Gangtey Tshechu

When it happens

Gangtey Tshechu lasts three days in autumn, on dates set by the Bhutanese lunar calendar.

Where it happens

Gangtey Goenpa sits on a ridge above the Phobjikha valley. It is a monastery of the Nyingmapa school and the main seat of the Pema Lingpa (Peling) tradition.

It is also the seat of the Gangtey Tulku line of reincarnations.

History

Rigdzin Pema Tinley (1564–1642), a grandson of Pema Lingpa (1450–1521), founded Gangtey Goenpa in 1613 and was the first Gangtey Tulku. According to tradition, Pema Lingpa prophesied on a teaching visit to Phobjikha that a descendant would build a goenpa on the “Gangten” (mountain top). The founding is said to have fulfilled that prophecy, and the ridge takes its name from it.

It began small, and Rigdzin Pema Tinley’s son Tenzing Legpai Dhendup (1645–1726), the second Tulku, expanded it.

The monastery was completely restored between 2002 and 2008 under the ninth Gangtey Tulku. The Fourth King attended the consecration of the rebuilt monastery on 10 October 2008.

Dances and rituals

Each year cham (sacred masked dances) are performed in the monastery courtyard.

On the final day the thongdrel (a giant appliqué scroll) is unfurled.

Being there

The Phobjikha valley floor lies at about 3,000 m, a little more than 68 km by road from the Wangdue Phodrang district headquarters. Expect cold at this height during the tshechu.

The tshechu comes before crane season, and a visit can be paired with early crane viewing. The valley is the winter home of black-necked cranes from late October to early March.

Places to stay in the valley range from three-star lodges to five-star properties.