Bhutan's King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk has married his commoner bride in a lavish ceremony at a monastic fortress in the Himalayan nation. During the Buddhist ritual the king, who is 31, came down from his throne to place a crown upon the head of 21-year-old student Jetsun Pema. Monks chanted to celebrate the union as the king returned to his seat and Ms Pema took the throne as the new queen.
King Jigme is widely revered in the remote kingdom of some 700,000 people.
The kingdom is also well-known for its "Gross National Happiness" index - an alternative to GDP - which measures personal happiness as opposed to economic growth.
Bhutan King Marries in Elaborate Ceremony ( Associated Press):
The King of the tiny Himalayan nation of Bhutan married his commoner bride in an elaborate Buddhist ceremony Thursday. (Oct. 13)
Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of theHimalayas and bordered tothe south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China. Bhutan is separated from the nearby country of Nepal to the west by the Indian state of Sikkim, and from Bangladesh to the south by Assam and West Bengal. (More Here)
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BHUTAN :
A KINGDOM OF HAPPINESS
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Bhutan: A Kingdom of Happiness
Bhutan Moves to Democracy
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ROYAL WEDDING
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Bhutan king Jigme Wangchuk marries commoner Jetsun Pema (bbc)
Bhutan's King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk has married his commoner bride in a lavish ceremony at a monastic fortress in the Himalayan nation.
During the Buddhist ritual the king, who is 31, came down from his throne to place a crown upon the head of 21-year-old student Jetsun Pema.
Monks chanted to celebrate the union as the king returned to his seat and Ms Pema took the throne as the new queen.
King Jigme is widely revered in the remote kingdom of some 700,000 people.
Celebrations,which were broadcast live on state television, began at 08 20 local time (02 20 GMT) - a moment deemed auspicious by royal astrologers.
The wedding has been keenly anticipated in the tiny kingdom. Posters, commemorative plates anda badge have been produced and were widely available across Bhutan for the occasion.
"Wherever he goes he holds her hand. Now young people are starting to copy," one 16-year-old schoolgirl, Jurme Choden, was quoted by the AFP news agency assaying.
Robed elephants
Wedding formalities began after the king and his father, former monarch Jigme Singye Wangchuk, entered a sacred chamber of the monastery, which holds the embalmed body of the country's 17th Century founder.
Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, a Tibetan Buddhist lama, is revered in Bhutan for unifying warring valley kingdoms into a single country in the 1630s.
The king wore a crown emblazoned with the traditional Bhutanese symbol of a raven's head and he handed an array of brightly-coloured scarves to his bride.
The couple were also presented with a series of gifts symbolising longevity, wisdom and other positive attributes.
After the formal ceremony, singers recited celebratory songs as drums were beaten and ceremonial trumpets sounded. Baby elephants wearing traditional robes were also in the grounds of the fortress.
There were no visiting heads of states, foreign royals or celebrities at the wedding, which was mainly attended by Bhutan's royal family.
"The whole theme of the wedding was to keep it a simple family affair, that is the Bhutanese family," Kinley Dorji, Bhutan's secretary of information, told the Associated Press news agency.
A monk who watched the couple arrive at the monastery said he was "a very happy man today".
"There is a special feeling," Kesang Chopel told Reuters news agency.
And when the king of Bhutan was asked about what it felt like to be married he replied: "It's great - you should try it yourself."
Strengthen democracy
Although polygamy is legal in Bhutan, the king is not expected to follow his father's example and take more wives, reports say.
Jigme Wangchuk was educated in India and Britain and took over after the abdication in 2006 ofhis father, who began the country's democratic transition.
In March 2008, Bhutan became a constitutional monarchy and the king relinquished his absolute powers.
"The royal wedding has ensured the continuity of the monarchy," Tshering Tobgay, Bhutan's opposition leader told Reuters. "And monarchy has helped strengthen our democracy."
Tourists were only allowed into the isolated nation in the 1970s. People in Bhutan are still required to wear traditional dress in public.
The kingdom is also well-known for its "Gross National Happiness" index - an alternative to GDP - which measures personal happiness as opposed to economic growth.
Indeed, the chief of the Gross National Happiness Commission Karma Tshiteem joked following the wedding: "You can be sure that our happiness is increasing," AFP reported.
The ceremony kicked off three official days of dancing, drinking and celebration across thecountry.
The king is thought to have known Ms Pema, the daughter of an airline pilot, since she was a young girl.
A biography released by the palace listed her interests as fine arts, painting and basketball.
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Norway, Denmark & Australia top list as happiest countries 2011
by Darius Kadivar on Sat Dec 24, 2011 02:50 AM PSTThe happiest countries in the world? (cnn) Norway, Denmark and Australia top a list as the happiest countries in the world for 2011.
.
by Truthseeker9 on Sat Oct 22, 2011 12:55 PM PDT.
با سلام و صلوات
Hooshang Tarreh-GolFri Oct 14, 2011 10:21 AM PDT
آمده بودم یه، دو سه خط ناقابل بنویسم و بزنم برم که دیدم داریوش خان یاد
"پسر عموی" ما افتاده. خواستم از قول پسر عمو بگم که "مشتی" نه سر پیازه ،
نه ته پیاز, ازش زیاد سین. جین. نکنین. البته در ان عکسهای
اسکلتی=سلطنتی، حقیقتی بس عظیم نهفته است، که آن خویش مقالی دیگر و ....
زت زیاد، یا حق.
Truthseeker9 why don't you Ask Mash Ghassem ...
by Darius Kadivar on Fri Oct 14, 2011 09:47 AM PDTDon't blame me for your own lack of interest in all things Royal ...
Doost Nadary Chera Meekhoony ? ...
Otherwise instead of wasting your time lecturing me on what should or not be the subject of my blogs you would have noticed that I did mention this Duchess before all you guys...
//iranian.com/main/2011/oct/ghassemlou-against-monarchy
The World is not limited to Dubai, Florida and Los Angeles you know ? ...
Your Truth ain't Everyone's Truth ...
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9n98SXNGl8
Let alone Interest ...
Besides "Artistocracy" and "Jet Set" News Ain't Necessarily "Royal" News ...
Take Care "Poet" ...
DK
"A Country that Loses it's Poetic Vision is a Country that faces death"-Saul Bellow.
You forgot to post about this Royal wedding :)
by Truthseeker9 on Fri Oct 14, 2011 07:13 AM PDT//www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/10/05/duchess-of-alba-85-flamenco-dances-as-she-marries-60-year-old-toy-boy-115875-23469357/
She looks as if she has already started to decompose. Reminds me of the mother in Psycho. How did you forget to post anything about THE Royal news story of the year?
//cinephilefix.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/psycho-645.jpg
This is Magical and Fun.
by amirparvizforsecularmonarchy on Thu Oct 13, 2011 02:45 PM PDTThanks for showing us this fairytale wedding, DK. Beautiful.
Thank you
by nadeem khan on Thu Oct 13, 2011 09:36 AM PDTThe bride is so beautiful. Earlier I thought the most beautiful girls can be found in Iran only.
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by bambi on Thu Oct 13, 2011 07:48 AM PDTThis was great. Looking forward to the full documentary.
Thanks for posting.