples, ensure to wear full length clothes as a mark of respect to local culture and traditions.

Best time to visit:  Any time of the year. However Spring time is preferred during months of June to August. Every season has its beauty in Himalayan Valley. Black Necked Crane however can be seen only in Winter months of Dec – Jan. Winter is sunny during the day and gets cold late evening and not at all a bad time to visit Bhutan.

Shopping: Many products are imported from India and China. However don’t miss out to take back some local handicrafts and souvenirs.

Entry: India, Bangladesh and Maldives nationals can enter with a passport and no visas needed. All other nations need a visa. For India, Bangladesh and Maldives nationals, the entry is applicable between Paro and Thimphu only and if travel beyond Thimphu is needed, another permit would need to be stamped in at Thimphu. If this permit is applied for before reaching Thimphu it is chargeable whilst applied during travel within Bhutan, its free. To save time, better to get it in advance. The tour operators can help arrange. Ensure to ask the tour operator to arrange permit before arrival, else half a day might be lost in Thimphu waiting for permit. Those with visas, do not need any further permits and the visa is valid all across Bhutan.

Photography: Especially when need to photograph people’s portrait, gently ask for permission. Avoid candid photography of portraits.

Skin Care and Emergency medical kit: Sun can be harsh in Himalayan Valley. Ensure to carry sunscreen(preferably SPF 50), sun shades, moisturizers and seasonal clothing. Have emergency medical kit with you especially to not waste time looking for emergency medication in a foreign land.

Day 1, 2: Thimphu

Stay @ Damchoe’s Homestay

Places to Eat for Lunch: (Dinner and breakfast, feast at the homestay)

• Chopstick Restaurant
• Bhutan Kitchen Restaurant
• Zombala

Must Visit:

• Phajoding Monastery
• Motithang Takin Preserve
• Thimphu Dzong
• Folk Heritage Museum
• Art Galleries (There are many, visit any or as many)
• Handmade Paper Factory
• Thimphu Weaving Centre(There are many, visit any or as many)
• Memorial Chorten, Thimphu – Stupa
• Changangkha Lhakhang Temple – Oldest temple and place where parents visit for blessings and getting auspicious names for their new borns
• Handicrafts for shopping at Thimphu Town Centre(There are many, visit any or as many)

 

Reflections

The most humbling experience was to come to terms with “What is unknown cannot be assumed as non-existent”. Here in Bhutan one will come alive to stories about real men/women who retreat to solitude Himalayan Altitudes living in extreme conditions that is unbearable for one coming from the Matrix of Gadget world. They live in mountains for years with unimaginably humble amounts of food, water, clothing and shelter.

One of the most inspiring practices still in villages of Bhutan is that, if a family had three sons – one would be encouraged to serve in the military or armed forces serving motherland, one would choose celibacy for the rest of life and live the life of a monk and one would live in material world guided by spiritual wisdom.

It is refreshing to see qualitative aspects appreciated and finding value on par with anything quantitative. A country that measures its growth on the barometer of “Gross National Happiness” – which is organic growth set on pillars of socio-economic growth is guided by spiritual wisdom, preservation and promotion of culture, being frugal on consumption of natural resources there-by conserving the environment and good governance.

Day 3 On the Way to Phobjikha Valley: Dochula Pass

Day-3, 4 : Phobjhika Valley

Stay @ Hotel Dewachen

Places to eat for Lunch(Breakfast and dinner feast at Dewachen): Eat at any farm house in Gangtey

Must Visit/do/see:

• Hike to Gangtey Monastery
• Gangtey Monastery
• Black Necked Crane
• Black Necked Crane Centre
• Solitary Walks in the Valley getting some Vitamin-D from morning Sun

Reflections

Its a Himalayan tale that the Black necked crane that is titled as “Bird of Heavens” visits only holy places and one being the Phobjikha Valley in Bhutan. Hence Phobjikha Valley elevates to the entitlement “Heaven on earth”.

Himalayas teaches you and fills you with awareness of self even whilst living in crowd. It makes you see the difference between loneliness and solitary enlightening you that “you are good enough and enough for yourself to live a fulfilling life”. And most importantly the Himalayan Wisdom that “Harmonious living in a civilized world doesn’t mean living as a parasite craving for attention, appreciation and affirmation all the time. Life is mere existence and living with this awareness of essence of life, brings in some sense and sensibility to art of living”. Any fear of solitude or voids that make us parasites to fellow men or material stems from ignorance of life’s essence.

It is no less than a miracle that there can be country in this age that feeds on organic food. Not a sprinkle of chemical is used in any food that is grown across Bhutan. It is a feast to the eye especially when eating in farm houses, where when a order is placed for food, fresh veggies are plucked or uprooted from the garden in backyard and taken straight to the cooking pan on the kitchen hob. You can hear your body say to you –“Finally you have started to care for me and feed me with some real food!”

Day 5, 6: Punakha

Stay @ RKPO Green Resort

Place for lunch and dinner: ST WiFi Restaurant

Must do/see/visit:

• Punakha Dzong
• Fertility Temple
• River Rafting

Reflections

Eastern wisdom has always celebrated and not shunned sex which is nature’s way of perpetuating human species. We will always see erotic art forms in temples of east and come to see sex for what it is – without regarding it as a taboo or elevating it to the cerebral complexities that is plaguing the millennials.

Himalayan Valley is also about venturing into some adventures like river rafting. Rivers are an epitome of human life between life and death. The Siddhartha Wisdom as they say — “Rivers flowing give an impression that they are on a journey to reach a destination. But they just exist and they are where they are. No destination or reach”. Similarly we live life as if its a race to finish but life is pure existence and it may just be worth having fun along the flow of life.

Day 7 – On the Way to Haa Valley : Chele La Pass

Day 7: Haa Valley

Stay and Eat @ Risum Resort

Places to see: Just relax and enjoy the sights and walk in the valley. Take a journey within into Solitude and see true yourself!

Day 8, 9, 10: Paro

Stay @ Naksel Boutique and Spa

Eat @ Sonam Trophel Restaurant, Mountain Cafe

Must Visit/Do:

• Hike to Taktsang Monastery
• Taktsang Monastery
• Street side shopping at Base camp of Taktsang Monastery
• Paro Ripung  Dzong
• National Museum
• Hot stone bath

Reflections

Some journeys are inward and that is exactly the travelogue of Bhutan in Himalayan Valley is all about. The messages must not be misconstrued that we should all retreat to frugal living in the mountains but it is about leaving the valley carrying the wisdom of life’s essence and art of living into the chaotic world of polarities we live in. It is about not getting lost in the whirlpool of material world but keeping a sight on the anchor of life’s essence. It is about seeing the beauty and humility in the unknown and open to a possibility of existence of unknown and unimaginable. It is about realizing that life is lot more enduring even amidst extreme conditions and as tough as the sail may be seem, the tough gets going. It is about letting ourselves at times, to shred all memory and conditioning of material world and coming to experience life for its quintessence. It is about looking at life as an opportunity, a possibility than a long journey of suffering.

Life is not a series of alarm clocks or timers and neither it can be measured with money mechanics but it is in all magnanimity, just existence. When we can differentiate between melodrama that surrounds life and the marrow of life — you can give yourself a thumbs up that you nearly made it!

To the soliloquy : To be, or not to be — Shout out loud with a smile for the Mount Everest on the journey back : “To be”!