Thimphu, Bhutan’s serene capital, is meticulously preparing for a spiritual festival lasting two weeks, dedicated to praying for world peace and the collective healing of humanity.
The Global Peace Prayer Festival (GPPF), scheduled from November 4 to 19 and organized by the Royal Government of Bhutan, anticipates the convergence of distinguished lamas and monks from all schools of Buddhism, both within Bhutan and internationally. The festival seeks to usher in a “shared golden age of peace and prosperity” in a world increasingly marked by conflict, polarization, and discord.
The GPPF gains profound significance given the backdrop of conflicts and instability in Bhutan’s neighboring regions — including ethnic and communal clashes in India’s northeastern territory, an ongoing civil war in Myanmar, and intense political protests in Bangladesh and Nepal aimed at government changes.
“We are living in a time when the need for peace, compassion, and understanding has never been greater. It is with this spirit that we are honored to host the GPPF,” affirmed Tshering Tobgay, the Prime Minister of Bhutan.
Sangay Dorji, a principal organizer of the GPPF and a senior member of Bhutan’s Central Monastic Body, elaborated, “This unprecedented gathering will unite spiritual leaders, scholars, and practitioners from every school and vehicle of Buddhism, harnessing the transformative power of loving-kindness and compassionate awareness to co-create a future rooted in peace and happiness.”
A Historic Ordination Ceremony
One of the festival’s most anticipated events will be the ‘Gelongma’ or bhikshuni ordination of over 250 Buddhist nuns, taking place from November 15 to 19. This significant ordination will be presided over by the spiritual head of Bhutan’s largest Buddhist school, the Drugpa Kagyu.
This event marks a crucial step toward addressing historical inequalities between men and women in monasticism, as women have traditionally been denied full ordination as nuns within the Vajrayana tradition.
The GPPF will commence with the Jabzhi Dhoechog, a seven-day ritual dedicated to global peace and happiness. This ritual, seldom performed on such a grand scale, combines peaceful offerings with protection from wrath, aiming to heal, cleanse, and purify negative karma from body, speech, and mind.
Other scheduled events include public blessings by eminent lamas, the mass recitation of the Bazaguru mantra to foster a shared aspiration for peace, the profound Kalachakra initiation offering insights into the sacred interplay between the individual microcosm and the universal macrocosm, and the launch of the Guru App, described as a “sacred digital companion.”