BHUTAN
The Divine Madman and his Phallic ‘Thunderbolt’!
Once upon a time (1455 – 1570 To be exact) there lived a monk called Drukpa Kuenley – an enlightened Buddhist master from Tibet who came to Bhutan to teach Buddhism to the local people.
However, his methods of teaching were extremely unconventional and often outrageous. He believed in spreading ‘enlightenment’ through sleeping with literally thousands of women. In fact, sex was his way of blessing devotees – who fondly referred to him as Lam Drupka Kuenley, the ‘Divine Madman’.
This rogue monk was also a social critic who taunted the hypocrisy of the monastic order. He deliberately dressed as a vagabond and wandered the countryside indulging in song, dance, alcohol, feasting, hunting – and copious amounts of copulation. The use of his phallus as a ‘flaming thunderbolt’ weapon symbolises the discomfort that society experiences when faced with the truth.
He is said to have tamed a demoness using his mighty ‘flaming thunderbolt’! The demoness was buried on a hill where the Chimi Lakhang Temple now stands. The phallus has also become a symbol to ward off evil spirits.
