Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro, Bhutan

Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro is one of the most ornate temples in Bhutan. As one enters the innermost courtyard, on the right to the doorway is a mural of King Gesar of Ling, the famous Tibetan warrior-king who has apparently written the world’s longest poem. The premise houses a 5m high statue of Guru Rinpoche as well, just beside the main temple of Kyichu Lhakhang, consecrated in 1968 by Ashi Kesang Wangchuk, the wife and the then Queen of the third King of Bhutan. It is said that Guru Rinpoche himself visited the temple in the 8th century and hidden treasures inside. There is a chorten for the queen’s Nyingma Buddhism spiritual teacher Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche as well.

Coming to the main Kyichu Lhakhang temple, it houses one of the most precious gems of the country, a 7th century original Tibetan statue of Jowo Jampa or Jowo Shakyamuni. This statue is a contemporary of the original one in Lhasa, and its temple forms a sacred network of 12 Jowo Lhakhang temples that surround the holy temple of Lhasa in Tibet. Outside there are prayer wheels and a statue of Chenrezig with 11 heads and 1000 arms. However, no description of Kyichu Lhakhang can do justice to how magical it looks like in real life.