Tamzhing Monastery

Its temple and monastery are remarkable for their direct connection to the Bhutanese tertön and saint, Pema Lingpa (1450-1521) and his tulkus.

[2] The temple was built by Pema Lingpa in 1501; the coeval wall paintings include his portrait and are amongst the earliest in the country.

In 1959, when many Tibetans (including the present Dalai Lama) fled their country for fear of being killed quite a few came to the Bumthang region, which is the cradle of Buddhism in Bhutan.

In his time, Pema Lingpa received a vision to travel to Tibet where he revealed a treasure hidden by Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) many centuries before.

The core missions of Tamshing are teaching the Dharma, performing religious services for the community and educating the young monks under its care.

Mostly under the age of 15, the monks are either orphans or from very poor families who can't afford to send their children to a state school.

As the economy of the country changes, and as the culture becomes more outward looking, it is inevitable that some of the old ways of supporting the temples and monasteries, (which are the repositories of traditional wisdom), are being tested.