Bhutan's Chendebji Chorten, styled after Kathmandu’s Swayambhunath Stupa

From the archive record

Sitting in a verdant valley, Chendebji Chorten was built in the 18th century by the Buddhist Lama Ngesup Tshering Wangchuk to ward off evil spirits and demons. Unusually for Bhutan, this chorten—a shrine to an important Buddhist monk—is styled after Bouddhanath Stupa in Nepal, including the signature eyes looking at the four cardinal points. Fitting with the tradition, there is a relic inside the Chorten. In this case, it is the skull of Tenzin Lekpai Dhundrup, a powerful figure believed to be the reincarnated guardian of Tibetan Buddhist teachings. Next to the chorten is a long prayer wall adorned with holy Buddhist scriptures. Several legends surround Chendebji Chorten. One of these is that the chorten was laid on top of an evil spirit in the form of a giant snake, which was squashed and