The Bhutanese Kirat Rai Organization of America (BKROA), also known as BKROA-Yayokkha America, is a cultural and religious organization established in 2014 to preserve and promote Kirat Rai identity among Bhutanese refugees in the United States. Headquartered in New Carrollton, Maryland, with branches in Akron and Cincinnati, Ohio, BKROA serves the approximately 9,000 Kirat among the resettled Bhutanese population — roughly 10% of the community. The organization centers on the preservation of Kirat Mundhum traditions, the celebration of the Sakela festival with its distinctive ritual dances, and the maintenance of indigenous spiritual practices rooted in animism, ancestor veneration, and nature worship.
The Bhutanese Kirat Rai Organization of America (BKROA), also known as BKROA-Yayokkha America, is a cultural and religious organization established in 2014 to preserve and promote Kirat Rai identity among Bhutanese refugees in the United States. Registered as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN 81-0962155) and headquartered in New Carrollton, Maryland, BKROA serves the approximately 9,000 Kirat among the resettled Lhotshampa population — roughly 10% of the Bhutanese refugee community in America. The organization has branches in Akron and Cincinnati, Ohio, and is an American branch of the broader Kirat Rai Yayokkha movement established in Nepal in 1990.[1]
Kirat Identity
The Kirat are an indigenous people originating from the eastern Himalayan regions of Nepal, India, and Bhutan. The identity encompasses several ethnic communities — Rai, Limbu, Yakkha, and Sunwar — each with distinct languages, clans, and rituals, while sharing broader cultural elements. The Kirat religion, known as Kirat Mundhum or Kiratism, is an indigenous oral tradition encompassing creation myths, ritual practices, and ethical guidelines. It is rooted in animism, ancestor veneration, and nature worship.
Religious specialists include Nakkchong practitioners among the Rai and Phendgaba or Samba priests among the Limbu. The Rai tradition centers on worship of Sumnima (Mother Earth) and Paruhang (sky god). Among the Bhutanese refugee population, the religious breakdown in the camps was approximately 60% Hindu, 27% Buddhist, and 10% Kirat, with the remainder identifying as Christian.[2]
Organization and Branches
BKROA has established multiple chapters across the United States, with Ohio hosting the largest Kirat population in the country:
- National headquarters — New Carrollton, Maryland
- Akron, Ohio — One of the most active branches, formally registered as "Bhutanese Kirat Rai Organization (Yoyakkha) of America, Branch Akron"
- Cincinnati, Ohio — Active chapter that participates in national Bhutanese community events
- Vermont — Local chapter that has organized Sakela celebrations in Burlington
Sakela Festival
The most important Kirat Rai festival is Sakela, celebrated twice a year:
- Ubhauli (spring, April–May) — Marks the beginning of the farming year and symbolizes "upward migration" to the hills for planting. Celebrated on the full moon day of Baisakh for fifteen days.
- Udhauli (autumn, November–December) — Marks the harvest season and symbolizes "downward migration" to lower altitudes. Celebrated on the full moon day of Mangsir as a thanksgiving to nature for a good harvest.
The Sakela dance is central to both celebrations. Men and women dress in traditional Rai attire, forming large circles and performing rhythmic steps to the beat of traditional drums (dhol) and cymbals (jhyamta). Each movement mimics daily life, nature, and agricultural activities — sowing seeds, planting, or harvesting. BKROA has organized Sakela Sili (dance) competitions, with the 3rd Sakela Sili Competition held in May 2024.
In Vermont, community leader Harka Rai organized Ubhauli Sakela celebrations at the Old North End Community Center in Burlington in April 2018, after having been unable to perform the ceremonial rituals for three years since resettling in 2014. Bidur Rai, another community leader, participated in similar events in Springfield, Massachusetts (2016) and Cincinnati (2017) before the Vermont celebration.[3]
Related Organizations
The Kirat Community Organization of Ohio (KCOO), established in 2009 in Akron and formally registered in 2015, operates a Community Center with a hall and Manghim (place of worship). KCOO programs include daily morning prayers, weekly hymn singing, traditional dance instruction (mang lang, ke-lang, sakela), weekly educational classes, and monthly public prayers. KCOO is pursuing construction of a National Kirat Community Center in Akron with a modern stage and dedicated spiritual space.[4]
The parent organization, Kirat Rai Yayokkha, is headquartered in Koteshwor, Nepal, and has international branches in the U.S., UK, Hong Kong, UAE, and other locations.
Significance
BKROA represents the effort of a minority within a minority to maintain its distinct identity. The Kirat Rai were a relatively small group within the Lhotshampa population, and in the diaspora they face the compounded challenge of preserving traditions that are endangered not only by the displacement from Bhutan but also by the pressures of assimilation in the United States and the dominance of Hindu and Christian religious institutions within the broader Bhutanese American community. The organization's work to maintain Sakela celebrations, Nakkchong practices, and Mundhum traditions ensures that one of the oldest indigenous spiritual traditions of the Himalayan region continues in the diaspora.
See Also
References
- ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. "Bhutanese Kirat Rai Organization of America (EIN 81-0962155)." https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/810962155
- Asian Services in Action (ASIA). "A Glimpse into Kirat Culture." https://www.asiaohio.org/a-glimpse-into-kirat-culture/
- Seven Days (Vermont). "Bhutanese Community Prepares to Host Major Kirat Rai Festival." April 2018. https://www.sevendaysvt.com/arts-culture/bhutanese-community-prepares-to-host-major-kirat-rai-festival-15107319/
- Kirat Community Organization of Ohio. "About Us." https://kiratcommunityoh.org/about-us/kirat-community-organization-of-ohio-inc/
- Wikipedia. "Sakela." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakela
See also
Global Bhutanese Hindu Organization
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diaspora·27 min readGlobal Bhutanese Literary Organization
The Global Bhutanese Literary Organization (GBLO) is a diaspora literary body founded in 2009 in the Bhutanese refugee camps of eastern Nepal to promote Nepali-language literature. It is now headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.
diaspora·4 min readAssociation of Bhutanese in America
The Association of Bhutanese in America (ABA) is a national umbrella organisation for the Nepali-speaking Bhutanese-American community, the great majority of whom are Lhotshampa refugees resettled in the United States from 2008 onwards. It coordinates among dozens of city-level community-based organisations, runs an annual national convention, and has become a visible civic voice during the 2025 ICE deportations of Lhotshampa green-card holders.
diaspora·10 min readShree Vaishnav Parishad America
Shree Vaishnav Parishad America (SVPA) is a Hindu religious 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded by Bhutanese-Nepali refugee leadership to articulate the Vishishta-Advaita Vedantic tradition of the Sri Vaishnava sampradaya in the United States. Incorporated under EIN 47-4838320 with IRS exemption granted in November 2016, SVPA operates the Shree Laxmi Narayan Mandir and the Jagadguru Yogiraj Shree Kamalnayanacharya Ashram/Gurukulum at 14376 East Broad Street, Reynoldsburg, Ohio. Its 2024 IRS filing reported revenue of US$382,491 and total assets of US$1.71 million. A separately-incorporated sister entity, Shree Vaishnav Parishad Harrisburg, operates the Shree Laxmi Narayan Hari Har Dham temple at 6641 Clearfield Street in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, inaugurated on 5 April 2019.
diaspora·4 min readBhutanese Community in Connecticut
Connecticut hosts a small Nepali-speaking Bhutanese refugee population concentrated in the Greater Hartford area, with a secondary presence around New Haven and scattered families in Bridgeport and Fairfield County. Most arrived between 2008 and 2017 through Catholic Charities Hartford, IRIS in New Haven and Jewish Family Services of Greater Hartford.
diaspora·11 min readLife in Bhutanese Refugee Camps
An overview of daily life, community structure, challenges, and resilience in the seven Bhutanese refugee camps in southeastern Nepal, where over 100,000 Lhotshampa lived in protracted exile from the early 1990s through the 2010s.
diaspora·7 min read
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