Guru Rimpochey's thongdrel is lowered on his birthday, at Bumthang

From the archive record

Bhutanese lower Guru Rimpochey's thongdrel on his birthday at Bumthang, Bhutan. The Bumthang region is known as the spiritual heart of the kingdom, as it was here that Guru Rinpoche cured a local king of a spirit-induced ailment in the 8th century CE, an event that resulted in the the king, and finally the whole country, embracing Buddhism. The Buddhist saint Pema Ligpa was born in the region and many other famous Buddhist yogis lived and practiced here. Consequently, the area is a repository of sacred artifacts and monasteries. Guru Padmasambhava was known in Tibet as one of the founding fathers of Tibetan Buddhism, who appeared in Tibet in 749 A.D, and spent 54 years. Other two founders were Acharya Shanta Rakshita and prevalent King Thisong Deotsen. Padmasambhava’s birth in this world w