The National Memorial Chorten is one of the most popular landmarks in Thimphu, where thousands of people visit every day. More visit during religious events presided by important lamas and rimpoches.

Many residents in Thimphu make it an evening routine to circumbulate it, an act which is believed to be a skillful means of practicing the Buddha Dharma without reading the scriptures. You just walk around it in clockwise direction. Interestingly, not many people have visited it inside, and very few people actually know or appreciate the full significance of this monument.

What it represents

The Memorial Chorten is the most sacred monument, built by the holiest of men of our time, patronised by a Queen Mother, and built in the memory of a dharma King.

Unlike other stupas, this one has temples built on all the three floors. The first floor is dedicated to powerful deity Dorje Phurpa (རྡོ་རྗེ་ཕུར་པ་, Vajrakilaya) and its retinue. The Vajrakilaya pratice is believed to embody the enlightened activities of all the Buddhas. The deity, Vajrakilaya, is considered as the wrathful form of Dorje Sempa (Vajrasattva) and is known for removing obstacles, and destroying the negative forces, obstructing the practice of compassion. Hence, one can make a wish here to clear one’s hurdles in life, as one embarks on the journey towards Bodhisattva, or one can seek to clear any obstacle standing in one’s way in a new venture.

This Vajrakilaya teaching was taught by Viyadhara Prabhahasti to Guru Padmasambhava, who practiced it in Yanglasho in Nepal, and concealed it thereafter. It was later revealed by Chogyur Lingpa (1829-1870).

The second floor has Ka-gye (Eight Great Sadhana Teachings), which was revealed by three tertons at different periods – Nyang Ral Nima Oser (1124-1192), Guru Chöwang (1212-1270), and Rigzin Godem (1337-1408).

The Kagye teaching is represented by the eight principal deities – Yamantaka (Dzongkha: Jampal Shinje), Hayagriva (Pema Sung), Vishudha (Yangdak Heruka), Mahottara (Chem Chok), Vajrakilaya (Dorje Phurba), Matarah (Mamo Botong), Lokestotrapuja-natha (Jigten Chotod) and Vajra Mantrabhiru (Mopa Dragnak). These eight deities represent the five wisdom deities of enlightened body (in Dzongkha, ku), speech (sung), mind (thuk), qualities (yönten) and activities (thrinley) of the Buddhas, plus the three worldly deities.

The third floor is dedicated to Lama Gongdu teachings, which literally translates as the Unified Intents of Gurus – a terma teaching revealed by Sangye Lingpa (1340-1396), and which is one of the most important texts in Dzogchen tradition.

All the above teachings, representations, symbolisms are from the esoteric termas that were believed to have been hidden by Guru Padmasambhava, and later revealed by tertons (treasure revealers) in the mediaeval and early twentieth century. 

The construction

Aesthetically and architecturally it is the most perfect Jangchub Chorten (Stupa of Enlightenment) – one of the eight styles of stupa in Tibetan Buddhism.

The chorten was designed, and the construction supervised, by lama Dungse Thinley Norbu Rimpoche (1931-2011). The legendary yogi, lama Sonam Zangpo (1888-1982), is also believed to have been closely associated with the project. 

The chorten was built under the royal patronage of the Second Queen of Bhutan, Ashi Phuntsho Choden (1911-2003), and was built in the memory of Third King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck (1928-1972) – hence the name National Memorial Chorten. It opened in June of 1974 – coinciding with the Coronation of the Fourth King.

The consecration ceremony was presided over by Dudjom Rimpoche, Jigdrel Yeshe Dorji (1904-1987), one of the greatest scholars of Vajrayana Buddhism of the twentieth century. He was also considered as a terton. Infact, his works form the basis of the Dudjom Ter-sar (New Terma of Dudjom) movement in Buddhism.

Despite not being ancient, it is still the most sacred stupa in Bhutan because of the powerful Vajrakilaya representations, and other powerful deities and teachings. Furthermore, according to different sources, many antiques and relics are buried in each floor as nangten. This makes it a wish-fulfilling and obstacle-clearing stupa to assist devotees with mundane issues.

Above all, the stupa receives thousands of prayers, and the presence of ordinary and extraordinary people, thereby accumulating millions of moelams of aspirations and blessings. Simply put, it is not just another monument.

#stupa #memorialchorten #thimphu #vajrayana #vajrakilaya #buddhism #nyingma #dungsethinleynorbu #lamasonamzangpo #treasurerevealer #terton #bhutan #dudjomrimpoche #yogi #lama #lamagongdu