Sunday, November 9, 2008

Something else about Bhutan . . .


A couple of days ago I blogged about the coronation of Bhutan's new king. I mentioned the Kingdom's policy of seeking 'Gross National Happiness' as a primary objective of its Government.

Now it appears there may be another side to the Kingdom. As an article in Metro UK explains:

In the country of Bhutan in south Asia, the giant penis has an important job. It is scrawled on homes to ward off evil spirits.

The penis is said to protect those inside the house and stop them from arguing with each other.


There's an excellent (and anatomically specific) photograph accompanying the article, but I daren't post it on this blog, as it's most emphatically Not Safe For Work. Those of you who aren't reading this at work can click here to see it.

That should make for a fair amount of Gross Happiness, at any rate - whether national or domestic, I couldn't say!



Peter

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

So basically every home looks like mens room graffitti.

Anonymous said...

No, it's usually found painted on traditional houses, that too at the entrance. Additionally, the wooden carvings are also hung from the four corners of the roof. The story goes back to a legendary saint by the name Drukpa Kuenley.

Murphy said...

"...the wooden carvings are hung..."


sorry.


This whole thing is just nuts!