Punakha Chimi Lhakhang Fertility Temple Pilgrimage
Walk across rice paddies to reach Chimi Lhakhang — the Fertility Temple of Bhutan dedicated to the Divine Madman Drukpa Kunley, the most unconventional Buddhist saint, whose phallic iconography adorns farmhouses across Bhutan and whose blessing is sought by childless couples from across the country.
- 1
Lobesa Village Start
Begin the walk from Lobesa village, passing through the small market where locals sell produce, dried chilies, and religious objects before crossing the paddy fields toward the temple hill.
- 2
Rice Paddy Path
Walk the narrow elevated paths between flooded rice paddies in the valley floor, with views of the conical hill topped by the white temple ahead and traditional farmhouses on all sides.
- 3
Chimi Lhakhang Temple
The small white temple on its conical hill, built in 1499 by the cousin of Drukpa Kunley to house a wooden phallus carved by the Divine Madman himself — a place of pilgrimage for childless couples seeking blessing.
- 4
Drukpa Kunley Shrine
The inner shrine dedicated to Drukpa Kunley (1455–1529), whose deliberately scandalous behavior was intended to shock people out of conventional religious thinking — his phallus paintings on farmhouse walls ward off evil.
- 5
Fertility Blessing Ritual
Witness or participate in the blessing ritual performed by the resident monk, who taps the heads of pilgrims with the wooden phallus relic — couples come from across Bhutan seeking the blessing of a child.
- 6
Village Return Path
Return through the village of Sopsokha, past more traditional farmhouses with their painted phallus decorations and hanging dried corn and chilies, back toward the main road and Punakha town.