So Close to Heaven (2011)

Authors: Barbara Crossette

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“Village shrines, whose old statues and bright, polished vessels amid an array of offerings—replicated in the prayer rooms of thousands of Bhutanese homes, large and small—are as much an integral part of daily life as the fields, clinics, homes, and schools. In many small hamlets, a rudimentary temple with only a lama or two, or maybe none, is the only focal point for the community. Most Bhutanese shrines and monastic chapels have not been forced by security concerns to pack away altar treasures... or restrict the spontaneous use of them by worshippers. Furthermore, confounding the outsider, Himalayan Buddhist holy places tolerate deities and legendary beings who wander in from other faiths or the powerful local spirit world and who may be accorded shrines of their own under the roofs of more classic icons. I had seen bowls, chalices, pitchers, money, food, candle-powered revolving lamps, photographs in silver frames, peacock feathers, and once a Heineken can placed before images of Buddhas or saints in various forms, temperaments, or colorations.MoreLess Read More Read Less