His Majesty The King graced the Paro Tshechu

His Majesty The King graced the final day of Paro Tshechu today. His Majesty The King offered prayers before the Guru Thongdrol.

Thousands of people from in and around Paro braved the early morning cold to catch a glimpse of the unfurling of Guru Thongdrol and receive blessings.

Paro Tshechu is one of the most popular Tshechu festivals in the country. The five-day festival attracts thousands of spectators including tourists from all over the world.

The last day of the Tshechu is the major draw with people making their way to the Tshechu ground in droves before dawn. Some arrive as early as 3 in the morning. By dawn break, the tshechu ground, as is the case every year, was packed with a sea of people.

The massive Thongdrol features paintings of Guru Pema Jungnye and his two consorts, surrounded by the paintings of eight manifestations of Guru Rinpoche, the Choe-Lung-Truel sum, and Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal.

It is believed that the construction of the gigantic tapestry was commissioned by the second Paro Penlop, Ngawang Choeda, more than 350 years ago. Lam Ngawang Rabgay is believed to be the one who constructed it.

But elderly people of Paro have two different stories to tell. According to them, Lam Ngawang Rabgay sent a trader to Tibet with rice to get the brocade. He was to buy the brocade from the first businessman he encounters.

Legend has it that when the trader returned home with the brocade he bought from a Chinese merchant in Lhasa, he was amazed to discover that the brocade was enough to built the entire Thongdrol.

However, according to another legend, Paro Penlop himself travelled to Tibet and gambled with a Lhasa treasurer. He won and came back home with the entire stock of brocade with which the Thongdrol was built.

His Majesty The King graced the Paro Tshechu Source: BBS

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