For Bhutan, the tryst with Destiny began at the dawn of history,
as early as the 8th century A.D. when Guru Padmasambhava brought the light of
dharma to our land. Then, in the 13th century A.D., Phajo Drugom Zhigpo and an influx
of great religious figures came and blessed the land and sowed the seed of a
Pelden Drukpa.
But, the tryst with Drukyul's Destiny began almost three centuries
and eighty‐eight years ago when Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgay, the founder of this
tiny land of ours, snatched it from the jaws of wars and disintegration. Since
then, Drukyul's Destiny began to take shape.
Drukyul's Destiny. For it, wars were fought, lives sacrificed,
hardships endured. For Drukyul, the sail on the solemn ocean of Destiny was not
one of ease. A myriad of external threats had to be overcome. Numerous wars
with Tibet in the north and British India in the south. Frequent internal
strife had to be negotiated. From Paro to Mongar, Dagana to Gasa, a note of
discord sounded and drowned the symphony of fraternity. But, in the nick of
time, Destiny sent his own son and Gongsar Ugyen Wangchuck came. And he carved
and shaped the destiny of this our land.
The voyage done, he bequeathed us a secure Drukyul. Since then,
successive farsighted kings have steered forward this Shangri‐La. They took due
charge of Drukyul's Destiny and bettered it consistently and assiduously. They took
Drukyul's Destiny from the old to the new. Untold peace prevailed. Prosperity
dawned in its wake. Wars receded into a distant memory.
But, alas, this land of ours, this favourite child of Destiny,
this cultural oasis, this last bastion of precious dharma, this social utopia,
this "teeming womb of royal kings", suddenly found herself forsaken
by her mother when all of a sudden she awoke to the false subtleties of the
world. One militant group, then two, and then three. Infiltrating into Drukyul,
they infested the sacred jungles and compromised, even threatened, our
hard‐earned and long‐standing peace and sovereignty. A tiny nation that has
known nothing but peace and stability was genuinely concerned and disturbed. Even
as the fear of militant's threat to the nation's peace and sovereignty loomed
large in the mind of every Bhutanese, the militants continued to expand their
"domain" on the Bhutanese soil.
Deeply concerned, His Majesty the king and the royal government
painstakingly explored every peaceful means possible to coax the militants into
leaving the country. But the earnest plea of the king and the benign government
fell on deaf ears and ultimately paled into total failure in the face of the
defiant and rebellious militants.
Then, what next? After all, the kingdom could not and would not
stake her independence for non‐ violence. War? Indeed. It was on the horizon.
People were all set astir by the ripples of an imminent war. They were, though,
anything but cowed. After all, the Bhutanese have their unyielding forbears to
look up to for bravery and loyalty, and an inspiring figure in our beloved king
to look up to for divine guidance. The Bhutanese may lack experience in
warfare, but they abound in indomitable will. There was no room for fear, and
there was none.
His Majesty, our beloved king, made an earnest call and everyone
heard him.
He offered "blood toil, tears, and sweat". And everyone
accepted them.
15th December, 2003. This day went down in the modern Bhutanese
history as the most momentous day. On this day, a godlike monarch moved from
the Golden Throne to the front‐line. For the sake of the country he staked his
own royal life. Our army, though small, drew its strength from the royal
commander. Into the heart of the treacherous forests, they marched. For the
next few fateful days, Drukyul's Destiny was to be reshaped in the forge of the
forests, on the anvil of bravery, sacrifice, and commitment. Our king led them
and inspired them, our soldiers. And they fought.
For us the Bhutanese people, war is only a concept. We have seen
it only in the fantastic fairy tales and legends where gallant princes bravely
safeguard the territorial integrity of their land. But when it really happens,
we cannot help but believe that it is indeed a real entity. We also cannot help
but think that it is not just in fairy tales that a king fights wars. We have
amongst us too a god sent prince believed to exist only in the enchanted
fairylands. No wonder, a fairyland indeed has been our tiny kingdom where
everything impossible happens.
The border between reality and fantasy virtually vanished when our
"gallant prince" returned triumphant from the war in just a few days.
We the "fairyland‐ers" could not help but say, "He has indeed
wrought magic". It was a moment of realization for us.
To reshape Drukyul's Destiny, martyrs of the kingdom had to stake
their lives. This noble deed of theirs shall never go in vain. It shall leave a
distinct mark on the sands of time for posterity to see what path we have
trodden in the chastening journey with Destiny. As generations of Bhutanese
tread the self same path with Drukyul's Destiny into the unfathomable future,
the statement our crown prince, Dasho Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, made in
his address to the nation on the 17th December, 2003, will echo and reecho in
everyone's mind: "The past did not see a king like His Majesty Jigme
Singye Wangchuck and neither will the future".
Many, many years from now, in the distant future, even when fairy
tales fail to inspire them, the children of Drukyul will love to hear from
their parents a great story of a peerless king and his men who surged forward
in an unrivalled courage and snatched from the jaws of death Drukyul's Destiny.
Many, many years from now, even when the sky is over‐cast with ominous dark
clouds, the children of Drukyul will love to go out and leap and laugh and sing
the praise of their king of yore.
Many, many years from now, even when Drukyul's Destiny poses
formidable questions, the short episode will inspire all the answers. Many,
many years from now.
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