“Dzomyue” or the equivalent of the third eye relic was embedded in the Buddha Statue in the capital yesterday. The Dzomyue was consecrated by His Holiness the Je Khenpo.
With design made of platinum embedded with gold and diamond, the Dzomyue was bought with personal contribution from devotees within and outside Bhutan. The Dzomyue costs nearly 5 million dollars.
A prayer or Thukmen offering was also made after it was consecrated by His Holiness the Je Khenpo. The approximate 170 feet high Buddha statue once completed will house eight statues of Boddhisattavas, each 18 feet, in the first floor of the Buddha statue.
It will also house over 1,00,000 seven inch statues and another 25,000, 13 inch statues made of bronze and gilded in gold.
Although initial works started as far as 2004 in Nanjing fabrication work in China, actual work began in Bhutan only by mid 2005.
Organisers say that the main exterior construction will be completed in three months or so. But they say that it will take another four to five years to complete the interior of the statue.
Once complete the statue is expected to be a major pilgrimage site and a focal point for all the Buddhist around the world to converge, meditate and retreat.
His Royal Highness Prince Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck was also present during the consecration ceremony.