The Echoes from Bhutan
When I started Bhutan Echoes (then it was called Mountain Echoes) in collaboration with the then Indian Ambassador Pavan Kumar Varma, there was hardly anyone writing in English. The content was written only in our own language, so I wanted to expand the scope of the event to include more writers and readers, more lovers of words, which is what has happened over the last 13 years. Today, I envision Bhutan Echoes to be international so that we can showcase our local talents on a global level. That is my dream and my aspiration.
How do you stay in touch with the people in Bhutan?
I feel it is my moral duty. I am blessed to hold this (royal) position and I cannot just waste it. I have to understand the people – their aspirations, their dreams, their realities on the ground. That is why I walked to many villages over 20 years ago. Some of these journeys – over mountain passes and despite bad weather – took me three weeks. Sometimes I walked for over 10 to 11 hours a day. I lost toenails, got blisters, but I went to the people, lived with them and ate with them.
Most of your time is invested in improving life through
At the Tarayana Foundation, we help people in financial difficulties through housing programs, scholarships, training, production, marketing of rural products and financial support as well as raising awareness of global warming and we work hard to preserve national parks and wildlife corridors. We are also committed to water conservation because water has become an important and precious commodity not only in Bhutan but all over the world. We provide microcredit to villagers in remote areas to help them improve their livelihoods. We also address poverty in urban areas because the hopes of people moving to the city are not fully fulfilled. And that is precisely the need for Tarayana Foundation to address these challenges in the future. Currently, we work in over 600 villages in Bhutan. Our motto is: Service from the heart and respect for the people who serve.
You have written three books. Each work is unique, but still has a connection to the development of Bhutan. What motivates you to write and which one did you enjoy the most?
The first, Rainbows and Clouds, was a biography of my father, Yab Ugen Dorji. He was turning 70 and I wanted to capture his memories. It is an ode to him and I am glad I did it because I captured his way of life in Bhutan, which is now lost. I really enjoyed writing this book and capturing the essence of “his” Bhutan. The second book (“Treasures of the Thunder Dragon: A Portrait of Bhutan”) is part travelogue and part memoir and is intended to introduce Bhutan to the world. It is a mixture of all my experiences and all my diary entries that I made while traveling from village to village. The third/final book (Dochula: A Spiritual Abode in Shutan) is very special to me because it is about the 108 stupas in Dochula Pass, from the time when His Majesty (former King Jigme Singye Wangchuck) led his army to war in 2003. I wrote the book to help him come home victorious, and then I also built a temple and started a festival to thank the king and honor his work and sacrifices.
How important is a festival like Bhutan Echoes for today’s youth, especially in the age of social media and artificial intelligence?
Books are different from AI because they provide a sense of connection and knowing each other – they come from the heart. We celebrate all forms of art and literature as we experience them together.
Bhutan is known worldwide for its high happiness index. And as Honorary President of Sherubtse College, Bhutan’s oldest and most prestigious institution of higher learning, you are very interested in discussions around youth and gender issues. What measures are being taken to address the problems of the next generation in Bhutan?
There is a great need to fulfill the hopes of our youth and we need to ensure that the youth of Bhutan stay and serve. This initiative was started by His Majesty King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. He started something called the Desuung project and now he is starting the Gyalsung program. Youths who turn 18 have to join the Gyalsung and be trained in various arts and skills. They are also trained to be tough, almost like a militia, to make them aware of who they are and where they are going. Another project is the Mindfulness City in Gelephu, which will take us to a new sphere of prosperity.
