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The 51.5-metre seated Buddha above the capital
The Buddha Dordenma sits at 2,500 metres on the Kuensel Phodrang ridge overlooking Thimphu — a 51.5-metre seated bronze Buddha Shakyamuni, gold-plated, completed and consecrated in 2015. The statue is one of the largest seated Buddhas in the world and houses 125,000 smaller Buddha statues within its interior chamber. The project was conceived to fulfil an 8th-century prophecy of Guru Rinpoche.
Also known as · Buddha Dordenma Statue · Great Buddha Dordenma · Buddha Point
The Bhutanese tradition holds that Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) prophesied in the 8th century that a great Buddha statue would arise in this region to confer blessings, peace, and happiness across the Himalayan world. The prophecy was recorded in the terma teachings revealed by subsequent tertons. The Buddha Dordenma project was initiated under His Majesty the 4th King and conceived to fulfil this prophecy — both as a religious offering for the country and as the principal modern Buddhist monument of the Himalaya.
The statue is 51.5 metres (169 feet) tall, cast from bronze and plated in gold. The statue's interior chamber — accessible to visitors — houses 125,000 smaller Buddha statues, each made of bronze and gold-plated: 100,000 statues at 8 inches and 25,000 statues at 12 inches. The principal Buddha and the smaller statues together represent one of the largest cumulative offerings of Buddhist art in the world. The construction took approximately ten years from groundbreaking to consecration in 2015; the statue was consecrated by His Holiness the Je Khenpo in a ceremony attended by His Majesty the 5th King.
The statue sits on the Kuensel Phodrang ridge at 2,500 metres, overlooking the Thimphu valley from the south. The throne on which the statue sits is itself a three-storey building — housing meditation halls, a museum gallery, and the principal chapel of the Buddha Dordenma project. Around the statue, a parkland of pine and cedar has been planted as part of the broader Kuensel Phodrang Nature Park. The site has become one of the principal viewpoints for the Thimphu valley — the photographic register at golden hour is exceptional.
Visiting
Common questions
51.5 metres (169 feet). It is one of the largest seated Buddha statues in the world, cast from bronze and gold-plated. The statue depicts Shakyamuni Buddha in the bhumisparsha mudra (the earth-touching gesture).
Inside the statue's interior chamber are 125,000 smaller bronze Buddha statues, each gold-plated: 100,000 statues at 8 inches and 25,000 statues at 12 inches. They were commissioned and donated by devotees from across the Buddhist world and form one of the largest cumulative offerings of Buddhist art in the world.
To fulfil an 8th-century prophecy of Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) that a great Buddha statue would arise in this region to confer blessings, peace, and happiness across the Himalayan world. The project was initiated under His Majesty the 4th King and consecrated in 2015 under His Holiness the Je Khenpo.
Yes — the throne on which the statue sits houses meditation halls and the principal chapel of the Buddha Dordenma project. Daily prayers are held by the resident monastic community. International visitors are welcome to visit the interior chamber and the meditation halls; the protocol is quieter than at the dzongs.
Most visitors combine the Buddha Dordenma with the takin preserve (the national-animal sanctuary, 15 minutes' drive away) and the National Memorial Chorten (in central Thimphu) as a half-day southern-Thimphu circuit. The Buddha Dordenma's viewpoint is also a notable golden-hour photographic stop on the descent back to central Thimphu.
Journeys featuring this site
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A private seven-night Bhutan honeymoon for couples flying from Singapore. Bhutanese lodges, a matched guide, transparent all-inclusive pricing.
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A seven-night Bhutan journey timed to Thimphu Tshechu in autumn — second-tier seating, a culturally fluent guide, Bhutanese lodges.
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A ten-night Bhutan Buddhist pilgrimage for Asian-Buddhist travellers. Monastic context; matched monastic-trained guide; Bumthang religious circuit.
Five questions. A bespoke draft back within a day or two.