Get thee to a nunnery

by sjsonnenbergmd
Sangchen Dorji Lundrup Choeling Buddhist College for Nuns

The nunnery at Wolakha, Punakha was completed in 2010. The college was inaugurated 25 April 2015 on the 60th birth anniversary of the Fourth King. The Buddhist College is the first such institute that would allow nuns to pursue higher Buddhist studies up to the master’s level. More than 170 nuns reside here

Entry walkway
Nepalese style stupa at the nunnery, Inset into the exterior walls are skillfully carved black marble blocks, depicting the 84 mahasiddhis, 16 arhats, and the great lamas of Drukpa Kagyu lineage.
In the temple foreground, soldiers are dismantling the viewing platforms for the guests attending the recent cremation of the Fifth King’s maternal grandfather.

The temple at the nunnery was one of the most beautiful we have seen. A newer temple, it was well lit, with natural light streaming in. Though with a much less extensive collection of statuary and wall paintings, the radiance from a large, dramatically beautiful, golden, eleven-headed, one thousand armed Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, filled the temple, humbling and inspiring at the same time.

As with every temple in Bhutan, photographs are prohibited. Below is a photograph of Avalokiteshvara in this manifestation, taken in an antique store. Imagine the same fifteen feet high and flooded with natural light, surrounded by brocade tapestry and victory banners.

Photo taken at Yeti Arts and Crafts in Thimphu.
The Palace of the Fifth King’s grandfather, adjacent to the nunnery. Yes, royalty lives with relative modesty.

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