Culture of Bhutan
The Bhutanese are physically similar to the Tibetans, but history does not record when they crossed over the Himalayas and settled in the south-draining valleys of Bhutan.
Houses each fly a small white flag on the roof indicating the owner has made his offering payments to appease the local god.
Villagers from the surrounding district come for several days of religious observances and socializing while contributing auspicious offerings to the lama or monastery of the festival.
The central activity is a fixed set of religious mask dances, or cham, held in a large courtyard.
Observation of the dances directly blesses the audience and also serves to transmit principles of Tantric Buddhism to the villagers.
A number of the dances can be traced directly back to Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal himself, the founder of Bhutan, and have been passed down essentially unchanged since the mid-17th century.
Prior to dawn on the final day of the tsechu a huge tapestry, or thongdrel, is unfurled in the courtyard of the dzong for several hours.
To preserve the indigenous Buddha's Teachings as their long-guarded culture and tradition, Menjong Chöthün Tshogpa, a charitable organization was established in 2002 by The Supreme Dharma King or Trulku Jigme Chöda Rinpoche 70th Je Khenpo of Bhutan.
[2] The chairman at present is Trizin Tsering Rimpoche who also happens to be the founder of Buddha Dordenma Image Foundation, another charitable organization in Bhutan.
[3] Previously all Bhutanese citizens were required to observe the national dress code, known as Driglam Namzha, while in public during daylight hours.
Men wear a heavy knee-length robe tied with a belt, called a gho, folded in such a way to form a pocket in front of the stomach.
Women wear colourful blouses over which they fold and clasp a large rectangular cloth called a kira, thereby creating an ankle-length dress.
Everyday gho and kira are cotton or wool, according to the season, patterned in simple checks and stripes in earth tones.
For special occasions and festivals, colourfully patterned silk kira and, more rarely, gho may be worn.
Local and regional elected officials, government ministers, cabinet members, and the King himself each wear their own colored kabney.
Despite living in Bhutan for up to five generations, the Lhotsampas retained their highly distinctive Nepali language, culture, and religion.
These changes negatively impacted the Lhotsampa people, because they did not wear the same traditional dress, practice the same religion, or speak the same language as the northern Bhutanese.
Men take a full part in household management, often cook, and are traditionally the makers and repairers of clothing (but do not weave the fabric).
In the towns, a more "western" pattern of family structure is beginning to emerge, with the husband as breadwinner and the wife as home-maker.
Surprisingly, multiple children in a small hamlet of a few houses may have exactly the same name, reflecting the inspiration of the local lama.
In the early 1960s, the Third King of Bhutan began the gradual process of introducing modern technology to the medieval kingdom.
The movie examines the pull of modernity on village life in Bhutan as coloured by the Buddhist perspective of tanha, or desire.
Soups and stews of meat, rice, ferns, lentils, and dried vegetables, spiced with chili peppers and cheese, are a favourite meal during the cold seasons.
Other foods include: jasha maru (a chicken dish), phaksha paa, thukpa, bathup, and fried rice.
Popular spices include: curry, cardamom, ginger, thingay (Sichuan pepper), garlic, turmeric, and caraway.
