About Bhutan

The History: Land of the Thunder Dragon

Bhutan's self-enforced quarantine, which lasted until the end of the 1950s, contributed to the country's under-the-radar status as one of Asia's hidden gems. Historically, due to its location south of Tibet, Bhutan was known by many names — Ridrak (the Land of Hills and Cliffs), Lho Jong (Southern Land), Lhomon Khazhi (the Southern Mon Country of Four Approaches), Lhojong Menjong (the Southern Land of Medicinal Plants), and Lho Mon Tsenden Jong (Where Sandalwood Grows). Before the light of Buddhism, Tibetans even referred to Bhutan as Monyul, the Land of Darkness.

Before 1616, Bhutan consisted of many principalities ruled by warring leaders. Everything changed when Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, a Tibetan lama, arrived in 1616 and consolidated the country under a dual system of government shared between secular and religious leaders — establishing Bhutan as a nation-state. After his death the country fell into chaos, until Gongsar Ugyen Wangchuck, the most prominent ruler of the east, was crowned the first hereditary King of Bhutan on 17 December 1907. Today the Bhutanese call their land Druk-Yul, the Land of the Thunder Dragon, after the Drukpa Kagyud school of Mahayana Buddhism.

Location: A Sparkling Himalayan Gem

Bhutan lies on the southern slopes of the Himalayas between China to the north and India to the south, east and west. Measuring 38,394 sq km, it is a mountainous country of rugged hills, deep gorges and tumbling rivers. It is broadly divided into three climatic zones — subtropical (100–1,800 m; warm winters, hot humid summers, most of the farmland), temperate (1,000–3,000 m; cool summers, cold winters, the valleys of dzongs and temples that cultural travellers visit), and alpine (above 3,000 m; the most scenic zone, home to semi-nomadic communities and most trekking routes). Clean, green, quiet and largely unexplored, Bhutan is a sparkling gem in the Himalayas.

The landscape is embellished with grandiose, age-old monasteries, temples and imposing fortresses in the valleys — woven together by wide terraced fields. Draped in fluttering prayer flags, its verdant hilltops are often dotted by humble contemplation centres, framed by the captivating backdrop of Bhutan's chaste peaks.

The most striking of all is the architecture of the fortress-like dzong — a large defensive structure originally built on strategic locations, dominated by intricate woodwork and constructed without a single nail. It now houses religious and district administrative centres. Traditionally, dzongs, temples and Bhutanese houses are built without formal drawings, following the contours of the landscape and conceived entirely in the mind of the principal carpenter. A typical traditional house has wooden frontages, arched windows and leaning roofs, with walls of stone and mud or rammed earth in wooden frames.

Today, municipal houses are built with concrete rather than stone and mud, yet they are required to retain certain traditional features, such as the traditional shape of windows. The sophisticated paintings on the walls of temples, monasteries and fortresses are directly influenced by ancient Mahayana Buddhist traditions — the devoted works of trained Bhutanese artists who do not wish to sign their names on their fine works.

Music: A Lyrical Offering

Isolated from the world for centuries, Bhutan developed and preserved distinct songs, dances and instruments. Its music falls into three forms: zhungdra ("central melody"), the oldest folk form sung in long, slow, meditative tones — highly poetic, often an offering to the gods, sung with the dramnyen (Bhutanese lute) or unaccompanied; boedra, the courtiers' songs, faster in rhythm and sung with traditional instruments; and rigsar, a modern innovation popular with younger Bhutanese and the local film industry. Folk music plays an instrumental role in transmitting socio-cultural and religious values.

National Dress: An Ornate Identity

Men wear the Gho, a heavy, long robe hitched to knee-length and tied with a woven belt (kera); its upper fold forms "the largest pocket in the world." Women wear the Kira, a large rectangular cloth wrapped to the ankles over a Wonju blouse, with a Tego jacket. These 400-year-old, traditionally hand-woven dresses are required by law in public places. For formal occasions men wear a Kabney and women a Rachu, colour-coded by rank — white for ordinary people, blue for parliamentarians, green for judges, orange for ministers, and a regal saffron-yellow for His Majesty the King. A fine dress can take a week or up to a year to make and cost between USD 50 and USD 3,500 or more.

Archery: The Living Culture

Called datse in Dzongkha, archery became Bhutan's national sport in 1971. It is played across a long range with two small targets set 120 metres apart, using bows of strong, flexible bamboo and light reed arrows. Traditionally played between two villages or institutions, a match is festive and gleeful — each team cheered on by dancing women who sing encouragement to their own archers and gently mock the opposing side with cries of phalala. Amid cheers and hisses there are food and drinks aplenty, and a match may occasionally last more than a day.

The Environment: An Invaluable Carbon Sink

Bhutan has a long tradition of living in harmony with nature. Its constitution requires that a minimum of 60 percent of the land remain under forest cover for all time — and remarkably, more than 71 percent still is. Of over 200 species of mammals, 27 are globally threatened, including the elusive Snow Leopard, the Bengal Tiger and the shy Red Panda; of more than 670 bird species, 18 are globally threatened, such as the Black-necked Crane and the critically endangered White-bellied Heron. Protected areas — national parks, reserves and sanctuaries linked by biological corridors — cover 51 percent of the country. Mountain climbing is forbidden, which is why Mt. Gangkhar Puensum (24,835 ft) remains the world's highest unclimbed peak. Bhutan's virgin forests absorb about 7 million tons of CO₂ a year while the country emits only 2.2 million — making Bhutan not merely carbon-neutral but carbon-negative.

Gross National Happiness: Conscience of the Nation

In 1979, returning from a summit in Havana, the Fourth King, His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, told journalists: "We do not believe in Gross National Product because Gross National Happiness is more relevant for us." GNH holds that development must balance socio-economic progress, cultural preservation, environmental conservation and good governance — its Four Pillars. As His Majesty King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck put it, GNH signifies "development with values… our national conscience, guiding us towards making wise decisions for a better future."

Religion: A Way of Life

Bhutan has been a predominantly Buddhist society for an uninterrupted 1,500 years — one of only four countries with Buddhism as the state religion. Two schools of Vajrayana Buddhism are practised: Drukpa Kagyud (the state religion, institutionalised as the Central Monastic Body) and Nyingma; people of Nepali origin in the south practise Hinduism. Bhutan is one of the last strongholds of Vajrayana, and here the tradition permeates all aspects of life — monks consecrate births, marriages, promotions and new homes, and offer comfort in sickness and death. In short, religion is a way of life.

Before Buddhism

Before Buddhism, the people practised an animistic religion involving nature worship. Buddhism first arrived in the 7th century when Dharma King Songtsen Gampo of Tibet erected Jampa Lhakhang in Bumthang and Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro. Later, the tantric master Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) came to Bumthang and strengthened its roots, and in the 17th century Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal made Drukpa Kagyud the state religion. Notably, Bhutan maintains a clear separation of religion and politics — the constitution places religion "above politics."

Social Conventions: Down to Earth

A code of behaviour and politeness is followed by almost everyone; visitors are not expected to know every custom but to behave formally and politely. A straightforward refusal is not part of Bhutanese etiquette, and a vague "yes" does not always mean yes. Shoes must be removed when entering an altar room or temple shrine. The customary greeting is a slight bow with both hands offered in prayer, though handshakes are increasingly common in the cities. The respectful suffix "la" is added to the end of a sentence when speaking with a stranger — "how are you" becomes "how are you la."

Despite having a liberal, free-market economy, Bhutan provides free education and healthcare, and all citizens have recourse to compensation in times of disaster, deprivation and destitution.

Every Bhutanese is entitled to free health care — from the vaccination of babies to flu shots for the elderly, from paracetamol to chemotherapy — and to free evacuation by helicopter in medical emergencies. Patients needing advanced treatment unavailable in the country are sent to India at the government's expense. Tellingly, a recent survey found that the Bhutanese people's biggest healthcare expenditure was on conducting religious rituals.

Likewise, Bhutanese children are entitled to free basic education — including free tuition, books and stationery, and increasingly free food and hostels — and those who work hard are guaranteed free college education.