Bhutan - Lindsay Brown [53]
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Organisation of the Religious Community
The dratshang (central monk body) refers to the government-supported monks who are under the authority of the Je Khenpo. He is assisted by five lonpons (masters), each in charge of religious tradition, liturgy, lexicography, or logic. The Je Khenpo moves between Punakha dzong in winter and Thimphu dzong in summer. On these occasions the roads are lined with Bhutanese seeking his blessings and the journey by road takes two days.
Each dzong has a lam neten, who is responsible for the monk body in the each dzongkhag. Each dzong will have a master of grammar, master of liturgy, master of philosophy, an umdze (choirmaster) and a kundun (disciple master), who carries a rosary of large beads and a whip.
Traditionally, Bhutanese families would, if they were able, send one son to join a monastery. This was viewed as creating merit for the family and household and a blessing for the child. The fourth desi, Tenzin Rabgye, introduced a monk tax in the late 16th century. The reason for this tax, which required one child to be sent to become a monk, was to promote the Drukpa Kagyu sect. The Songs of Sorrow by Gelong Sumdar Tashi, dating from the late 18th century, describe how he had to leave his family, including his young wife and son, to become a monk.
There is no longer a monk tax, and young boys continue to enter the monasteries. Any visitor to Bhutan will see long snakes of maroon-robed boy monks walking near the dzongs in Paro and Punakha. Often they come from poor rural families and may or may not have expressed an interest to become a monk. Once in the monastery, their daily lives revolve around learning to read and write.
Typically, the young monks will sit in class with a monk-teacher in the mornings and in the afternoon sit with friends in small groups, reciting their texts. Throughout a monk’s education there is an emphasis on memorisation. So each day the monk will memorise a set amount of text and prayers, and will be tested by his teacher. When they are still young the monks do not understand the meaning of the texts. Once they are in the mid-teens they will be examined individually and they will either proceed to the shedra (philosophy school) or perhaps join the ritual school. The shedra develops the young monk’s knowledge and understanding of a range of Buddhist texts and teachings, while the ritual college trains the monk in the correct procedures for a wide range of rituals. Some monks may be trained as painters or sculptors, or as tailors and embroiderers for the various items required for the monastery.
While the government currently provides basic needs (accommodation, food and clothing), the monks are permitted to keep money received from lay people for performing rituals. They may be requested to attend the blessing of a new house, the consecration of a new chorten or to conduct prayers for the well-being of the household. These events take a great deal of preparation for the sponsor, who will need to ensure that all the necessary ritual items are available. The sponsor will provide food to the monks and often the household will be filled with neighbours attending the ceremony. These events renew and strengthen the bonds between the lay and religious community. The monastic life itself revolves around the performance of rituals in the dzongs and monasteries. Additionally, the monks are busy studying and memorising religious texts and practising skills.
Monks continually take vows, as they progress from novice to fully ordained monk. They are celibate and must abstain from smoking and drinking alcohol, but they are not required to be vegetarian and may eat in the evening, unlike their counterparts in Southeast Asia.
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‘The monastic life itself revolves around the performance of rituals in the dzongs and monasteries’
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A few monks join monastic orders after adolescence, but they