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Tashi Gomang: The Revival of a Bhutanese Tradition

Tashi gomangBhutan, 19th centuryWood with beads, clay, coral, glass, gold, turquoise and string, dimensions unknownNational Museums LiverpoolHarry Beasley Collection (54.85.40)(Image © and courtesy of National Museums Liverpool, World Museum)

From November 2016 to February 2017, a remarkable exhibition was shown at the Royal

Textile Academy in Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan. Titled ‘Tashi Gomang: A National Treasure of Bhutan’, this landmark exhibition was organized in connection with the ‘Tashi Gomang Project’, which is

under the Royal Patronage of Her Majesty the Royal Grandmother Ashi Kesang Choeden Wangchuck.

The term tashi gomang literally means ‘auspicious multi-doors’, and in the Vajrayana Buddhist tradition, generally designates the third of the eight stupas representing the most important events in the

life of the historical Buddha. Also known as the Dharma Wheel Stupa, or Kumbum—‘one hundred thousand holy images’—it commemorates the Buddha’s teachings at Deer Park in Sarnath, and is characterized by a distinctive design: a square structure featuring a three-dimensional mandala with many tiers and multi-layered niches crowded with deities. While some of the most spectacular examples can be seen in Tibet, such as at Pelkor Chode Monastery in Gyantse, they are relatively rare in Bhutan, where the term tashi gomang is more frequently used to designate miniature portable shrines whose design is based on that of the eponymous stupa. These multi-tiered movable ‘temples’ feature dozens of small doors that open to reveal hundreds of painted images and niches containing statues of Buddhist deities, and were once carried around by wandering bards, or manip, to confer the Buddhist teachings on the masses at public gatherings, especially in remote, rural areas. It is these portable shrines that were the subject of the recent exhibition.

The ‘Tashi Gomang Project’, which I had the honour to initiate in 2015, under Royal Patronage and in cooperation with my good friend Tshering Tashi, with the support of the Central Monastic Body, the Department of Culture, Ministry of Home & Cultural Affairs, Royal Government of Bhutan and the Thangka Conservation & Restoration Centre in Thimphu, was set up to record, conserve and revive the tashi gomang tradition. Originating in the mid-17th century, the practice was on the verge of extinction, with only two surviving manip, both very old, and an unidentified number of portable shrines that had been secreted away in dzong (ancient fortresses) and monasteries for decades, even centuries. Since the project was launched we have been able to identify 35 tashi gomang in Bhutan, as well as a few in private collections or museums overseas, including the British Museum in London, UK; National Museums Liverpool, World Museum, UK; the Tibet House museum in New Delhi, India; and the Ethnographic Museum in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, which houses a new tashi gomang crafted in the 1980s. With the authorization of the (Fifth) King, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, and on the initiative of the Prime Minister of Bhutan, the making of a new tashi gomang was also commissioned to commemorate the 60th birthday of the Fourth King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, in 2015. Four young gomchen (lay priests) from Simphu

Monastery in Trongsa have now been trained as manip, while all the tashi gomang brought to Thimphu for the exhibition were carefully restored and studied before being returned to their respective locations. Additionally, a Tashi Gomang Trust Fund has been set up in Thimphu to promote and support the tradition.

The concept of mobile shrines, sometimes referred to as ‘god-boxes’, carried by travelling storytellers exists in many cultures and religions.

Tashi gomang on display, Paro Tsechu, 1982

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For instance, the Kaavad tradition is still alive in Rajasthan, India, while peripatetic picture-showmen using box-like devices with panels are mentioned in the early Buddhist literature, and the existence of portable shrines in Khotan, one of the major centres on the Silk Road, has been well documented. Known by different names depending on the region, wandering bards, using various types of accessories like amulet boxes, scroll paintings, or prayer wheels with a canopy and hanging bells, have also roamed the Tibetan world since ancient times. Whatever their primary origin, which still needs to be traced, the use of tashi gomang in Bhutan appears to have developed as a genuinely indigenous tradition, although similar

shrines were seen in Tibet several decades ago, yet without solid evidence regarding their historical, geographical and cultural impact. The tradition has now disappeared from Tibet, where the shrines may have been replaced by thangkas, wood being scarce at high altitudes and scroll paintings being more convenient to carry in rugged terrain.

Despite the fact that there are no known written records of the tashi gomang tradition, even in

Bhutan, several oral accounts help to contextualize its origin in the kingdom in the 17th century under the rule of the First Zhabdrung, Ngawang Namgyel (1594–1651), the Tibetan Buddhist master who unified Bhutan as a nation-state and created a Bhutanese cultural identity distinct from Tibetan culture. The most prevalent story holds that when the Zhabdrung decided around 1637 to build Punakha Dzong, the second oldest and now most sacred of all the ancient fortresses in Bhutan, he summoned Zow Baleb of nearby Balikha village, who was one of the most talented carpenters of his time and believed to be the incarnation of the divine Hindu craftsman Vishvakarma, the presiding god of all architects and craftsmen. The Zhabdrung ordered Zow Baleb to sleep in his presence for three consecutive nights, and used his spiritual powers to bring him into his dreams. It is in this context that Zow Baleb went to Ralung Monastery in Tibet, the traditional seat of the Drukpa lineage of Buddhism, of which the Zhabdrung was the 18th abbot and where a majestic thirteen-tier tashi gomang stupa had been built, and also to the sacred site known as Zangdok Palri, the glorious Copper-coloured Mountain, believed to be the celestial paradise of the ‘Second Buddha’ Guru Padmasambhava, who was residing there in a tashi gomang-shaped palace. Based on these dreams Zow Baleb created two miniature tashi gomang, the first carved from a radish and the second as a prototype in wood. Several craftsmen were commissioned to help him decorate this prototype with engravings, paintings and precious ornaments. The Zhabdrung himself, who was said to be able to imprint Buddhist figures instantaneously with his thumb, is believed to have done so on several tsa-tsa (miniature clay votive tablets), which were then installed in the tashi gomang. After being blessed by the Zhabdrung, the tashi gomang was used as an inspiration to build the dzong, following which it was placed in the utse, the fortress’s main tower.

The Zhabdrung then decided that tashi gomang

could be used throughout the country to teach the uneducated people the basic doctrines of Buddhism. It is believed that he and succeeding dignitaries commissioned the making of several pieces, and thus tashi gomang have been closely associated with the propagation of the Drukpa tradition in Bhutan. Although they were initially carried by ordained priests that were probably trained by the Zhabdrung himself, responsibility for the tashi gomang was later placed in the hands of the lay priests or manip, which literally means ‘one who chants prayers’. Manip would go from village to village and even from house to house, chanting mantras and spiritual songs of devotion and realization. By so doing, they also generated revenue for their monasteries as ‘spiritual

tax collectors’. In ancient times, the arrival of a tashi gomang in a village involved a special ritual and several assistants, including messengers and porters. Until the mid-1980s, they were still commonly seen at public gatherings like tsechu (religious festivals), and even at weekly markets. As a tashi gomang was believed to contain as many images and statues of religious figures and deities as a hundred temples, its impact on those seeking blessings was felt to be enormous.

When not in use, the shrine is stored in a wood transportation box that is often painted and

decorated with brass ornaments. Two leather straps are fastened to the box so that the manip can carry

Tashi gomang on display, Paro Tsechu, 1983

Tashi gomang on display, Sunday market, Thimphu, 1987

Woman with a tashi gomang on display, weekend market, Thimphu, 1992

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it on his back. The tashi gomang is carefully wrapped in several layers of five-coloured brocade inside the box. This wrapping is essential to protect it from damage, securing the whole structure, which is articulated and rather fragile, and preventing the doors from opening at random. Only the manip is supposed to remove the cloth and unfold the shrine. He first pulls out its four corners, which causes the tashi gomang to open into the shape of a swastika, revealing the multiple miniature doors that conceal the minuscule niches. The shrine is then mounted on top of its box and can be rotated clockwise. With the help of a special stick, the manip opens the doors to expose the deities inhabiting the niches, and chants the appropriate prayers. Usually, he raises his left hand to his ear in the classical attitude of divine inspiration, turning his prayer wheel with the other. According to popular belief, the tashi gomang is an amalgamation of nye (sacred sites), brought together by the Buddha for the benefit of the people. Seeing a tashi gomang is equivalent to seeing all the nye, which would purify all one’s negative karma.

Although Buddhism is still deeply entrenched in the lives of the Bhutanese, the development of modern education, the improvement in

transportation allowing people who live in remote areas to receive blessings in dzong and monasteries as often as they wish, the decline of the oral tradition and the challenge for young people to carry a 50-lb tashi gomang on their back in rugged terrain without a decent salary have all led to the gradual disappearance of the tradition. However, although the display of a tashi gomang has become a rarity, it is still considered highly auspicious to have the opportunity to see one.

Now designated a ‘national treasure’, today tashi gomang fulfil three main functions. Firstly, they remain an instrument of practice: the Monastic Body uses them to perform certain rituals, and the new manip will be able to ensure the continuity of the tradition at the grass-roots level. Secondly, their iconography offers a valuable and fairly comprehensive view of the historical development of Buddhism in Bhutan: while further research needs to be conducted, it is commonly acknowledged that there are in fact four types of tashi gomang, corresponding to different realms in Buddhist cosmology. And last but not least, tashi gomang represent a concentration of artistic and artisanal expertise: their making involves no less than nine

of the thirteen traditional arts and crafts of Bhutan, five relating to the religious tradition (painting, sculpture, carving, bronze-casting, and embroidery and appliqué) and four to the secular tradition (weaving, carpentry, gold- and silver-smithery, and blacksmithery).

Since the demise of the Zhabdrung system in 1907, only the king has had the power to formally commission a tashi gomang. The last known professional maker of tashi gomang died at the end of the 19th century, but there are still master craftsmen in Bhutan who are capable of perpetuating the technique. Thanks to the commitment of the Bhutanese to preserve their cultural and spiritual heritage, the tashi gomang tradition has now been revived.

Thierry Mathou

Thierry Mathou is a career diplomat in the French diplomatic service (currently serving as Ambassador of France to the Philippines) and a scholar of Asian Studies specializing in Himalayan Studies and China-India relations.

The author is extremely grateful to HM the Royal Grandmother Ashi Kesang Choeden Wangchuck, to HRH Ashi Kesang Choden T. Wangchuck, Executive Director, Thangka Restoration and Conservation Centre, and to Tshering Tashi, Director of the Mountain Echoes Literary Festival for their continuous support. He also expresses his appreciation to Dr. Brian Shaw and to Felicity Shaw for facilitating access to their photo archives, currently available through the Centre for Bhutan Studies & GNH Research (<www.bhutanstudies.org.bt/multimedia-2/bhutan-image-archive/>).

To support the ‘Tashi Gomang Project’, information on the Trust Fund and on the tradition itself can be obtained from the author through the following email address: leyrat19@hotmail.fr

Unless otherwise specified, all images are courtesy of the B&F Shaw Collection.

Selected bibliography

Yoshiro Imaeda and Doffu Drukpa, Bhūtan no Tashi goman/Tashi gomang of Bhutan (supplementary brochure), ‘Asian Concepts of the Cosmos’ exhibition, Laforet Museum, Tokyo, 1982.

Thierry Mathou, ‘The “Tashi Gomang Project”: Preserving a National Treasure of Bhutan’, in Ashi Kesang Choden T. Wangchuck, ed., Tashi Gomang: A

National Treasure of Bhutan (exhibition catalogue), Royal Textile Academy, Thimphu, 2016, pp. 11–31.

—, ‘Tashi Gomang: The Tradition of Miniature Portable Shrines in Bhutan’, in Ashi Kesang Choden T. Wangchuck, ed., Tashi Gomang: A National Treasure of Bhutan (exhibition catalogue), Royal Textile Academy, Thimphu, 2016, pp. 33–64.

Marceline de Montmollin, ‘bKra shis sgo mang of Bhutan: On a specific tradition of shrines and its prolongation in the Museum of Ethnography in Neuchâtel (Switzerland)’, in Shoren Ihara and Zuiho Yamaguchi, eds, Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the 5th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Narita, 1992, vol. 2, pp. 605–13.

Tashi Tsering , ‘Preliminary notes on the origin of the Blama Nipa Storytellers and their fate in exile today’, in Patrick Sutherland and Tashi Tsering, Disciples of a Crazy Saint: The Buchen of Spiti (exhibition catalogue), Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, 2011, pp. 79–109.

Tashi gomangBhutan, 1987Wood, with clay, silver, coral and turquoise, dimensions when closed: 66 x 30.5 x 30.5 cmEthnographic Museum, Neuchâtel(Image © and courtesy of the Ethnographic Museum)

Manip displaying a tashi gomang, Punakha dromche, 1981