A community Lhakhang of Gongphu village under Trong Gewog in Zhemgang is in dire need of renovation. The Lhakhang located at the heart of the village is believed to be established in the 8th century. With its dilapidated condition now, devotees feel no longer safe to carry out their religious activities.
With the roof leaking and pillars on the verge of a collapse, the Lhakhang doesn’t look like one. The walls have developed cracks and the religious paintings have faded away because of the rainwater seepage. And the recent windstorm has added more to the already deteriorating condition.
The damages are as clear as the sky. And we fear the collapse will happen anytime,” said Pelden Dorji, the caretaker of the Lhakhang.
“When we perform our rituals every month, we fear the Lhakhang might crumble down and pose risks,” said Leki Dorji, a resident of the village.
“Forget about the residents, even the monks of the Lhakhang fear going inside the Lhakhang to offer daily prayers. We tried performing our rituals outside but the monsoon season makes it impossible. So, if the government could support us with the reconstruction, we would be grateful. We would also like to contribute in our little ways to help maintain the Lhakhang,” added Aum, another resident.
“The earthquakes in the past have contributed to the Lhakhang’s dilapidated condition now. It has caused serious inconveniences to us in the village,” added Kinley.
Trong Gup Wangay said the gewog has already proposed a budget for the Lhakhang’s major renovation through the Dzongkhag Tshogdu some two years back. The proposal was submitted to the home and cultural affairs ministry for approval.
“For the renovation, we have developed our plan and we are ready to execute the works. But the ministry only approved the budget for renovation and not for reconstruction. That’s why we will not able to reconstruct the temple as proposed by the people and gewog administration except for renovation,” added the Trong Gup.
One storey Gongphu Lhakhang is considered one of the most important sacred temples in the village. There are some 85 households in the village.
Pema Samdrup, Zhemgang
