Kurje is one of the most sacred sites in Bhutan as Guru Rinpoche
meditated here and left the imprint (je) of his body (ku) on a rock. In the 8th
century, Bumthang was under the rule of a king named Sendhaka (alias Sintu
Raja) whose home was the ‘iron castle’, Chakhar. This king was at war with his
southern neighbour, King Na’oche. The latter killed the son of King Sendhaka,
who became so distraught that he forgot to worship his personal deity, Shelging
Karpo. The angry god withdrew the king’s vital principle and as a result he
fell gravely ill. As a last resort, his ministers decided to call Guru
Rinpoche, whose supernatural powers were well-known throughout the Himalayas.
When Guru Rinpoche arrived in Bumthang, he went to a place a short distance
north of Chakhar where there was a large rock resembling a diamond-thunderbolt
on the summit. Here lived the deity Shelging Karpo. Guru Rinpoche meditated
there for a while, leaving the imprint of his body on the rock. Then he asked
the King’s daughter, whom he had taken as his consort, to go and fetch some
water in a golden ewer. While she was away, he changed into his Eight
Manifestations and began to dance in the meadow. So amazing was this spectacle
that all the local divinities, except Shelging Karpo, came to watch. When the
king’s daughter came back, Guru Rinpoche transformed her into five princesses,
each holding a golden ewer in her hand. The ewers reflected the sun’s rays
directly at Shelging Karpo’s rock. Curious about this unusual flashing,
Shelging Karpo decided to take the form of a white lion and come out to see
what was going on. This was the moment Guru Rinpoche had been waiting for.
Turning himself into a holy griffon, (garuda/jachung), he swooped down, seized
Shelging Karpo and forced him to give back the King’s vital principle. At the
same time he made him promise not to cause any trouble for Buddhism and to
become a protective deity. Guru Rinpoche planted his pilgrim staff in the
ground where it grew into a cypress tree which has a descendant said to stand
to this day in front of Kurje Lhakhang. As for Shelging Karpo, he is still the
deity of Kurje. King Sendhaka recovered his health and converted to Buddhism.
Guru Rinpoche compelled the two kings to meet each other and make peace at a
place in the Black Mountains called Nabji, where a stone pillar commemorates
this meeting. This episode constitutes the first conversion to Buddhism of
Bumthang.
Source: www.facebook.com/Nima Gyelpo Retrived on 25.o2.2013
Kurje is one of the most sacred sites in Bhutan as Guru Rinpoche
meditated here and left the imprint (je) of his body (ku) on a rock. In the 8th
century, Bumthang was under the rule of a king named Sendhaka (alias Sintu
Raja) whose home was the ‘iron castle’, Chakhar. This king was at war with his
southern neighbour, King Na’oche. The latter killed the son of King Sendhaka,
who became so distraught that he forgot to worship his personal deity, Shelging
Karpo. The angry god withdrew the king’s vital principle and as a result he
fell gravely ill. As a last resort, his ministers decided to call Guru
Rinpoche, whose supernatural powers were well-known throughout the Himalayas.
When Guru Rinpoche arrived in Bumthang, he went to a place a short distance
north of Chakhar where there was a large rock resembling a diamond-thunderbolt
on the summit. Here lived the deity Shelging Karpo. Guru Rinpoche meditated
there for a while, leaving the imprint of his body on the rock. Then he asked
the King’s daughter, whom he had taken as his consort, to go and fetch some
water in a golden ewer. While she was away, he changed into his Eight
Manifestations and began to dance in the meadow. So amazing was this spectacle
that all the local divinities, except Shelging Karpo, came to watch. When the
king’s daughter came back, Guru Rinpoche transformed her into five princesses,
each holding a golden ewer in her hand. The ewers reflected the sun’s rays
directly at Shelging Karpo’s rock. Curious about this unusual flashing,
Shelging Karpo decided to take the form of a white lion and come out to see
what was going on. This was the moment Guru Rinpoche had been waiting for.
Turning himself into a holy griffon, (garuda/jachung), he swooped down, seized
Shelging Karpo and forced him to give back the King’s vital principle. At the
same time he made him promise not to cause any trouble for Buddhism and to
become a protective deity. Guru Rinpoche planted his pilgrim staff in the
ground where it grew into a cypress tree which has a descendant said to stand
to this day in front of Kurje Lhakhang. As for Shelging Karpo, he is still the
deity of Kurje. King Sendhaka recovered his health and converted to Buddhism.
Guru Rinpoche compelled the two kings to meet each other and make peace at a
place in the Black Mountains called Nabji, where a stone pillar commemorates
this meeting. This episode constitutes the first conversion to Buddhism of
Bumthang.
Source: www.facebook.com/Nima Gyelpo Retrived on 25.o2.2013
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