The Mewang is the fire-blessing ceremony held on the second evening of the Jambay Lhakhang Drup festival (mid-October to mid-November depending on the lunar year). A high arch of dried grass is set alight in the meadow beside the temple; the assembled local community runs beneath it for blessing and cleansing. It is one of the few Bhutanese festival moments held at night, and the photographic tradition is exceptional.

Should I combine Jambay with other Bumthang sites?

Yes — Jambay Lhakhang, Kurjey Lhakhang (10 minutes' walk away), Tamshing Lhakhang (the Pema Lingpa monastery, 15 minutes by road), Jakar Dzong, and Mebar Tsho (Pema Lingpa's burning lake) form the standard Bumthang circuit. Most visitors plan 2–3 days in Bumthang to do the circuit comfortably.

How do I get to Bumthang?

Approximately 9 hours by road from Paro via Thimphu, Punakha, and Trongsa — typically broken across two driving days. There is also a domestic Drukair flight from Paro to Bumthang's Bathpalathang airport (operating in clear-weather windows).

Can I attend the Tercham?

The Tercham is held in the small hours of one of the Drup festival nights and is a sacred fertility cham; photography is restricted. Many international visitors choose to skip the small-hours session and attend only the daytime chams. Your guide will brief you on the schedule and the cultural context; the decision sits with you.

Jambay Lhakhang in the Choekhor valley of Bumthang, founded 659 CE

The other Songtsen Gampo founding of 659 CE

Jambay Lhakhang — built by Songtsen Gampo to pin the left knee of the ogress whose body lay across the Himalaya.

Jambay Lhakhang sits in the Choekhor valley of Bumthang at 2,600 metres elevation. Like Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro, it is one of 108 temples built by the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo in 659 CE — Jambay pinning the left knee of the giant ogress whose body lay across the Himalayan landscape. The temple has been continuously active for over thirteen centuries and is the venue of the famed Jambay Lhakhang Drup with its Mewang fire ritual.

Location: Choekhor valley, Bumthang, Bumthang
Elevation: 2,600 m
Founded: 659
Founder: Songtsen Gampo (33rd Tibetan emperor)
Also known as: Jampa Lhakhang · Jambay Goemba

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The 7th-century founding — one of 108 temples

The Tibetan tradition holds that Songtsen Gampo recognised the Himalayan landscape as the form of a giant ogress and commissioned 108 temples to be built simultaneously in a single day, each pinning a critical point on her body. Two of the 108 lie in present-day Bhutan: Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro (pinning the left foot) and Jambay Lhakhang in Bumthang (pinning the left knee). Jambay is held to predate Kyichu by a small interval — making it one of the very earliest Buddhist temples built in the broader Himalayan region. The Bhutanese tradition holds Jambay as 'the oldest temple in Bhutan' in popular reference, though the question of priority between Jambay and Kyichu remains a matter of devotional rather than archaeological distinction.

The 8th-century Guru Rinpoche restoration

A century after Jambay's founding, Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) visited Bumthang at the invitation of Sindhu Raja and used Jambay Lhakhang as one of his principal meditation venues. The Guru is held to have restored and reconsecrated the temple, augmenting the principal images and frescos under the Vajrayana tradition. The Kurjey Lhakhang (Guru Rinpoche's body-imprint cave) sits 10 minutes' walk from Jambay across the Choekhor valley; the two temples together form the principal early-Buddhist religious landscape of Bumthang.

The Drup and the Mewang fire ritual

Jambay Lhakhang is the venue of the Jambay Lhakhang Drup, held annually in late October or November (15th–19th day of the 9th Bhutanese lunar month). The festival's principal moments are the Mewang (the fire-blessing ceremony, attended at midnight on the second night) and the Tercham (a sacred fertility cham performed in the small hours). The festival sits at the older, more pilgrimage-flavoured register of the eastern Bhutanese tradition. The Mewang's lit grass arch in the meadow beside the temple is one of the most-photographed festival moments in Bhutan.

Visiting

Getting there
Jambay Lhakhang is 10 minutes by road from Jakar (the principal Bumthang town), in the Choekhor valley. The temple is part of the standard Bumthang circuit alongside Kurjey Lhakhang (10 minutes' walk away), Tamshing Lhakhang (15 minutes by road), and Jakar Dzong (15 minutes by road).
Opening hours
The temple is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The interior is open to international visitors with a guide. The principal chapel is small (the original 7th-century footprint) and the atmosphere is intimate. Allow 30–45 minutes for a thorough visit.
Dress and protocol
Long trousers or skirts below the knee; shoulders covered. Hats and shoes removed inside the temple. Photography is permitted on the exterior but prohibited inside the chapel. The temple is one of the most-sacred sites in the country; the protocol tradition is reverent.
Best time to visit
Late September through October catches Bumthang at its autumn peak — the buckwheat fields turning red-pink, the meadow clear and bright. Late October through early November catches the Jambay Lhakhang Drup with the Mewang fire ritual. June through August is monsoon-affected.

Frequently asked

Is Jambay really the oldest temple in Bhutan?: Jambay Lhakhang and Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro are both held to have been founded by Songtsen Gampo in 659 CE — both are among the 108 temples he commissioned to pin the limbs of the giant ogress. The Bhutanese tradition holds Jambay as 'the oldest temple in Bhutan' in popular reference, though the question of priority between Jambay and Kyichu is a matter of devotional rather than archaeological distinction. Both predate the broader spread of Vajrayana Buddhism by approximately a century.
What is the Mewang?: The Mewang is the fire-blessing ceremony held on the second evening of the Jambay Lhakhang Drup festival (mid-October to mid-November depending on the lunar year). A high arch of dried grass is set alight in the meadow beside the temple; the assembled local community runs beneath it for blessing and cleansing. It is one of the few Bhutanese festival moments held at night, and the photographic tradition is exceptional.
Should I combine Jambay with other Bumthang sites?: Yes — Jambay Lhakhang, Kurjey Lhakhang (10 minutes' walk away), Tamshing Lhakhang (the Pema Lingpa monastery, 15 minutes by road), Jakar Dzong, and Mebar Tsho (Pema Lingpa's burning lake) form the standard Bumthang circuit. Most visitors plan 2–3 days in Bumthang to do the circuit comfortably.
How do I get to Bumthang?: Approximately 9 hours by road from Paro via Thimphu, Punakha, and Trongsa — typically broken across two driving days. There is also a domestic Drukair flight from Paro to Bumthang's Bathpalathang airport (operating in clear-weather windows).
Can I attend the Tercham?: The Tercham is held in the small hours of one of the Drup festival nights and is a sacred fertility cham; photography is restricted. Many international visitors choose to skip the small-hours session and attend only the daytime chams. Your guide will brief you on the schedule and the cultural context; the decision sits with you.

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Preparing

Jambay Lhakhang — built by Songtsen Gampo to pin the left knee of the ogress whose body lay across the Himalaya.

The 7th-century founding — one of 108 temples

The 8th-century Guru Rinpoche restoration

The Drup and the Mewang fire ritual

The 7th-century founding — one of 108 temples

The 8th-century Guru Rinpoche restoration

The Drup and the Mewang fire ritual

Getting there

Opening hours

Dress and protocol

Best time to visit

Begin when you're ready.

The 7th-century founding — one of 108 temples

The 8th-century Guru Rinpoche restoration

The Drup and the Mewang fire ritual

Getting there

Opening hours

Dress and protocol

Best time to visit

Begin when you're ready.