Third Day
We began the morning by having stamps made.
Then we set off towards Dochula Pass, stopping at Simtokha Dzong.
It was built in 1629 by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, who unified Bhutan.
It is one of the country’s oldest dzongs and is considered its first major fortress-monasteries.
Its position is no coincidence: a strategic junction of three valleys, historically important for security and administration.
Bhutan has 20 administrative districts, called dzongkhags. Many traditionally have a dzong combining religious and administrative functions.
Before political unification, different local powers and landowners controlled the region. Zhabdrung sought to unite them within one political structure.
The question of warfare in Buddhism is interesting. Our guide said that defending oneself and one’s sovereignty could, under some circumstances, be regarded as legitimate.
Bhutan’s population does not come from a single ethnic group. Communities include the Tibetan-Himalayan Ngalop, eastern Tshangla and Nepali-origin Lhotshampa in the south.
Tibet launched various military campaigns into Bhutan over the centuries.
Yet the people who brought important Buddhist teachings to Bhutan came from Tibet, as did Zhabdrung, who achieved its political unity.
Bhutan’s unification story
It is a fascinating story.
The Tibetan Buddhist monk Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal arrived in Bhutan in 1616, bringing a sacred relic important to the Ralung monastic tradition.
A sacred rib — a bone of compassion. Sources differ on the precise details of the relic.
Rival religious and political powers in Tibet wanted both the relic and Zhabdrung’s authority returned.
Military campaigns against Bhutan followed.
Zhabdrung built great dzongs to resist attacks while uniting local powers. Bhutan ultimately preserved its independence.
It is remarkable: someone from abroad comes to unify the country, drawing the Bhutanese into battle to protect a relic he brought from Tibet.
The country later adopted a dual system in which religious and political-administrative authority coexisted.
When Zhabdrung died in 1651, his death was reportedly concealed for a long time. To prevent the government and country from fragmenting, people continued to say he was in retreat.
Internal struggles followed.
This complicated structure entered a new era in 1907, when Ugyen Wangchuck was elected the first king and the Wangchuck dynasty began.
Bhutan was never a British colony, although its relationship with British India was long and complex. Treaties after nineteenth-century conflicts cost it territory. Under the 1910 Treaty of Punakha, Britain agreed not to interfere in internal affairs, while Bhutan agreed to consider British advice in foreign relations.
So saying that the British never touched the country is not quite right; but Bhutan was not colonised.
Dochula
Dochula Pass, on the road to Punakha, is magnificent.
There are 108 chortens here, known as the Druk Wangyal Chortens.
In 2003, Bhutan’s army conducted Operation All Clear against Assamese and northeastern Indian separatist organisations based in southern Bhutan.
Groups including ULFA, NDFB and KLO had established dozens of camps there.
The Fourth King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, led the operation. The camps were dismantled and militants expelled.
The 108 chortens were commissioned by his wife, Queen Mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck, for Bhutan’s security and in remembrance of those who served.
The Divine Madman — Drukpa Kunley
We then visit Chimi Lhakhang, associated with Drukpa Kunley, the Divine Madman.
What a character: an unconventional Buddhist master of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
He criticised reducing Buddhism to formal rules. Stories describe him shocking people into learning through poetry, humour, drink and sexuality.
Legends claim he was with thousands of women.
He reminds me a little of Nasreddin Hoca.
Many of the phallus paintings on Bhutanese houses are associated with his tradition.
They really are everywhere.
Punakha Dzong
Next we visit what I think is the country’s most beautiful fortress-monastery: Punakha Dzong.
Truly magnificent.
King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Queen Jetsun Pema’s wedding ceremony was held here in 2011.
Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal built the dzong in 1637–38 as a strategic defence against Tibetan attacks.
You enter across a bridge. The sacred section holding Zhabdrung’s remains is here too.
Our guide said three symbolic meals are still offered to him daily.
Punakha has an important role in royal coronations. It was Bhutan’s political centre before Thimphu became the capital.
Today, part of the dzong houses regional government, while monks use another part.
The architecture is astonishing.
Our guide explained that old dzongs were built using proportions and traditional measurements held in the craftspeople’s minds, rather than today’s detailed architectural drawings.
The very limited use of nails in wooden joints is another characteristic.
The walls begin thick and slightly sloping below, narrowing as they rise to help resist earthquakes.
Inside, we see three important figures at the altar:
* Guru Rinpoche — Padmasambhava, who brought Buddhism to Bhutan * The Buddha in the centre * Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal
The section holding Zhabdrung’s sacred relics is also here.
Our hotel is wonderful, among rice fields. It feels perfect after such a long day.
We are in Punakha.
They even give us an evening seminar about Bhutan’s education system.
Bhutan joined the UN in 1971, and modern education developed rapidly, particularly under the Third King.
One aim is to leave nobody behind.
Today there are 12 school years after kindergarten, followed by university. Dzongkha is the national language, but children receive English-language education from an early age.
As of 2025–26, Bhutan’s national curriculum is being aligned with Cambridge standards.
I find myself warming to the king more and more.
Dinner is at the hotel. We choose a Bhutanese menu: mainly vegetables, red rice of course, and pork.