Phallus or penis paintings at Sobsokha village near Punakha, Bhutan
WildFilmsIndia
2014-08-12
Views 5
In Bhutan, it is common to find phallus symbols painted on the walls of houses and in temples. It may be a weird sight for us but for Bhutanese, it is a sign of good luck that diverts the evil spirit.
The former capital of Bhutan, Punakha has a Phallus handicraft shop that sells wooden craved phallus and paintings.
Phallus paintings in Bhutan are esoteric symbols, which have their origins in the Chimi Lhakhang monastery near Punakha, the former capital of Bhutan. The village monastery was built in honour of Lama Drukpa Kunley who lived in the 15-16th century and who was popularly known as the "Mad Saint" or "Divine Madman" for his unorthodox ways of teaching, which amounted to being bizarre and shocking. These explicit paintings, though embarrassing to many urbanites now (this folk culture is now informally discouraged in urban centres), can be seen painted on the walls of houses and buildings throughout Bhutan, particularly in villages, and are credited as Kunley's creations. Traditionally symbols of an erect penis in Bhutan have been intended to drive away the evil eye and malicious gossip.
While the history of use of phallus symbols is traced to Drukpa Kunley, the studies carried out at the Center of Bhutan Studies (CBS) have inferred that the phallus was an integral part of Bön tradition (an unorthodox form of religion), an animistic and shamanistic religion, which existed in Bhutan before Buddhism became the state religion. In Bonism, phallus was integral to all Bon rituals. Dasho Lam Sanga, a former principal of the Institute of Language and Culture Studies (ILCS), while stating that there are no written documents on it, elaborates: "But the worship of the phallus was believed to be in practice even before the arrival of Guru Rimpoche and Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal ... What we know about it is what we heard from our forefathers.
The phallic symbols are, however, generally not depicted in community temples and dzongs, which are most revered places of worship where lamas or Buddhist monks reside and who have adopted celibate lifestyle and pursue divine ideals. However, rural and ordinary houses continue to display them.
The belief that such a symbol brings good luck and drives away evil spirits is so much ingrained in the psyche of the common populace in Bhutan that the symbols are routinely painted outside walls of the new houses and even painted on number plates of trucks. The carved wooden phalluses are hung (sometimes crossed by a design of sword or dagger) outside, on the eves of the new homes, at the four corners. The wooden phalluses are also driven in the agricultural fields as a kind of scarecrow, when the crops start sprouting. The Atsaras (masked clowns) also decorate their headgear with phallus painted cloth, during the popular Tsechu festival held every year in different monasteries throughout Bhutan. These clowns also dance with their holy whips and wooden phalluses. On a road drive from Paro airport to Thimpu these explicit paintings of phalluses are a common sight on "white-washed walls of homes, shops and eateries."
source - Wikipedia
This footage is part of the professionally-shot broadcast stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of HD imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of tens of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM / SR 1080i High Definition, Alexa, SR, HDV and XDCAM. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We are happy to be commissioned to film for you or else provide you with broadcast crewing and production solutions across South Asia. We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... Reach us at rupindang @ gmail . com and [email protected].
The former capital of Bhutan, Punakha has a Phallus handicraft shop that sells wooden craved phallus and paintings.
Phallus paintings in Bhutan are esoteric symbols, which have their origins in the Chimi Lhakhang monastery near Punakha, the former capital of Bhutan. The village monastery was built in honour of Lama Drukpa Kunley who lived in the 15-16th century and who was popularly known as the "Mad Saint" or "Divine Madman" for his unorthodox ways of teaching, which amounted to being bizarre and shocking. These explicit paintings, though embarrassing to many urbanites now (this folk culture is now informally discouraged in urban centres), can be seen painted on the walls of houses and buildings throughout Bhutan, particularly in villages, and are credited as Kunley's creations. Traditionally symbols of an erect penis in Bhutan have been intended to drive away the evil eye and malicious gossip.
While the history of use of phallus symbols is traced to Drukpa Kunley, the studies carried out at the Center of Bhutan Studies (CBS) have inferred that the phallus was an integral part of Bön tradition (an unorthodox form of religion), an animistic and shamanistic religion, which existed in Bhutan before Buddhism became the state religion. In Bonism, phallus was integral to all Bon rituals. Dasho Lam Sanga, a former principal of the Institute of Language and Culture Studies (ILCS), while stating that there are no written documents on it, elaborates: "But the worship of the phallus was believed to be in practice even before the arrival of Guru Rimpoche and Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal ... What we know about it is what we heard from our forefathers.
The phallic symbols are, however, generally not depicted in community temples and dzongs, which are most revered places of worship where lamas or Buddhist monks reside and who have adopted celibate lifestyle and pursue divine ideals. However, rural and ordinary houses continue to display them.
The belief that such a symbol brings good luck and drives away evil spirits is so much ingrained in the psyche of the common populace in Bhutan that the symbols are routinely painted outside walls of the new houses and even painted on number plates of trucks. The carved wooden phalluses are hung (sometimes crossed by a design of sword or dagger) outside, on the eves of the new homes, at the four corners. The wooden phalluses are also driven in the agricultural fields as a kind of scarecrow, when the crops start sprouting. The Atsaras (masked clowns) also decorate their headgear with phallus painted cloth, during the popular Tsechu festival held every year in different monasteries throughout Bhutan. These clowns also dance with their holy whips and wooden phalluses. On a road drive from Paro airport to Thimpu these explicit paintings of phalluses are a common sight on "white-washed walls of homes, shops and eateries."
source - Wikipedia
This footage is part of the professionally-shot broadcast stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of HD imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of tens of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM / SR 1080i High Definition, Alexa, SR, HDV and XDCAM. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We are happy to be commissioned to film for you or else provide you with broadcast crewing and production solutions across South Asia. We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... Reach us at rupindang @ gmail . com and [email protected].
Report form
RELATED VIDEOS
