Helping Dodedrak Monastery
Donation protected
Hello everyone, my name is Hoang-Anh Dang from Vietnam. My friend, Lan-Anh, and I have just returned from Bhutan after the most memorable and eye-opening holiday. We were there for 7 days, during which time we were fortunate enough to visit Dodedrak Monastery and have a glimpse into the life of the monks.
Brief Information about the Monastery
The monastery is located on a mountain near Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, thus reaching the place is quite an adventure (at least for us two girls). It was an arduous climb, taking us over 2 hours to get there. This is not to boast about our ardent desire and strong will, but rather to highlight how the monastery is relatively inaccessible and isolated. The rocky path is the only mode of transport that connects the monks to civilization; every time they need necessities they would have to trek down to markets in town. Being moderately wrapped up in a life full of comfort with rare contact with those less fortunate than ourselves, it pained us to learn about their rudimentary living conditions, yet the monks are still joyful, very welcoming and compassionate.
Why every penny counts/why we need your help
Bhutan is a predominantly Buddhist country, consequently meaning the monasteries and the Buddhist community are fairly taken care of by the government. Nevertheless not all needs can be met in a country gradually embracing modernization. In one of our conversations with a monk named Pema, our caretaker when we were there, we’ve learned that there is no access to hot water at the monastery. It came as a shock to us that they have a bath only once a week on Sunday, using hot stones as a mean to heat up their wooden bath tub. More than 150 monks currently residing at Dodedrak would then have to take turn having a wash in a bath tub that can only fit 7-8 people at a time. I quivered at the thought of being denied my daily shower and I can imagine most of us would too. We stayed there for one night, we brushed our teeth and washed our faces with ice cold water. The thought of doing the same routines in winter where snow can get up to 2ft, coupled with the lack of heaters in the monks’ sleeping rooms, compelled me to act as soon as I return from the trip.
We are calling upon your kindness and generosity so that monks at Dodedrak Monastery can have access to hot water. We are planning to purchase hot water shower machines with a capacity of 100 litres each and send them over to Bhutan.
Any contribution/donation however small will be tremendously appreciated. Every penny from you will go straight towards helping the monastery, home to a young population of monks such as Pema. It is our sincere hope that this campaign would help us raise sufficient money to ameliorate the living condition of the monks, so that they can better focus on their Buddhist studies. Any funds above our target goal will be used to provide first and foremost heaters, warm jackets for winter months and some English books for their entertainment. It is ideally our wish to keep them informed and knowledgeable about the world, as we were told that they love reading English books in their free time. ‘Reading is interesting’, they cheerfully said.
Thank you very much for your invaluable contribution - on behalf of Pema and Dodedrak community.
Brief Information about the Monastery
The monastery is located on a mountain near Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, thus reaching the place is quite an adventure (at least for us two girls). It was an arduous climb, taking us over 2 hours to get there. This is not to boast about our ardent desire and strong will, but rather to highlight how the monastery is relatively inaccessible and isolated. The rocky path is the only mode of transport that connects the monks to civilization; every time they need necessities they would have to trek down to markets in town. Being moderately wrapped up in a life full of comfort with rare contact with those less fortunate than ourselves, it pained us to learn about their rudimentary living conditions, yet the monks are still joyful, very welcoming and compassionate.
Why every penny counts/why we need your help
Bhutan is a predominantly Buddhist country, consequently meaning the monasteries and the Buddhist community are fairly taken care of by the government. Nevertheless not all needs can be met in a country gradually embracing modernization. In one of our conversations with a monk named Pema, our caretaker when we were there, we’ve learned that there is no access to hot water at the monastery. It came as a shock to us that they have a bath only once a week on Sunday, using hot stones as a mean to heat up their wooden bath tub. More than 150 monks currently residing at Dodedrak would then have to take turn having a wash in a bath tub that can only fit 7-8 people at a time. I quivered at the thought of being denied my daily shower and I can imagine most of us would too. We stayed there for one night, we brushed our teeth and washed our faces with ice cold water. The thought of doing the same routines in winter where snow can get up to 2ft, coupled with the lack of heaters in the monks’ sleeping rooms, compelled me to act as soon as I return from the trip.
We are calling upon your kindness and generosity so that monks at Dodedrak Monastery can have access to hot water. We are planning to purchase hot water shower machines with a capacity of 100 litres each and send them over to Bhutan.
Any contribution/donation however small will be tremendously appreciated. Every penny from you will go straight towards helping the monastery, home to a young population of monks such as Pema. It is our sincere hope that this campaign would help us raise sufficient money to ameliorate the living condition of the monks, so that they can better focus on their Buddhist studies. Any funds above our target goal will be used to provide first and foremost heaters, warm jackets for winter months and some English books for their entertainment. It is ideally our wish to keep them informed and knowledgeable about the world, as we were told that they love reading English books in their free time. ‘Reading is interesting’, they cheerfully said.
Thank you very much for your invaluable contribution - on behalf of Pema and Dodedrak community.
Organizer and beneficiary
Hoang Anh Dang
Organizer
Houston, TX
Maya Dang
Beneficiary
