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The resettlement of over 84,000 Bhutanese refugees in the United States since 2007 has led to the establishment of Hindu religious institutions serving the Lhotshampa diaspora community. The majority of Bhutanese refugees are Hindu, and maintaining religious practice in the diaspora has become a significant aspect of community identity and cultural preservation. The most prominent institution is the Global Bhutanese Hindu Organization (GBHO) and its headquarters, the Om Center Divya Dham in Galion, Ohio, which hosted approximately 50,000 attendees at a major religious gathering in July 2025.^[1]

Background

The Lhotshampa of southern Bhutan practiced Hinduism as their primary religion, maintaining temples, observing festivals, and following traditions rooted in the Vedic Sanatan Dharma tradition. When tens of thousands were expelled from Bhutan in the early 1990s, religious practice continued in the refugee camps in Nepal, where community mandirs (temples) served as gathering places.

Upon resettlement in the United States, Bhutanese Hindus initially participated in worship at existing South Asian Hindu temples in their new cities. However, cultural and linguistic differences — the Bhutanese Hindu community speaks Nepali rather than Hindi, Tamil, or other South Asian languages common in established Indian American temples — and the desire to maintain specifically Bhutanese traditions led to the development of community-specific religious spaces.

Global Bhutanese Hindu Organization (GBHO)

The Global Bhutanese Hindu Organization was established as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with the mission of creating "a unified platform for the Hindu American Bhutanese/Nepali diaspora, fostering collaboration in the preservation and propagation of Vedic Sanatan Dharma." It was founded by Kamal Dhimal along with 108 founding members and has grown to become the largest religious organization of the Bhutanese diaspora.^[2]

Om Center Divya Dham

On July 14, 2022, GBHO purchased 150 acres of land at 4270 State Route 309, Galion, Ohio, for approximately $2 million. The property — comprising rolling farmland, forest, two lakes, natural springs, and a river — was designated as the future world headquarters of GBHO and named the Om Center Divya Dham. The choice of rural Ohio reflects the significant Bhutanese-American population in the state, particularly in the Columbus metropolitan area, which is home to an estimated 30,000 Bhutanese-Nepali residents.

The 2025 Vishwa Shanti Gyan Mahayagya

From July 16 to July 23, 2025, GBHO held the Vishwa Shanti Gyan Mahayagya (Great Spiritual Offering for World Peace and Wisdom) at the Om Center Divya Dham. The seven-day ceremony drew an estimated 50,000 attendees from across the United States and abroad, making it one of the most significant Bhutanese-American religious gatherings in history.^[1]

The event featured:

175 officiating priests, including 35 female priests from the community and abroad
Daily recitation of Vishnu Sahasranama by hundreds of children
Vedic chant recitations and readings from sacred scriptures including the Vedas, Rudri, Chandi, Bhagwat, and Gita
The lighting of 1.5 crore (15 million) oil lamps to honor souls lost during the Bhutanese conflict
Installation of an 11-foot copper Kalash symbolizing divine abundance
A life-sized replica of a refugee camp hut, commemorating the refugee experience
Free health assessments for over 300 attendees and a blood donation drive collecting 49 pints

Memorial Dimension

The Mahayagya included a significant memorial component. The gathering honored 67 Bhutanese individuals who were reported killed or disappeared during the mass expulsions of the early 1990s. This combination of religious ceremony with commemoration of political violence reflected the intertwined nature of religious identity and refugee experience in the Bhutanese Hindu diaspora. The Global Campaign for the Release of Political Prisoners in Bhutan (GCRPPB) also participated in the event, raising awareness about Bhutanese political prisoners.^[3]

Local Mandirs and Community Worship

Beyond the GBHO's national-scale project, Bhutanese Hindu communities across the United States maintain smaller worship spaces and community mandirs in cities with significant Bhutanese populations. These include informal worship rooms in community centers, rented spaces used for regular puja (worship services) and festival observances, and in some cases purpose-built or converted prayer halls. Cities with notable Bhutanese Hindu religious activity include Columbus, Ohio; Akron, Ohio; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Atlanta, Georgia; and various cities in Texas and the Midwest.

Religious observances commonly maintained in the diaspora include Dashain (Vijaya Dashami), Tihar (Deepawali), Teej, Janai Purnima, and other festivals from the Hindu calendar. These events serve a dual function as both religious observances and community gathering occasions.

Role in Diaspora Identity

Hindu religious institutions play a multifaceted role in the Bhutanese-American community. They serve as spaces for worship, cultural transmission to younger generations, community organizing, and collective memory. For a population whose religious identity was part of the basis for their marginalization and expulsion from Bhutan — where the state promoted a Buddhist national identity through policies like Driglam Namzha — the free practice and public celebration of Hinduism in America carries particular significance.

The GBHO's emphasis on preserving "Vedic Sanatan Dharma" positions the organization within a tradition that predates the refugee crisis, connecting the diaspora community to a religious heritage that transcends their specific political displacement. At the same time, events like the Mahayagya's memorial for victims of the expulsions demonstrate that religious practice and political memory remain closely linked in the community.

Bhutanese Hindu Temples in America