6th April, 2009

Today, the Annual Drukpa Council (“ADC”) committee welcomed over 40 Rinpoches, Tulkus and Khenpos to Druk Amitabha Mountain, home of 300 Drukpa nuns. Despite the strikes in Kathmandu which prevented cars from reaching Druk Amitabha Mountain, hundreds of monks, nuns and lay people lined up with khatas to welcome these precious masters. The ADC committee introduced the visiting masters to the premises where the nuns run and maintain a coffee shop, gift shop, guesthouse, temple, stupa and educational halls.

While the workers, volunteers, nuns and monks put finishing touches on the Naro Assembly Hall and throughout Druk Amitabha Mountain, the great masters of the Drukpa Lineage met to discuss the past and continuing contributions of the Drukpa Lineage and encourage each other on their humanitarian and spiritual endeavors. In particular, Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, the author and subject of Cave in the Snow, emphasized the contribution of women of the Drukpa Lineage and their hard work organizing ADC. Meanwhile, the senior monastic body of Bhutan performed a rare ritual, Chakrasamvara Drubpa. This ritual showcases an ancient Drukpa tradition whereby the prayer clears obstacles and pays homage to the main Drukpa tutelary deity. The Chakrasamvara Drubpa provided the ideal soundtrack for such an extraordinary meeting.

The excitement fills the atmosphere. Hundreds of participants hiked, motorbiked and scaled the side of Druk Amitabha Mountain to reach the destination in hopes of greeting the precious masters, receiving blessings from the Chakrasamvara Drubpa and to get a peak of all the preparations. The diversity of gender, nationality and background of the participants is not only strikingly colorful but is also a testament of the universal appeal of the Annual Drukpa Council.