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| Lopen Ugyen, Bryan Phillips, Kelzang Rinchen |
Last night, while dining with Lopen Ugyen Gyurme Tendzin and his family at Chig Ja Gye in the Taj Tashi in Thimphu, I presented him with the funds to provide building materials for reroofing the temple buildings at Ugyen phug. This transfer successfully initiates Phase One of the Ugyen Phug Preservation Project, the physical restoration of the buildings housing Lopen’s sacred artwork. Thanks go out to all of my family, friends, and colleagues whose generous support has been integral to this coming to pass.
Phase Two, the archiving and interpretation of the profound mural artwork inside the structures, will proceed in earnest. I will be submitting an academic article discussing the history of the area and its significance before the end of 2010, and in June of 2011 we plan to make a joint presentation on the historical and spiritual significance of the mural art at Ugyen phug to a conference of both Western and Bhutanese scholars here in Thimphu. Conference description
It will be convenient for Lopen to oversee the renovation work at Ugyen phug in the months ahead as his principle residence will be shifting from Thimphu to Kurtoe for the better part of the next two years. Lopen has been commissioned to complete the mural art for two large temples that are being constructed within the lion throne base of what is to be the world’s largest statue of Guru Rinpoche, Padmasambhava. Lopen is tasked with the job of creating murals that will chronicle the life of Padmasambhava according to the sacred biography known as the Padma bka’ thang. Guru Rinpoche in Lhuntse project
Bhutan is a repository for a wealth of information and resources concerning the foundations of Tantric Buddhism across the Himalayan region. What are at present rigid political borders between the People’s Republic of China (in its Tibetan Autonomous Region) and the Kingdom of Bhutan were, for many centuries previously, open routes across the Himalayas where both trade and the exchange of religious practices and understandings flowed freely. Lopen himself is an example of this seamless interaction; his father, Lopen Choedrak, was a Tibetan from the border region with Bhutan, and his mother a Bhutanese from the Kurtoe region just to the south of Lhodrak county, Tibet. Unlike elsewhere in the Himalayas, Buddhism in Bhutan remains a vibrant and inspirational cultural force, as many new initiatives are underway, of which the Kurtoe Guru Rinpoche statue is but one. We are all extremely fortunate for such access to the products of a sacred past that can teach us much about how to best address our needs and concerns in the present.
Finally, I tried my hand at composing a poem in Dzong-kha which I gave to Lopen last night, along with the renovation funds and a list of everyone who contributed by purchasing a UP3 sticker from me. Here’s the translation of what I attempted to express:
Lopen Ugyen-la,
in the English speaking country of America
compassion lies hidden within many hearts.
These people also say their prayers for peace and well-being.
With these funds, may the blessings of the Vajra Guru, Padmasambhava,
continue on for a very long time and may they extend out without bounds.
I have written here the names of some of the donors;
In the future, may all sentient beings achieve awakening!
