The Third Bhutan Exploration – Day 2

Nabji, Kolpu

After finishing their meal, they departed from Trongsa Dzongkhag at 6:40 a.m. and headed toward Napji Chiwog. They traveled along winding mountain roads for 3 hours and 30 minutes.

The cliff stretched dangerously close to the road as they drove. Mr. Choi Won-gyu, the forestry expert, wiped his cold sweat and said,
“I must have committed many sins in my life, because I was really anxious, wondering what would happen if we fell off the cliff. But you seem completely at ease, Venerable Pomnyun, without any worry.”

Venerable Pomnyun smiled and said, “If you look at the road, you’ll see that it’s actually a sheer cliff, and in many places, the road has been carved like drilling holes into the rock. In such areas, no matter how much money you have, you can’t just go and see it.”

A JTS volunteer who worked in the Philippines for eight years saw the road to Nabji Chiwok and said, “The people of Bhutan must truly be grateful to their king,” with tears welling up in their eyes. The fact that the government managed to build a road all the way here is remarkable. From a Korean perspective, it’s almost unthinkable to even consider making a road through such a cliff.

A person who joined the previous survey trip looked at this road and said that peace would inevitably prevail here. When people argue over the phone and get upset, if they want to meet the other person, they have to go down the mountain and climb back up. So, by the time they get there, they’ll be so tired they won’t be able to fight anymore.” (laughter)

Admiring the road built through such a cliff, they soon arrived at Nabji Chiwok.

“In the 8th century, the kings of India and Bhutan were on the brink of war. However, Guru Rinpoche was able to persuade both kings to make a peace agreement. On one side of this rock, the Indian king placed his palm, and on the other side, the Bhutanese king did the same. In the center, Guru Rinpoche placed his palm, and through this, peace was restored here. If you look at the rock, you can see the palm prints engraved.”

Next, they took time to introduce each other. The officials from Kolpu Gewok and Chiwok introduced themselves first, and then Venerable Pomnyun introduced the experts from Korea.

“We’ve brought experts from Korea who have advanced knowledge and experience to study ways to develop Bhutan’s rural economy. We plan to visit the site and work together to find good solutions. While we may not be able to immediately apply these ideas to the projects this year, let’s discuss what we can do in the future to increase farmers’ incomes.”

The local residents expressed their gratitude to the team by performing a traditional cultural show. The women came out and sang three traditional songs in a row. These songs are said to be prayers for the health and well-being of the guests.

After the songs ended, Venerable Pomnyun presented an offering to the local residents. Then, they had lunch with the food that the residents had prepared. Once the meal was finished, the woman who had sung earlier approached the monk with a request.

“In both Nabji Chiwog and Kolpu Chiwog, we sometimes have festivals, but as you can see, the space is limited, making it difficult to hold gatherings. It would be wonderful if we could have a space where the entire village could come together.”

“Yes, I understand.”

After leaving the temple, Venerable Pomnyun spoke with the residents.
“The food was delicious. But why aren’t the men here?”
“Today is the full moon, so it’s a day when men are not supposed to work. That’s why all the men are at home. We are so happy that you visited our village. It’s a bit unfortunate that we can’t fully express our feelings because of the language barrier.”

The residents expressed their gratitude to the team. Venerable Pomnyun then shared what he hoped to accomplish this year as a pilot project in Nabji Chiwog.

“There are many things that will be needed, but this year, we will prioritize connecting the irrigation canals. Because the farming season is approaching, we must start with laying down the canals first.”

Afterward, Venerable Pomnyun handed out a packet of Korean seaweed to each of the women.

“This seaweed was brought by the agricultural expert from Korea for all of you. Please take one each.”

Next, they all headed to the water source to examine how to lay the irrigation canals.

Before entering the mountains, Venerable Pomnyun explained,
“There are four water sources in this mountain stream, and the water is used to irrigate the fields. The first water source flows down here. The canals have been made of earth, but due to erosion, everything has been washed away. The residents are requesting that the canals be built with cement instead. And since the forestry expert is here, let’s go into the forest and take a look.”

As they left the village and entered the mountains, they came upon the cemented irrigation canal. They carefully walked along the canal, and soon arrived at the water source. There, rocks had collapsed, blocking the water source, and additional rocks were at risk of falling, making repairs necessary. The monk tapped the rocks with his walking stick, and part of the stone quickly crumbled.

The experts also shared a variety of opinions.

“Here, it would be best to cover the collapsed area with large, flat stones. This way, even if more rocks fall, the water can continue to flow. In other places with rockfall risks, it’s necessary to cover them as well.”

“We should remove all the rocks at risk of falling before starting the canal construction.”

After inspecting the water source, they descended from the mountain and visited the fields. In the fields, the irrigation canals were also made of earth, and many parts had been damaged. They followed the path of the flowing water to assess the situation.

“The water that comes down from here flows into this field, and to irrigate the other field, a canal has been built over there.”

When they arrived at the village, they saw fields densely planted with cardamom.

“If you go to the opposite mountain, there are many fields densely planted with cardamom. This side is all rice fields, while that side is entirely cardamom fields.”

The monk asked Chokba, the village leader, a few questions.

“There’s a month and a half left until rice planting. Do you think the canal construction can be completed in that time?”
“It’s difficult to finish everything, but I would like to at least complete the 1 km section from the first water source to here,”

Chokba, the village leader, expressed a strong desire to start the construction immediately. As they descended to the village, a larger field spread out before them. The water from the first water source was not enough, so additional water sources—second, third, and fourth—had been created to bring in more water. The government had constructed the main canal, but due to budget shortages, the secondary canals that would distribute the water to each rice field had not yet been built.

“Distributing the water from the main canal to each rice field is the biggest challenge,”

The experts also shared their thoughts on the issue.

“We not only need to build the canals, but we also need to create roads alongside them. In the future, we will need roads that machines can travel on.”

After roughly assessing the situation, everyone moved together to Kolpu Chiwog at 1:30 PM.

After climbing a very steep mountain path for a long time, they arrived at the summit where houses were densely packed. The experts were astonished and remarked,

“It’s incredible that people have built homes and live all the way up here, at such a high altitude.”

This is the area where, during the previous survey, the village residents expressed the need for an emergency water source in case of fire. The existing water source is 6 km away, and in response to the request from the village chief, they were seeking to bring water from a newly discovered location 4 km away to address both fire emergencies and potential future water shortages.

In order to supply water for fire emergencies, a water tank needs to be installed at a higher elevation than the village. So, we went up to the higher location to assess the area.

“If we install the water tank at this height, there will be more than a 50-meter elevation difference between the village and the tank, so the water pressure should be sufficient without needing to use electricity.”

After confirming with the experts about the already installed water tank, they descended back to the village. They had a brief tea break with government officials and discussed a few matters.

After discussing the installation of the fire water system, we turned our attention to the issue of the Kolpu Chiwog irrigation system. The lower half of the fields in Nabji Chiwog are cultivated by the people of Kolpu Chiwog, so there was a need to repair and improve the irrigation canals in that area.

Next, they departed from Kolpu Chiwog and headed towards the Kolpu Gewog Center, where the village leaders from Nabji Chiwog, Nimsong Chiwog, and Kolpu Chiwog gathered together for a meeting.

After taking a commemorative photo in front of the center, they began their discussion.

“Experts from Korea have arrived. Feel free to ask any questions you have and let’s have a relaxed conversation.”

First, the experts from Korea shared their impressions after visiting the farms and forests. Professor Park Jin-do, who was visiting Bhutan for the seventh time, spoke first.

“Seeing the work you’ve been doing and the passion you have, I am confident that this project will be very successful. Gewok’s leaders, Chokbas, and the government officials are all outstanding. Collaboration with the residents will be very important. I hope this project succeeds, and I will do my part to help, no matter how small.”

Professor Park Jin-do suggested that before starting any village development, it is important to conduct a thorough survey, including annual harvests, population size, income, and the number of schoolchildren.

Next, agricultural expert Joo Hyeong-ro shared his thoughts.

“Thank you for preserving nature as it is. In Korea, we destroyed nature but are now moving toward conservation. You have something very precious here. You have many rice fields and an abundance of water. If we share the technology we have and cooperate, we can increase the harvest.”

Joo Hyeong-ro went on to explain various techniques to increase rice yields, such as building farm roads, growing root-nodule legumes to supplement fertilizer, maintaining water levels in the fields during the busy farming season, and properly aligning rice seedlings when planting.

Next, Noh Gi-seon, an expert in water and sanitation, suggested methods for handling wastewater. Currently, there is no separate sewage treatment facility, and wastewater is mixed with irrigation water. He recommended the installation of a purification system to address this issue.

The village leaders of each Chiwog also asked the experts questions about things they were curious about. In Nabji Chiwog, they hoped to build a meeting room where all the residents could gather, and Venerable Pomnyun responded that it would be fine if the facility also served as a senior welfare center, adding that it would be reviewed later. The administrative officer of Gewog suggested building a facility in Nimsong village to make pumpkin soup for women, and submitted a proposal for it. Lastly, Chokba, the village leader of Nabji Chiwok, shared his opinion.

“Instead of just talking, it would be great if we could actually start doing something. Even if we can’t complete the entire 1 km of the irrigation canal, it would be encouraging to see some progress. Now, we need to show the residents that JTS will really be involved.”

“I agree. Once you’re ready, we’ll support you immediately.”

Then, the leader of Kolpu Gewok voiced his concerns.

“The residents are concerned about doing the construction work through collective labor because they are busy with farming. After the rice farming season ends, they need to focus on growing cardamom, and once that ends, they return to rice farming, so people are very busy. It would be better to carry out the project during the less busy period, from October to January.”

Venerable Pomnyun fully understood and accepted the concerns of the village leaders. Finally, he gave a closing remark.

Objectives of the Sustainable Development Project

“While surveying Bhutan, we have planned seven key initiatives for sustainable development. First, improving living conditions. For those without homes, we will build small houses, and for those living in poor conditions, we need to improve their environment to make it more livable. Second, developing production activities to ensure that residents can meet their basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter. This includes researching how to improve agricultural irrigation systems to supply water to the fields, determining what crops to plant and what fertilizers to use, what fruit trees to plant, what resources can be directly harvested from nature, what handicrafts can be done during the off-season, and how much livestock can be raised. Third, improving the educational environment. While the education system and school operations are the responsibility of the local government, there is a need to support school facilities and provide supplies like learning materials. Fourth, providing healthcare support, particularly for the elderly, including treatment for their eyes, ears, and teeth. Fifth, improving roads and water supply. While roads are the responsibility of the government, we can support the restoration of certain sections of farm roads that have been damaged. Areas frequently damaged by rain can be improved with concrete. Sixth, helping to preserve the natural environment. Seventh, supporting the preservation of traditional cultures.”

“This project is not something that can be done by the government alone. The key is to engage with the community and help them realize what they truly need. The goal of this project is to empower residents with the mindset of “I improve my own home,” and “We improve our own village.” It’s about fostering self-reliance. If there are needs along the way, we are here to support them. It’s not about JTS unilaterally doing something for the people. While improving residents’ lives is important, the greater goal is for them to experience satisfaction and joy throughout the process. Increasing their Gross National Happiness (GNH) during this journey is what matters most. If the residents say, “We want to try this ourselves, but we need help with these things,” we are more than willing to assist them.”

“Apply whenever you’re ready. But please, don’t rush. This project is meant to make people happy. If we go about it in a way that adds more burden to already busy people, it goes against the purpose of this project. We will proceed as you are ready.”

After having a two-hour conversation, everyone moved to the Nabji Chiwok office, which was being used as the accommodation for the Korean staff. They shared a meal, carefully prepared with Korean dishes such as curry, kimchi, and seaweed.

After finishing the meal, Venerable Pomnyun called the village leaders and gifted them the rice planting markers that Mr. Joo Hyung-ro had brought, giving each of them one as a present.

 “For now, try using the rice planting markers on just one field as a test. By planting at consistent intervals, we can see if it increases the yield. If the harvest is lower than usual, I’ll make up for it.” (Laughter)

He then continued to motivate the leaders.

“Working with the village residents is challenging, but we must keep trying. Only then will the residents gain the skills they need to become self-reliant. It’s tough at first, which is why we shouldn’t make the pilot project too large. Start small, and make sure the residents feel happiness, not pressure.”

After the village leaders and government officials left, the monk, along with the JTS staff, tidied up the meal setting and concluded the day’s activities.

Tomorrow, in the morning, the team will move to Baldo Gewok in Gemgang Dzongkhag to attend the Rangdelbi Sample House inauguration ceremony, and in the afternoon, plan to visit Komshar and Baldo Tichok.

*This text was written and edited based on an article provided by the Monk’s Day Team