Phajoding Monastery

Phajoding Monastery (ཕ་ཇོ་སྡིངས་དགོན་པ) is a Buddhist monastic complex perched at approximately 3,750 metres elevation in the hills above Thimphu. Founded in the 13th century and associated with Phajo Drugom Zhigpo (1184–1251), the Tibetan lama who brought the Drukpa Kagyu lineage to western Bhutan, the complex includes about ten temples, meditation huts, and monastic residences. It houses roughly 80 young monks in a monastic school. Reached by a three-to-four-hour hike through blue pine and rhododendron forest from the Thimphu valley floor, Phajoding is both a site of religious significance and a popular day trek for residents and visitors.

History

The monastery takes its name from Phajo Drugom Zhigpo, who meditated in the area in the 13th century while establishing the Drukpa Kagyu school across western Bhutan. "Phajoding" combines his name with "ding" (meadow or flat ground). The site is one of several sacred places across the western valleys associated with Phajo and his descendants, which together form a UNESCO Tentative List nomination submitted by Bhutan in 2012 under the title "Sacred Sites Associated with Phajo Drugom Zhigpo and His Descendants."

While the site's spiritual associations date to the 13th century, most of the surviving buildings were constructed in 1748 by Gyelwa Shakya Rinchen (1710–1759), the 9th Je Khenpo. He expanded the complex with new temples, residences, and retreat huts, establishing it as a centre for monastic education and meditation that it remains today. Later Je Khenpos continued to use Phajoding as a retreat site, and the monastery accumulated murals, statues, thangkas, and ritual objects over the centuries.

Conservation

By the early 21st century, Phajoding had deteriorated through neglect. Its remote hilltop location — with no road access — made maintenance difficult. In 2010, the World Monuments Fund listed it among its endangered cultural sites, ranking it in the top five most at-risk monuments worldwide that year. The listing drew international attention to the complex's condition.

Restoration was carried out from July 2013 to June 2018 under the Phajoding Monastery Conservation Project, implemented by the Division for Conservation of Heritage Sites (Department of Culture, Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs) with a grant of Nu 200 million (approximately US$3 million) from the Government of India. The project faced unusual logistical challenges: to avoid destroying forest to build a road, conservators constructed a ropeway system of towers to transport building materials up the mountainside. The restoration work included stabilising foundations, repairing roofs, restoring murals, improving drainage, and upgrading the monks' living quarters while maintaining the site's architectural authenticity.

The Site Today

The complex is spread across a grassy ridge with panoramic views of the Thimphu valley below and the peaks above. The temples house murals depicting Drukpa Kagyu lineage masters, mandalas, and guardian deities. Ancient prayer wheels line the paths between buildings. Prayer flags mark the ridge, and stone cairns dot the approaches. The monastic school continues to educate young monks in scripture, ritual, and meditation practice.

The hike to Phajoding from the BBS Tower road above Thimphu is a popular outing. The trail passes through dense coniferous forest — predominantly blue pine (Pinus wallichiana) — before emerging into rhododendron and juniper scrub near the monastery. The path continues beyond Phajoding to Thuji Drag and onward to the ridge, forming part of longer trekking routes.

See Also

• Phajo Drugom Zhigpo
• Drukpa Kagyu
• Thimphu

References

1. Sacred Sites Associated with Phajo Drugom Zhigpo — UNESCO World Heritage Centre
2. Phajoding — World Monuments Fund
3. Phajoding Monastery Conservation Project — Department of Culture, Bhutan
4. Phajoding Monastery — Wikipedia
5. Phajoding Monastery — Bhutan Pilgrimage