BHUTAN’S PERVASIVE PHALLUS: IS DRUKPA KUNLEY REALLY RESPONSIBLE

FRANÇOISE POMMARET (CNRS, France) and TASHI TOBGAY Royal University of Bhutan

As the Bhutanese scholar Sonam Kinga has written, in Bhutan “phalluses are everywhere”.1 Phalluses are drawn on the outside walls on each side of entrance-doors or modelled in wood and hung at the corners of houses, planted in the fields, and held as an attribute by the jesters (atsara) at religious

festivals. They are also shaped as gtor ma for certain rituals (Plate 1) or as fountains such as that found in Dechenphu (bDe chen phu) temple near Thimphu (Plate 2). The ubiquity of such representations is striking in Bhutan, and seems to contrast sharply with Tibetan or northern Himalayan areas.2 However, we

will see that this assumption has to be qualified. This article presents different aspects of the subject based on oral, textual and visual material. The topic was chosen in part to mark the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, Gangtok, as the first article on phallic

symbols appeared in the institute’s Bulletin of Tibetolology, written by the great scholar Hugh E. Richardson (19052000).3 Richardson wrote that “phallic symbols are by no means an obstrusive feature, in the Tibetan scene.” He did not connect them with the Shiva linga worship but described them as “part of ancient geomantic practices, influenced perhaps by those of China.”4

Overt phallic signs were the realistic representation of the male organs, often painted red and surrounded by a bush of yak-hair, set over the main door of some farm houses in Tibet and Bhutan. These, I was told, were intended to avert bad influences in the immediate neighborhood. […] A rather surprising

example existed on the roof of the Jo-khang, the Cathedral of Lhasa. Its presence and purpose are explained by a story in several Tibetan histories […] It relates that when the Nepalese queen of Srong-brtsan sGam-po wanted to build the 'Phrul-snang (the Jo-khang) at Lhasa and was looking for a suitable site, she consulted Srong-brstan’s Chinese queen who had already built the Ra-mo-che. The latter had recourse to occult divination (spor thang) to ascertain in

the geomantic auspices. It was revealed that Tibet was like a female demon lying on her back and that chapels—known as the mtha' 'dul yang 'dul lha khang rnam s—should be built at vital points on the extremities and the limbs of the demon in order to keep her in subjection. The 'Phrul-snang itself was to be

built on the O-ma-thang, over the demon’s heart. Eight specific topographic features around the site harbored hostile influences that had to be countered in different ways. While some which were the haunts of 'dre, bdud and btsan spirits could be controlled by building a chapel or a mchod-rten, the evil

omen emanating from a cave on the hillside to the east which resembled the private parts of the she-demon had to be opposed by setting up a phallus—dbang-phyug chen-po or dbang phyug mtshan—pointing in that direction. I was told that that sign, together with different apotropaic objects—a conch shell, a garuda image, a stone mchod-rten and a stone lion—prescribed to repel dangerous influences from other sources, was placed in semi-concealment under the

gilded pagoda rooflet (rgya-phibs) on the east side of the Jo-khang roof. […] Following that example, phallic signs were placed, unobtrusively and always on the east side, in several of the great houses of Lhasa; and there is one of stone, rudimentary but unmistakable, FRANÇOISE POMMARET & TASHI TOBGAY

on the east side of the perimeter wall of the Dalai Lama’s summer palace of Norbu Lingka, built in the 19th century.5

Victor Chan in his guidebook on Tibet describes a stone phallus next to a carved lion in the north-east corner of the main roof of the Jokhang.6 As for Heather Stoddard, she recently published photos as well as dedicated one sub-chapter to ‘the geomantic stones of the Jokhang’ already studied by

Richardson, in her chapter ‘From Rasa to Lhasa’, part of a book on the Jokhang.7 She relies on the text of the Chos 'byung by Nyang ral Nyi ma 'od zer (1124 /36-1192) who considers these stones as Earth elemental opposing forces ('byung ba'i dgra).8 One of them is a phallus which opposes the female genitals of a demoness: “To the east, in the Empty Valley of Sand Island, thee is an ‘earth elemental opposing force’ (sa dgra), like a demoness holding her genitals up in receptive fashion (srin mo 'doms bzed pa). Plant a phallus of great Ishvara (dbang phyug chen po'i ling ga tshugs).”9 As Stoddard

concludes if these stones are the proof that geomancy was used in the early historical period to build structures, they seem to point to an ‘Indian cultural matrix’.10 While travelling throughout Tibet, one seldom observes phallic representations and nowhere are they as obvious as they are in Bhutan. However, they can still be seen in Amdo and Kongpo regions where they seemingly play the same role as in the Jokhang construction. The first example from

Amdo was kindly forwarded to me by a friend. It is a stone erected about 50 years ago, according to the oral tradition, to counterbalance the influence of a rock having the shape of the female vulva (Plate 3). In that case, at least, we can see that the phallus was believed to have been able to subjugate or tame female influence, which is perceived as negative or wild, a well-known theme which has been studied elsewhere.11 This perception is implicit in the

well-known story told in the Rgyal rab gsal ba'i me long (fourteenth century), where we are told that “Srong btsan sgam po sought geomantic instruction from the Chinese princess Weng chen kong jo, who divined that the land of Tibet was like a she-demon lying on her back, filled with inauspicious elements.”12 Janet Gyatso proposed one interpretation of this account, based on psychoanalytical analysis:

Part and parcel of the relationship between the demoness land and the architectural structures upon her seem to be certain sexual innuendoes. If the srin mo is a Mother Earth, then the architectural structures that hold her down must be seen as overtly masculine. At one point in the srin mo myth this is

quite explicit: one of the pinning structures is a śiva li�ga, to be set on the ‘earth-enemy’ (sa dgra) in the east, a place which is ‘like the srin mo’s pubic hair.’ Vertical buildings, imposing structures … erections; in contrast, the feminine earth is associated with fertility, nurturing, receptivity.13

Other contemporary examples are visible in Kongpo, in the south-eastern forested region of central Tibet which central Tibetans sometimes associated with wilderness. The phallus can be found there in two places established or restored by the great Nyingmapa master the Second Dudjom Rinpoche (1904-1987) Brag

gsum mtsho14 at the monastery called Mtsho rdzong and Bla ma gling. The representations are realistic and placed near the entrances of both places (Plate

4). Dudjom Rinpoche spent a large part of his life in Bhutan and may have ‘revitalised’ the phallic representations in Kongpo. But he may also have found that people of this region were using these representations. BHUTAN’S PERVASIVE PHALLUS

The lack of field research and documented data in such Tibetan areas hampers any conclusive statement about the prevalence of phallic representations in Tibet, but it is noticeable that the practice today survives in areas remote from the centralising influence of Lhasa. If we go back to Richardson, whose

article was the starting-point of this study, he also wrote that “although anthropologists may see phallic undertones in the white stone set up by farmers at the centre of each cultivated field in honour of the sa bdag—the ‘lord of the land’—or in the tall pillars erected at the royal tombs, these have no

such overt association in Tibetan minds but are magical ‘navel stones’ or ‘earth pegs’.”15 While this statement was valid in Richardson’s time, it could now be qualified by recent ethnographic data and field research in Bhutan and other areas. In fact, certain stone pillars such as the one in Nabji in

Trongsa district, clearly have a phallic appearance.16 They are very similar to the stone pillars observed in Amdo in north-east Tibet, or the recently published photo of a stone of Zhwa lu in central Tibet.17

OCCURRENCES OF THE PHALLUS IN BHUTAN

The obscene and sacred are intertwined in Bhutan, as Sonam Chhoki made clear in her ground-breaking 1994 study of this interaction.18 This paper will simply try to examine some examples of phallic representations in the country and link them to a multi-layered socioreligious matrix. In Bhutan, these representations are referred to by many different names. These include Pho chen, dBang phyug chen po (all over Bhutan), Kharam Shing (in eastern Bhutan), Tenpola and Miling (in Trongsa and Khyen regions of central Bhutan), Andaligpa (in Trashiyangtse), and since the 1970s, Gyelwey Lodroe (Rgyal ba'i blo

bros) throughout Bhutan. They are found in different spheres of life, one of the most visible being on houses, carved in wood at the corners of the roof,

or brightly painted in a humorous, ornate or realistic way on the outside wall on each side of the entrance door (Plate 5 and 6). The Bhutanese believe that they prevent the house and its inhabitants from being harmed by any kind of evil, or from mishaps due to water, air, fire and earth, and finally from slanderous gossip. Chime Wongmo describes the ritual of installing the phallus at the corners of the roof:

In the afternoon of the same day, the lamas who are performing the consecration ceremony go round the house in a procession playing their musical instruments, while the lady or the daughter of the house follows carrying a basket containing five wooden phallic symbols on her back. After completing

their circuit the lamas continue their prayer as the basket is pulled up with a rope to the roof. This is also accompanied by singing, and the ceremony is complete when four of these wooden carvings are hung, one at each of the corners of the roof. This is done, it is said, to avert mi kha (malicious gossip). The fifth will be kept in the house; it is considered a sign of good luck, a sign that boys will be born here and that the house will be wealthy.19

In his book on Bhutanese architecture,20 Chang Dorji details the rituals of a house construction, and especially those related to the zur chen (‘large corners’, the name given to the large wooden phallus hanging from the roofs) (Plate 7).

Among the five zurchen gyalwai lodroe [phallus], four should have a head shaped like a penis and the base like a ritual dagger (phur pa or kila). If it is possible the base of the reldri [sword]

crossed with the zurchen should be shaped like a vajra with five tips. One of the zurchen does not require reldri since this is the resource of the patron (male), it should be kept separately with a knotted silken scarf. Once they are all painted, they should be kept in five different yellow bags in the

chhoesham [mchod bsham, altar room of the house]. […] Then male dancers come into the house, and five girls receive the zurchen from the chhoesham. […].When the chant leader recites each verse, the rest should respond in chorus shouting the word ‘karya’ [dkar ya] loudly. The verses are as follows:

The Buddha wisdom, that the Zurchen is, It is not appropriate that you stay here, You must ascend the beautiful house, You must overwhelm the land with your brilliance, Rain must fall on time, Crops and cattle must thrive forever, The waist rests on a saddle like an ant, Without being distracted by the saddle, The Zurchen must ascend onto the roof. The curly hair is skilled in upthrust, Without being distracted by that who is skilled in upthrust, The Zurchen must ascend onto the roof. The clever one has a comfortable sexual union, Without being distracted by the comfortable union, The Zurchen must

ascend onto the roof. The one full of smile has lust, Without being distracted by the lustful, The Zurchen must ascend onto the roof. You must grant the boon of sons, You must grant the boon of wealth, You must fill the main entrance with horses, You must fill the ground floor with cows, You must fill the

middle floor with grains, To let people and cattle flourish, You must grant this boon.21

After everybody has gone out of the house and circumambulated it three times, the lady of the house takes one zur chen wrapped in silk back into the altar room where it remains as the deity of wealth. The remaining four zur chen are pulled up on the roof by men while women pretend to pull them down amidst songs22 and laughter.

While these rituals have a non-Buddhist origin, the phallus, the sword and the ritual dagger (in other words, the shape of the zur chen) are considered in Buddhist terms as the representations of the Rigs gsum mgon po (Three Bodhisattva). The phallus represents Avalokiteshvara, the sword Manjusri and the ritual dagger, Vajrapani. Moreover, a narrative of origin of the zur chen reinforces the Buddhist aspect, as well as attributing a prestigious geographical origin—Tibet—to it:

I, the great phallus, Gyelwa Lodroe, I will climb up to the great corners. When I came down from the realms of gods, I came through Lhasa, the land of gods, That is why the phallus looks better than gods. The road was through the centre of Gyantse, BHUTAN’S PERVASIVE PHALLUS

That is why the phallus is so famous [Gyang and rgyang, meaning famous are pronounced almost the same way, hence the pun]. The road passed through Phari, That is why the phallus has huge ears.[Pha and phag the hog, which has big ears, are homophonous] I passed through Chimela at Phari, That is why I have a bald head. I passed by Paro dzong, That is why I am joyful. My way took me through Wangdi dzong, That is why I am so powerful. I went to Punakha dzong,

That is why I resemble the wish-fulfilling jewel.23 I have vowed to grant protection from falling meteors, I have vowed to grant protection from famine, I have vowed to grant protection from spewing lava, I am the hammer to subdue ghosts and demons, I am the lord to repel misfortunes. My kind friend, the sword of Manjushri, It can protect from external enemies, For humans, there is no bloodshed. I have vowed to grant protection from fire, No misfortune will

arise from crimson fire, It is a sword full of wisdom, Ignorance is cut at the base, It is the manifestation of Manjushri, It is the mirror that foresees the future. I have vowed to grant protection from slanders, The sword whose base rises like a meteor, Inside this auspicious house, All evils cannot be

fathomed, It is the ritual dagger to crush all enemies, To dispel all misfortunes and enemies, I am the manifestation of Hayagriva, The sword of Manjushri, The arrogant and powerful phallus, The symbolic dagger rising like a meteor, I am the manifestation of Rigsum Goenpo, In the house where children and cattle will flourish, I have come to bestow power and blessings! 24

These verses tell about concerns which are immediate in this life for the people and which form the basis for the community rituals:25 prosperity, fertility, well-being, harmony. They convey ‘grass-root priorities’: good crops, abundant cattle and children, no natural or evilprovoked calamities, no

slander. None of the soteriological concerns so important in textual Buddhism are apparent here. The phallus, sublimated as the emanation of the Three Protectors, is an all-powerful weapon and appears as an important element in any ritual against malicious gossip and slander (mi kha). A wooden phallus is at the centre of a wooden structure called Kharam

shing in the Tsangla language. It is erected with a ritual near houses in eastern Bhutan in order to protect the household against slander and evil influences (Pelgen26) (Plate 8). The ritual of Gyanak chi doe (rGya nag spyi mdos) is performed annually in the first Bhutanese month by the Drukpa monks of the Astrology Institute in Panrizampa (Thimphu),27 in order to repel enemies of the country and for the well-being of the royal family. One of the

numerous offering cakes on the altar has the shape of a phallus and is directed against malicious gossip. This is a ritual practice which is well documented. The Gold Manuscript of the Fifth Dalai Lama contains images of ritual cakes in the shape of a “Human penis representing Shiva, used in the rite

for dealing with evil omens that occur”.28 The Indian reference to the Shiva linga is also explicit in Bhutan as the phallus is referred to by one of the names of Shiva: Wangchuk chenpo (dBang phyug chenpo). This is clear evidence that the phallic symbol echoes its association with the Hindu deity Shiva channelled through Buddhism. Tandin Dorji in his unpublished PhD on the lha 'bod ritual of Bjena village in Western Bhutan, writes:

Le phallus en bois est un objet qui a un rôle significatif dans plusieurs rituels : dans le rituel de chodpa il est porté par le gadpupa, un officiant qui exécute une danse pour la prospérité, la longévité et la fertilité; il est un stylo lors du jeu de rôle dans le rituel de roop et signifie la fertilité; il

a sa place parmi les gâteaux du rituel dans le rituel de lhabon du village de Chendenbji pour chasser le malheur; il est le plus important objet dans les

structures érigées pour chasser les calomnies (kharam shing); il est placé sur la tête de toutes les personnes pour les bénir et chasser le malheur dans le rituel de khar phud; et dans le lha 'bod du village de Bjena, le phallus est planté dans un conteneur de riz non-décortiqué; il est même gardé dans l’autel familial comme un signe de la fertilité et d’antidote au malheur.29

In these community rituals, which take place in the village and which are associated with Bon beliefs, as understood in the Bhutanese context, that is non-Buddhist.30 Many of these community rituals also have a sexual component, which for the Bhutanese has several functions: avoiding malicious gossip (mi kha)

in order to keep harmonious relationships in the community,31 atoning one’s misdeeds, and wishing fertility, especially to childless women. This component is materialised by ritual cakes and wooden sticks in the shape of a phallus called by the honorific term of sPo [ Pho? ] chen rgyal ba blo gros32 as well as the exchange of obscene words and songs. Conversation taboos between family members are also broken during some rituals, and this is believed to remove

all the ‘shame’ (Dzongkha Ngo tshao) of the year. The action of removing shame by uttering obscene words or displaying phallus is carried out by the atsara, the jesters, who entertain the crowd with their antics during religious festivals.33 Their characteristic red or black masks are often adorned with

a dangling phallus and they hold a wooden phallus which they brandish in front of young and elderly women alike, to remove their ‘shame’, embarrassment and to purify them (Plate 9 and 10). This behaviour reminds us of an anecdote from the life of the ‘divine madman’ Drukpa Kunley ('Brug pa Kun legs 1455- 1529). He convinced his mother to sleep with him, the act of incest par excellence, and when she finally relented, he left. The next day he went to the market and told everybody about this incident. Thus, “by exposing the hidden foibles of his mother, her faults were eradicated, her sins expiated and her troubles and afflictions removed.”34

The atsara also use a wooden phallus to bless women who want to have children; these ‘blessings’ have even become popular in recent times with some tourists after several of them are said to have had a child after travelling to Bhutan. Again, this is widely associated with the powers of Drukpa Kunley.

Chime lhakhang (Kyi med lha khang) at the southern entrance of Punakha valley contains phallic objects made out of stone, bamboo and ivory attributed to the saint himself as well as miniature replica of his bow and arrow. These are used to bless childless women, and couples sometimes spend the night at the

temple. Parents can also ask protection for the child the mother is bearing, for the well-being of their already born children, as well as personal names for the babies. Contemporary Bhutanese associate the protective role of the phallus—its ability to ward off evil spirits or obstacles—with Drukpa Kunley

who subdued demonesses with his ‘thunderbolt’ (rdo rje/vajra), meaning his male organ. Tiny phallus (called srung ma) are carved from special trees for the protection of children, but are also hung around the necks of animals, and nowadays on the inside mirrors of cars. From these examples, it could be assumed that the raison d’être for phallic symbols is protection against evil of all kinds and blessings for fertility linked to Drukpa Kunley, the cultural hero.

However, could this linkage to a prestigious and popular saint be a rather modern rationale? What about phallic symbols prevalent in regions where Drukpa Kunley never set foot? What about the atsara who claim not to be associated to the saint but to Indian ‘realised’ teachers, hence their name? Why are these symbols so important in the Bhutanese mental and physical spaces? While it might not be possible to answer these questions in a definite manner, some hypotheses can be considered.

WHY ARE THE PHALLUS SO PREVALENT IN BHUTAN ?

The sexual liberties and customs of the Bhutanese seem to have always been an attraction or a subject of curiosity among Tibetan and British writers, including the great Tibetan intellectual Amdo Gedun Choephel (1903-1951). However his trip to eastern Bhutan is still unconfirmed.35 As early as the

fourteenth century, a Tibetan who had been to Lho Mon, as Bhutan was then known, was regarded with suspicion, partly because for central Tibetans this was a wild forested and uncivilized area south of the Great Himalaya.36 Karmay37 mentioned how the great Treasure-Discoverer Dorje Lingpa (rDo rje gling pa 1346-1405) was chided by Barawa Gyeltshen Pelzang ('Ba ra ba rgyal mtshan dpal bzang 1310-1391) when he arrived in central Tibet on his return from Bhutan:

When Dorje Lingpa arrived at the Shang valley in Tibet, Barawa came to meet him bringing a pot of chang, a carcass of mutton and a roll of white nambu

cloth as gifts. He said to Dorje Lingpa: “Our country Shang is a place where Buddhism flourishes. You have been for too long in Lho mön, ‘the unlit land’. Your clothes are worn out. Tomorrow morning when you come up, the monks and nuns will pay you their respects. You must dress yourself properly. Otherwise our people will be shocked. I request you and your entourage all to come well dressed.”

As already mentioned, most modern Bhutanese attribute the importance of the phallus to Drukpa Kunley, the unconventional and irreverent saint who subdued the demonesses of Bhutan with his male organ and practised Buddhism in an heterodox way. His fame was reinforced by a biography written in 1966 by Je Geduen Rinchen (rJe dGe 'dun rin chen alias

dGe shes brag phug, 1926-1997)38 and later among English educated Bhutanese by Keith Dowman’s English translation of this work.39 Drukpa Kunley has become in Bhutan almost a timeless figure presenting similarities with two other folk heroes, Ap Wang Drugye of western Bhutan and the Tibetan Akhu Tonpa (A khu

ston pa).40 Stories of Akhu Tonpa are widely popular throughout the Himalayan world and across the plateau where Akhu Tonpa is an archetypal trickster figure (he now has a blog dedicated to him!41). They have their share of ribaldry and illicit sexual adventures, so it is clear that sexuality in Tibet was part, at least, of the popular discourse as it is in Bhutan.42 Except among scholars, Drukpa Kunley is practically detached from his historical and

religious context; traces of his deeds are present in the landscape in the same way as those of Guru Rinpoche, including in places where there are no textual records of his passage, such as in the sacred site of Ajaney (A rgya gnas) in eastern Bhutan.43 One of the many traces of his passage is at the

ruins of Langdu (Glang bdud) monastery in Thimphu district where a large, penis-shaped rock is attributed to the saint. There he tamed an ox-headed demon, hence the name of the place. Subduing the demonesses with his ‘thunderbolt’ and taking consorts wherever he went, Drukpa Kunley seems to appeal to the

Bhutanese male psyche. This superficial observation has in fact several ancient resonances in the Tibetan cultural world, which might explain why Drukpa Kunley has become such an embodiment of manhood. According to Drukpa Kunley’s biography, “the lama carried a bow and arrow— representing penetrating insight and skilful means—to slay the Ten Enemies of the Ten Directions.”44 The metaphor between the bow and arrow and the shes rab and thabs leads to

another well-known correspondence in Tantric Buddism: insight and skilful means are also represented by the bell, which is described as feminine, and the thunderbolt (dorje, vajra), which is masculine. These two rituals objects are omnipresent in Bhutanese religious life. However as a male symbol, the arrow goes back long before Buddhism made its way into the Himalayan world. Karmay shows clearly the association of the arrow with pre-Buddhist beliefs which are

still prevalent today.45 He quotes an archaic Bon marriage ritual text in which the bride is given an arrow by her father when she leaves his house.46 This text also tells the origin myth of the arrow: “From the bursting of the golden egg a golden arrow with turquoise tail feathers appeared”, and its importance is spelt out: “The life of the male depends on the arrow, the life of the female depends on the spindle, we entrust them to the gods.”47 The

association of arrow with men and its ritual importance in pleasing the local deities have survived centuries of religio-historical changes throughout the Himalayan world.48 As elsewhere, in Bhutan an arrow is placed on the house altar in order to bring good fortune and blessings to the occupants of the house, and it is an important object in many rituals associated to good fortune and longevity. The rules and customs associated with the traditional sport

of archery, elevated to the rank of national game in 1971,49 sum up the symbolism of the arrow as a male representation. Women are not allowed to touch the arrows and bows and, on the eve of a game the players do not stay in their house or sleep with their wives. Instead, they meet to perform rituals to please

the local deities, as well as discreetly cast spells on their opponents with the help of a tsip (rtsis pa). The role of women during archery is solely to sing, dance and pass witty or ribald comments on the archers.50

Drukpa Kunley is usually depicted with a bow, an arrow, and a dog, like a hunter (Plate 11). In fact his arrow has a spiritual value as it helped him fulfil a famous prophecy foretelling his travel to Bhutan for the benefit of sentient beings.

He dreamt that a woman dressed in a yellow skirt, and holding a flaming sword, said to him: “Drukpa Kunley, it is time that you fulfilled the prophecy that foretold the conversion of the people of Bhutan, and the magical purification of that land. In Bhutan you will establish a family which will serve the Drukpa tradition to great advantage in the future. You must shoot an arrow to the south early in the morning as a harbinger of your coming.”51

Viewed in a historical perspective, this prophecy has great importance. Drukpa Kunley in fact came from a prestigious religious lineage, the Gya (rGya) ruling family of Ralung (Rva lung) which was the stronghold of the Drukpa Kagyu school in Tibet and the prophecy meant that the Drukpa Kagyu would flourish in Bhutan. The story has it that Drukpa Kunley’s arrow landed in a house in Toebesa (sTod sbe sa) in Punakha. When he went to retrieve it, he fathered a

son with the lady of the house. This child was to become the grandfather of Tenzin Rabgye (bsTan 'dzin rab rgyas 1638-1696), the famous Drukpa hierarch and Forth Temporal Ruler of Bhutan. In effect Tenzin Rabgye controlled Bhutan in the second half of the seventeenth century, after the death of his relative,

the Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (Zhabs drung Ngag dbang rnam rgyal 1594-1651), who unified the southern valleys to create Bhutan under Drukpa rule. The figure of Drukpa Kunley is therefore here at the centre of a nexus combining powerful historical and religious forces. As a cultural hero, he touches the

core identity of the state and carries out the male subjugation of demons. At the same time he incorporates ancient non-Buddhist beliefs and demonstrates the Tantric Buddhist concept of non-duality.52 The adoption of Tantric Buddhism and especially Mahayoga, from India, and its assimilation within Tibetan

Buddhism is well-known and can be seen in some of the Dunhuang manuscripts (ninth and tenth centuries).53 The texts, which are classified as belonging to Mahayoga Tantra—among them the Guhyasamaja Tantra (which had already been translated by the eighth century)—caused some concern because of the outlandish behaviour they engendered among some Tibetan yogins. This can been seen from the edict of King Ye shes 'od (947-1024) denouncing them:

You Tantric specialists, who live in our villages, have no connection with the Three ways of Buddhism and yet you claim to follow the Mahayana. Without keeping the moral rules of the Mahayana You say ‘We are Mahayanists.’ This is like a beggar saying he is king Or like a donkey dressed in the skin of a lion […] You are more greedy for meat than a hawk or a wolf You are more subject to lust than a donkey or an ox on heat […].54

Such criticisms were directed not against the Tantric texts or practices themselves but rather against their misuse by some yogins,55 pointing to an early origin of the cleavage between the orthodox scholastics and the heterodoxy of the ‘free spirits’, with each claiming to follow the right path, which remains a current debate within Tibetan Buddhism. Although Drukpa Kunley was one of the ‘Divine Madmen’ who constituted the fifteenth

century movement of that name so well described by E. Gene Smith,56 he can also be seen, in another socio-historical context, as the heir of the early Tibetan yogins so disapproved of by King Ye shes 'od. His significance, and his opposition to his cousin, the Drukpa hierach Ngawang Choegyel (Ngag dbang

chos rgyal 1465-1540), cannot be understood without taking into consideration these centuries of antinomic behaviour and controversy in Tibetan Buddhism. While there may be no doubt that Drukpa Kunley’s stories had a great impact, we are left without an explanation as to why in the eastern and south central

parts of Bhutan where there are no textual records of Drukpa Kunley’s travels, phallus are present in the landscape as well as in many of the community

rituals considered in Bhutan to have stemmed from Bon beliefs. Besides the ubiquitous Karam shing structure in the fields,57 one story in eastern Bhutan, among different variants, tells how a bat called Bjatsi tonpa gom chen (Bya rtsi ston pa sgom chen) was sent to the heaven of the god Wa ldan gungs ldan ['Od lde gung rgyal ?] to request one of his sons to come and rule the earth. Finally the youngest son had to go and:

a day was fixed for his descent. The King sent his three sons and a retinue of gods to accompany his youngest son to earth. On the way the demi gods and

devils heard of the descent. They were surprised to see that a small creature like Bya rtsi sTon pa sgom chen had been able to persuade the god to send his

son to earth. The demi gods and the devils watched the whole retinue with surprise and laughed at them. Bya rtsi sTon pa sgom chen felt annoyed and wanted the lesser gods and devils to go away. He hit upon a plan and removed his undergarments. The demi gods and the devils, seeing him naked with his penis dangling, cursed him and went away in utter shame and disgrace leaving the entourage in peace. The entourage at last reached earth safely.58

This myth of origin legitimizes the Karphu (mKar phud) ritual of Tsamang (rTsa mang) village in eastern Bhutan where phalluses play a central role, as Ugyen Pelgen has described.59 In his article on the festival of Goshing in the Khyen region of south-central Bhutan Phuntsho Rabten60 describes the figure of the Gadpupa who shares many traits found in the atsara of the Buddhist religious festivals:

In local dialect, Gadpupa means an old man. According to the text, he was sent by Lha Jajin (Lord Indra) to earth to bless people with longevity, prosperity and fertility. He originally came to Goshing from Ura, Bumthang as revealed in verse recitations of his encounter with Ura Nadmo (female host). Gadpupa dance is performed at the dawn of the fifteenth day of Chodpa inside the lhakhang. He offers prayers of longevity, wisdom, and wealth for his root

lama, luminous persons and gracious parent, utters exhaustive mockery comments on the genital organs and human body, narrates about his travel from Ura to Goshing and his encounter with some local wrathful spirits and how he subdued them, and eventually tosses auspicious grains of rice. [….] Gadpupa has a

wooden phallus hung from the waist. The phallus, which is symbolic of many things, is explained exhaustively in Gadpupa’s recital text: The old trunk of the phallus, born long ago in Tsari, Sits on the throne of two eggs. Although it has no legs, it can rise To the heroic one, I prostrate. Although it has no eyes, it can penetrate To the mobile one, I prostrate. Although it has no bone, it is hard

To the ferocious one, I prostrate.61

Describing the Ha festival of Gortshom in Lhuntshe district of north-eastern Bhutan witnessed in 2002, Tashi Choeden62 explains that:

Most of the couplets contain lewd and ribald phrases and expressions. The symbols and images used are mainly of male and female genitals. These expressions echo the spirit of Ha celebration, which is the absence or shedding of inhibition of sexual behaviour. The expression “For the three nights of the Ha,

there is no shame” (zhag gsum Ha bang ngo mi tsha)63 is self explanatory and the whole community recite verses such as this: May not the hills raise white obstructions, May not the valleys raise dark obstructions. May all the lands enjoy good year, May all the village people

receive blessings. I am not speaking these words, They are said by lha Jajin. For three nights, the mother does not close the door, For three nights, the daughter does not close the thighs. Mothers are spattered with pus, Daughters are spattered with blood. Do not dig waterways, cleft lipped lady, Do

not pull the drill, deep holed lady. The phallus is implanting a target in the vagina, The target is not implanted, the penis is. The Bonpo’s phallus is a wooden phallus, The wooden phallus never breaks. The Bonmo’s [the female Bon practitioner] vagina is a leather vagina, The leather vagina never wears. Oh Bonpo, do not let your mind go astray, Others are taking your Bonmo away.64

Many more examples of such ribald poetry and images are found in almost all the community rituals throughout Bhutan. This graphic poetry has a common

theme: the complementary symbolic function of the phallus that we already noted earlier. It brings fertility and protects by warding off or subjugating evil spirits which are embarassed by obscene behaviour or words. If formulated in a Buddhist context, these spirits are hampered from becoming enlightened

because they cling to appearances and do not go beyond duality. All these verses are close in style and contents to those attributed to Drukpa Kunley in the biography by Je Geduen Rinchen. It might be a case of ancient folk poetry influencing writings, which because of the great personalities of both the

writer and the hero, became in turn very popular nationwide and initiated an updated discourse of an ancient theme. It is likely, as shown earlier, that the figure of Drukpa Kunley crystallised different dimensions of Bhutanese culture and beliefs. It contributed to the persistence of the phallic

representations in the country, a custom which might have been revived by Je Geduen Rinchen’s biography of the divine madman, a point underlined by several informants. However, this was also connected with a book published in the 1970s and banned shortly after by the then Home Minister Tamshing Jagar. Written or compiled by Damchoela from Ura in Bumthang, it was a book of rituals to the phallus which he named Gyelway Lodroe

(Rgyal ba'i blo gros) and which included all the ritual elements such as stod pa, dbang, men dre, bkra shis. Since then, this name for the phallus has become very popular in Bhutan, especially among people literate in Dzongkha such as Chang Dorji who used it for his work on architecture and on archery.65

The book, which unfortunately we have never seen, seems to have been a compilation or an amended version of a set of rituals found in Bumthang called Atsara cho ga. These Atsara cho ga texts, whose origin is so far unknown, are used during the festivals of Buli Choepa (mchod pa) and of Thangbi Mani (ma ni) in Bumthang. At these occasions during a dance called Jachung Michung in Buli and Atsara cho ga in Thangbi, phalluses are vividly represented by

sacrificial cakes, which are carried by women. The festival of Jampey lhakhang in Bumthang and the festival of Nabji in south Trongsa, which are both led by the Chakhar (lcags mkhar) Lama, have naked dances performed by men. They are considered as ‘treasure dances’ (gter cham) and they are also associated with the great treasure-discoverer Dorje Lingpa who was Bonpo as well as Nyingmapa. According to Chakhar Lam Dorji, the dance was introduced by Dorje

Lingpa after a prophecy by Guru Rinpoche in the eighth century and was first performed in Nabji Korphu in Trongsa district. A band of devils was causing havoc and misery during the construction of a temple in the area, destroying the work and delaying it. To distract the devils, Dorje Lingpa started a naked dance. The outrageous antics of the naked performers during the dance are said to have kept the devils spellbound and the temple was completed. Dorje

Lingpa, who also consecrated Jampa lhakhang in Bumthang, introduced the same dance there.66 There are elements in Dorje Lingpa’s behaviour and religious views which are very similar to those of Drukpa Kunley one century later when the religious movement of the Crazy Saints (smyon pa) was at its height. Dorje Lingpa’s heterodox behaviour is selfproclaimed when he comes back to see Barawa:

The next morning a procession came along with the chief ladies wearing tiger and leopard masks led by Lamas and learned monks. Thereupon, Dorje Lingpa

said: “All the Samsaric and Nirvanic elements are much alike, but men of religion here have taken the notion of acceptance and rejection as their main religion. Today I shall sing a song. Each man must hold the hands of a woman and make a chain!” He led the Lamas by holding the hands of Lama Tongdenpa

with his right hand and the hands of the chief lady wearing a mask with his left hand. The lap of their dresses were trussed up on their right and left hand sides and they began to dance. He started to sing a song called ‘the brewing of the chang ale using the annual provision’:

Say that Dorje Lingpa, the chief of impostors, has come to this land. Say that all the [barley], the provision to last all the year round are now being used for brewing the chang. Say that those who have faith in him are performing the rite of the sacrificial cake. Say that those who gather here are joyous in singing and dancing. Say that those who regard him as heretical are vexed [by his presence].67

Besides preaching non-duality, promoting fun between men and women in a religious gathering, and having self-deprecating humour, Dorje Lingpa encourages

people to use all their grain to make alcohol in a society where food security was paramount. This discourse, outrageous for Dorje Lingpa’s contemporaries, underlines the refusal of conventions much before the movement of the divine madmen. BHUTAN’S PERVASIVE PHALLUS

The role of this religious figure in many religious aspects of Bhutan is still to be studied but Dorje Lingpa seems to have had a greater impact in

Bhutanese religious life, including rituals, than previously assumed.68 Other naked dances, also called tercham, but not attributed to Dorje Lingpa, exist in places such as Nindukha in Dagana district69 or Sakteng in Trashigang district in the extreme east of Bhutan.70 There, naked dancers wear skeleton masks guaranteeing them anonymity. They have an origin story of their dance: their ancestors in Tibet were selected by the King Trisongdetsen (Khri srong

lde btsan; eighth century) to perform this dance in order to safeguard his domain against calamities and invaders. The whole story bears certain similarities with the well-known Lügong Gyalpo (glud 'gong rgyal po) ritual in Tibet, where the person is sent as ransom and banished.71 The Sakteng

dancers resemble in particular the Lügong of Gyantse. Richardson published his photo and describes him as “a strange figure, half-naked with sheep’s intestines around his neck, a sheep’s stomach over his head like a mask, and an exaggerated phallus below his waist.”72 Nowadays in the Sakteng region,

once every three year, the dancers visit all the houses for two days in order to ensure the wellbeing of the entire community. These naked dances are simply mentioned here to demonstrate that in Bhutan, phallus are part of a wide cultural and geographical context which proably goes much beyond Dorje Lingpa or Drukpa Kunley. Fertility and absence of embarassment or shame are two associated ideas which in the society translate into phallic representations and obscene discourse.

CONCLUSION

The phallus representations are viewed as part of Bhutanese culture and a subject of pride. On 26 September 2008 the newspaper Bhutan Observer published an

article on ‘Ideal and phallus’ referring to the policy of ‘Gross National Happiness’. The young journalist, Phuntshok Rabten, wrote “Like the handsome Bhutanese phallus - Let us erect an edifice that goes beyond all notions of high and low, good and bad, praise and blame, loss and gain to a radical

utopia”, therefore praising the non-duality dear to Tantrists while using the metaphor of the phallus for a very contemporary idea. In Bhutan, Buddhist and non-Buddhist religious concepts, folk stories, textual resources and rituals appear to have combined in a matrix which sustains phallic representations to

this day. Although the figure of Drukpa Kunley is generally associated with them, the evidence presented in this paper leans towards an earlier origin, and perhaps to a relatively more recent nationwide popularity of Drukpa Kunley than generally assumed. Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, tourism

and campaigns for the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and for contraception contributed to the acceptance of phallic symbols by people in

general: tourists are amused or bemused by the atsara and some of them want blessings in order to have children; atsara play with wooden phallus to demonstrate the use of condoms; billboards at the entrance of schools, hospitals or fairs give graphic health messages. The most ancient fertility symbol in the world which, in Bhutan, is loaded with several layers of interpretations, now carries additional significance to tackle global problems.

NOTES

We would like to thank the Royal University of Bhutan for its encouragements and the Namgyel Institute of Tibetology in Sikkim which invited us to the conference.

1 Sonam Kinga, 2005: 157-171. Sonam Kinga was elected in 2008 National Councillor in the Parliament for the Trashigang district. 2 In Japan there are several festivals where phalluses are worshipped, especially in the spring. Amongst them, the Kanamara Matsuri in Kawasaki south of Tokyo, the first Sunday o

f April and the Hounen Matsuri at the Tagata Jinja Shinto shrine in Komaki, north of Nagoya on the 15th of March. 3 Richardson, Hugh E. ‘Phallic symbols in Tibet’, Bulletin of Tibetology, 1972, Vol.9 (2), 25-27. Download possible from www.digitalhimalaya.com 4 Richardson, 1972: 25. 5 Richardson, 1972: 25- 27. 6 Chan, 1994. 7 Published by Hansjorg Mayer, London. 8 Stoddard, 2010: 171. 9 Ibid. 10 Ibid., 175. 11 Among others, see Janet Gyatso, 1987; Marko, 2003; and Mills 2007: 31. 12 Mills, 2007: 3. 13 Gyatso, 1987: 43. 14 Birth-place of the great gter ston Sangs rgyas gling pa (1340-1396). 15 Richardson, 1972: 25. 16 Pommaret, 1997: 391-418. 17 Xie Bin, 2005: 093. 18 Sonam Chhoki, 1994: 107-122. 19 Chime Wongmo, 1984: 114. 20 Chang Dorji, 2006 & Dzongkha, 2004. 21 Chang Dorji, 2006: 150-151 & Dzongkha, 2004: 166-167. 22 For this songs’ details, see Chang Dorji, 2006: 152-153 & Dzongkha,

2004:168. 23 While some of the metaphors of this passage are easily understood, some remain obscure. 24 Chang Dorji, 2006: 153-154. & Dzongkha, 2004: 169-170. 25 Pommaret, forthcoming, CBS, 2004, and Tandin Dorji, unpublished PhD. 26 Pelgen, Ugyen, 2000: 671-683. 27 See Zhungtsi Lopen Ugyen Dorjee,

2003, and Rgya nag skag zlog, Thimphu. 28 Karmay, 1988: 169, Pl. 51. 29 Tandin Dorji, 2007. 30 Pommaret, forthcoming, 38-39. 31 Kapstein translated a text from Humla in north-west Nepal attributed to Padmasambhava (1997: 529-537). In this interesting short text, the cause of malicious gossip is

attributed to a girl from China: “Girl with black grimy, tangled hair, when you first arrived where did you come from? You came from the borders of Tibet and China, where malicious gossip afflicted the Chinese, so that the Chinese king sent you to Tibet.” The main purpose of the Kharamshing ritual in Eastern

Bhutan (documented by ILCS) is to keep gossip and curses away from the house. Its sequences differ slightly from one place to another (Pelgen 2000 & Galay 2004). Two texts are believed to be at the origin of the ritual, the Mi kha dgra bgyur and the Mi kha'i gto bsgyur (Pelgen 2000: 673). 32 On this

subject, see Tashi Tobgye 2006: 11-12. 33 However the atsara are not mere jokers, they are also social critics breaking the hierarchy of Bhutanese society. They assist the dancers in case of problems and they nowadays promote contraceptive and health messages. Bhutanese trace the word atsara to the

Sanskrit term acarya; they represent enlightened beings who incarnate in this world to teach the essence of religion and the disregard for mundane appearance and conventions. 34 Dowman, 1980: 41, following Je Geduen Rinchen's version.

35 Although Gedun Choephel was photographed with the lord of the Eastern province of Tashigang (bKra shis sgang) at an unidentified place in the 1940s. 36 Pommaret, 1999. 37 Karmay, 2000: 15. 38 69th Chief-Abbot (rje mkhan po) of Bhutan (1990-1996). 39 Dowman, 1980. Je Geduen Rinchen's story contrasts

with Drukpa Kunley's own autobiography which does not dwell on his exploits in Bhutan. 40 Stuart et al. wrote in their article on Tibetan tricksters (1999: 5) in Amdo: “Aa khu bstan pa, Aa tsi byivu mg and Ston pa shes rab, Rdzun khro lo, Nyi chos bzang bo, Vbrug pa kun legs, and Ge sar are Tibetan characters who act at times as tricksters. Aa khu bstan pa appears to be the best known of these, according to a survey of 53 Tibetan students from Qinghai

Province, China.” It is interesting to note that according to Heimbel (2008: 6-8) and based on an article A khu ston pa'i byung bar thog ma'i bsam gzhigs by the modern 'Bri gung bKa' brygud scholar Ra se dKon mchog rgya mtsho (b. 1968), Akhu ston pa was a follower of the Drikung Kagyu ('Bri gung bka' brgyud) “A khu himself was a genuine religious person who lived in the fourth 60 year cycle [1207-1266] ” and “his family lineage was the same as the lineage of

Chos rje 'Bri gung pa.” 41 http://akhustonpa.blogspot.com 42 http://akhustonpa.blogspot.com/2008/03/on-historicity-of-tibetan-folk-tale.html 43 There, a cave of Drukpa Kunley contains stones shaped as bow, arrow and dog. Oral communication of Lam Kunzang Chhoephel. 11.05.09. Thimphu. 44 Dowman, 1980: 47. 45 Karmay, 1998: 104-156. 46 Karmay, 1998: 148. 47 Karmay, 1998: 150-151 quoting the Ming sring dpal bgos dang lha 'dog text in the gTo phran, published

in 1973 by Khedup Gyatso, pp. 417-454. 48 Karmay, 1998: 429. 49 Chang Dorji attributes one of the origin of archery to Dpal gyi seng ge and his assassination of the King Glang dar ma, or to Gesar of Ling. 2000: 16 50 Bhutan Times, ‘Archery: the money, the Tsips and the dancing girls’ 2006/7/23: The game of archery is incomplete without the presence of women. While it is considered taboo for women to touch the bow and arrow of an archer, their role

in the games is to entertain spectators and disarm archers through wit and wile. By tradition they are called ‘Dha-lo’, meaning girls who cheer for their teams through dance. Only these cheerleaders act as a source of distraction for the opposing team. No archer is spared their pompous and vicious barrage of insults. As for their archers, they transform into angels who, short of flying, will attempt to guide the archer’s arrow to the target. Such is the power

of the women folk in a contest. They evoke laughter from the crowds and are never viewed offensively and taken seriously. It is all part of the game of archery. 51 Dowman, 1980: 118. 52 Snellgrove 2002: 160-161 and 288-291 explains the Tantric specificites concerning the “refusal to distinguish between the everyday world (samsara) and the experience of nirvana.” 53 Van shaik, 2009, forthcoming. 54 Snellgrove, 2002, 186-187, quoting Karmay ‘The

ordinance of lHa Bla ma Yes shes 'od’, Tibetan studies in Honour of Hugh Richardson, 156-157. 55 Snellgrove, 2002: 463. This class of Tantra, was later called Anuttara yoga Tantra and became “prevalent in Tibet during the latter part of the so-called 'second diffusion' of Buddhism in Tibet, when eastern

India (modern Bihar and Bengal) became the main source of Buddhism teaching for Tibetan itinerant scholars.” 56 Smith, 2001: 59-60: “The smyon pa is a phenomenon that suddenly flowered during the fifteenth century during an age of fervent religious reform and doctrinal systematization. The smyon pa is the

antithesis of the scholastic monk […] so the smyon pa represents an attempt to re-dedicate the bKa' brgyud pa sects to old truths and insights that were being forgotten [...]. The evidence is fairly conclusive that the smyon pa phenomenon was at least in part a reaction against the great prestige and wealth

of the hereditary lineages. It was an attempt to re-invest the Bka' brgyud tradition with some of its former religious fervor, to re-kindle the incandescent spirituality of the early yogis.” 57 Ugyen Pelgen, 2000: 125-147. 58 Ugyen Pelgen, 2004: 131-133. FRANÇOISE POMMARET & TASHI TOBGAY

59 Ugyen Pelgen, 2004: 135-140. 60 Phuntsho Rapten, 2004: 72-104. 61 Phuntsho Rapten, 2004. 62 Tashi Choeden, 2004. 63 Tashi Choeden, 2004: 17. 64

Tashi Choeden, 2004: 19. 65 Chang Dorji, 2000 & 2004. 66 Kuensel, 20.11.08. http://www.kuenselonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=11497 67 Karmay, 2000: 15. 68 Further enquiries should be made, looking for written sources as well as oral traditions attributed to this treasure-discoverer. 69 Sonam Kinga, 2005: 165. 70 Khaling Karma, Nov. 2006: 6-9. 71 Karmay, 1998: 339-379. 72 Richardson, 1993: 71.

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