As my parents and
family are from Wangduephodrang dzongkhang, time to time seeking blessing from
Sha Radrap is of paramount importance. For we the people of Wangduephordang,
which is generally known by name Shar, Radrap is the source of great peace and
prosperity. On the other side he is also very fearful. Radrap no doubt has
became from time immemorial a household deity for the people of Wangdue.
After offering
butter lamps and incense I prostrated to the lama and than at the altar and
finally received blessing from the Radrap. I than requested and roll 3 set
dice. No. 5 was compounded and it was believed to be a good sign. It was a
blessing number from the 5 Radrap's manifestation present in the Monastery.
The old monastery
is a three storied building which houses the Radrap's statue on the top floor.
The moment one enter; one is immediately come in face to face with the fearful
Radrap.
From a layman's
conception the deity has three manifestations. He assumes the form of a king, a
monk and a btsan known as Dupo Tiyag. The king and the monk are the benign
manifestations responsible for the provision of peace, happiness and
prosperity.
On the contrary,
Dupo Tiyag with his fiery wrath acts as a destructive agent to punish people
whose faith in Radrap turns shallow. The bull sacrifice and the brGya tsar
ritual are conducted to assure that the wrath of Dupo Tiyag is not activated.
However, now this practice has been stopped and meat is purchased and offered.
As for the peaceful
manifestations, they are content with fumigation, erection of white flags
without inscriptions and libations (gser skyems).
Around him are his
manifestations:
(1) In front of him
is the white peaceful guardian of treasures (gter bdag)
holding a bowl
containing jewels. Riding on a white horse he moves around providing food and
wealth to the subjects of Radrap.
(2) On the right is
the black wrathful three-eyed Dupo Tiyag. His responsibility is to destroy the
enemies of the deity with the sword in his right hand and a mountain-sized
tusk.
(3) The rider of
Tanag Tingkar (rta nag rting dkar), “a black horse with white hooves,” Dushag
Nagpo (bDud zhags nag po), stationed on the left, captures and tames evil
people with the black rope from which his name is derived.
(4) Nearby is a
monk robed in yellow with a bowl in his left hand and a stick with stupa on the
top (mkar sil) in his right. He preaches and guards the Dharma.
(5) At the back is
the great warrior Magpon Chenpo Lutsen Pelzang (dMag dpon chen po Klu btsan
dpal bzang). He has a red wrathful face, three eyes and pointing hair. In his
right hand is a spear, and in his left a snake (to be used as rope). Riding on
the sunrays he destroys the enemies of Radrap and help people who seek refuge
in him.
You will also see A Mermaid who has offered the land for building the Monastery as per the caretaker.
The people of
Wangdue regularly conduct rituals in honor of Radrap. Prayer flags are also
hoisted. In all family annual ritual, appeasement rituals to Radrap are a must.
In doing so people believe that he will reward with prosperity, success, good
health and happiness.
All in all, the
faith of the people and the power of Radrap can be summed in three sentences:
"Go for trade; he is the merchant. Reside in the village;
he is the chieftain. March to the battlefield; he is the general."
Sha Radrap is
omnipresent and all-powerful. During archery and other games, many contestants
seek the help, strength and the skill of the deity for victory.
The blessing of
Radrap is sought for safety even when making long journeys and while going to a
new place.
Even people from
other parts of Bhutan who are stationed in the area frequently visit Radra
Nekhang and receive his blessing.
By the why how did Radrap
become the guardian deity of Wangdue Phodrang?
Originally this
deity was a Tibetan btsan. In the eight century when Guru Padmasambhava visited
Tibet this btsan promised to be the guardian (gter bdag) of his treasures. As a
mark of appreciation, Guru named him Genyen Chenpo (dge bsnyen chen po), the
great upasaka. This, however, is
not a feature that is unique to him as many such figures were made to take vows
to protect the Doctrine of Buddha.
Then, in the
thirteenth century, in Druk Ralung (‘Brug ra lung) in front of Phajo Drugom
Zhigpo (Pha jo ‘Brug sgom zhigpo), this treasure guardian of Guru rededicated
his service to the protection of the Dharma. Thereafter, he became bound by
oath (dam can), to protect the Doctrine of Buddha.
At an unspecified
period, when Mendi Phud Nidup, a trader from Khothangkha village went to Tibet,
he met this btsan. The trader, realizing the power of the btsan, tempted him to
come to his village as their general (dmag dpon) and deity. On being asked to
describe the mountain in his village, which was offered as the abode, the man
said:
“The summit is the
blooming place of chuga (chu kha) flowers.
The middle is the
singing place of khuju ngyoem (khu ju sngom).
The base is the
growth place of patsha damru (dpag tsha ‘dam ru”.
As the chuga flower
blooms only in the highlands and cane shoots and elastostoma in the lowlands we
can understand the enormity of the mountain with its base in the sub-tropical
zone and its summit among the cold high peaks.
The trader said
this with the intention of igniting the interest of the btsan to come to
Bhutan.
Having tempted the
deity, the two journeyed to Bhutan. A little before entering into the territory
of Bjena gewog , when they reached a small pass the btsan complained that he
was feeling lethargic (dz: tser yang ‘tseraw mas) . This gave the pass the name
the “lethargic mountain” (tser las la).
On encountering the
third peak the trader announced that this would be the abode. But when the
btsan reacted strongly, saying that it was much smaller than the one described,
the trader admitted that he had told him a lie and the peak acquired the name
the “lie mountain” (dz: shob la).
Even today these
mountains are referred to by the same appellations.
Continuing a little
further the two reached a place from where the present abode could be seen. So,
the trader informed the btsen that the peak, which was visible from where they
were standing, was the abode where chuga flowers bloomed. In comparison with
the high mountains of those in Tibet, this one in Bhutan appeared rather small
to the btsan, which provoked him to comment:
“it just has the height of a goat” (dz: ra bzum chig rang mas).
Thereafter, the peak became the abode of the btsan and it was
named “goat-like mountain” (ra ‘dra sgang). The btsan too was given the title
Radrap which is derived from the name of the mountain”.
He then settled on the peak and
became the deity of the people in the locality.
I really enjoyed
the visit after a long time.
To know detail
about the Sha Radrap and conduct of different festivals, please go through the
research conducted by Mr. Tandin Dorji.
Reference:
THE
CULT OF RADRAP (RA DGRA), “NEP” OF WANGDUE PHODRANG (BHUTAN) by Tandin Dorji
Curriculum Officer, CAPSD, Paro, Bhutan
