Threads of Devotion: Interweaving Spaces, Practices, and Relationships in Bhutanese Buddhism

Abstract

This article analyses the intersection of space, religious practice, and identity in Bhutanese Buddhism through a case study in Thimphu. Drawing on eight months of ethnographic fieldwork, including participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and textual analysis, the article explores how individuals navigate intersecting ontological spaces in everyday life. Adopting an essentialist stance and an “ethnographic sensibility”, the research explores porous boundaries between Buddhist and Bon elements, lay and monastic communities, and sacred and profane space. The findings show that root practices such as the maintenance of household shrines (Chosham), visiting public temples (Lhakhang), and circumambulation (Kora) construct a stratified Buddhist identity, simultaneously context-sensitive and experientially rooted. Through the description of how dharma teachings and bodily devotion become intertwined in the daily life of Bhutan, the article identifies the resilience of Bhutanese Buddhism amidst accelerated social change.