Ta Rimochen Lhakhang

Embrace Bhutan Cultural Tour

Bumthang | Bhutan

15 Nov 2019 | Fri

Day 09 of 13

Ta Rimochen Lhakhang
Local Bhutanese Archery Competition
Chamkhar Town Bumthang
Prakhar Tshechu – Prakhar Lhakhang
Local Bhutanese Store
Kiki La Pass Prayer Flags
Return Visit – Hotel Ugyen Ling Jakar

After thanking and saying our early morning goodbyes to the owners of Ogyen Choling Manor, it was time to start our journey to Prakhar Lhakhang. Today was the third and final day of the Prakhar Tshechu Festival (mask dances and religious performances performed by the monks of Nimalung Monastery).

Along the way to Prakhar Lhakhang, we stopped off to visit Ta Rimochen Lhakhang, a temple near the village of Misethang in the Tang Valley east of Jakar.

Ta Rimochan or Ti Rimochen is a Buddhist monastery in Bhutan belonging to the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. It is located near the village of Misethang in the Tang Valley east of Jakar.

According to legend, Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) meditated on a giant rock, and together with his two consorts Mandarava and Yeshe Tsogyal, left footprints here. The name of the temple is associated with tiger stripes, which can be seen on the rock.

There are two large rocks below the temple which are stated to “represent male and female jachung” or garudas. The location of a pond Padmasambhava used for ablutions is also marked. The cremation grounds are located near a “two legged khonying” or “two-legged archway chorten”.

The temple itself was founded by Pema Lingpa in the 14th century, right under the cliff. This establishment had been earlier predicted by religious master Longchenpa, who had seen it in a vision. In the 19th century the temple was restored by a distant descendant of Dorje Lingpa himself, Penlop Dorje Tsoke of Trongsa District.

– Wikipedia Tang Rimochen Lhakhang

It was a brief stop and we did not actually visit the temple (located on a hill above the road). But our guide Tashi did show us an area by the roadside that was tied to a famous legion involving Guru Rinpoche. On one of the large rocks scattered about was an imprint thought to be leftover from an epic bout of tantric lovemaking between Guru Rinpoche and his consort, Yeshey Tsogyal.