22/09/2026
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๐ง๐ฟ๐ต๐๐ฒ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฏ: ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ '๐๐ฒ๐๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐น๐ฒ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ' ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐น
The Trhuebab (เฝเพฒเฝดเฝฆเผเฝเฝเผ) festival is an important cultural event in Bhutan, observed mainly in the eastern districts. It literally means the descent (เฝเฝเผ) of blessed water (เฝเพฒเฝดเฝฆเผ) and refers to the blessing which falls on the waters on earth. The festival is neither a celebration of the rainy season nor of the end of it. There is no direct link to rain. Thus, the current rendering of Trhuebab as Blessed Rainy Day in English is a wrong translation.
A local folk belief explains Trhuebab as the time when the water completes a full cycle and reaches the water sources. However, the learned astrologers provide a much more sophisticated explanation of the event's significance. According to Bhutanese astrologers, the sun enters the domain of Virgo in the 8th Bhutanese month and for a week directly shines on the star Rishi (เฝเพฒเฝเผเฝฆเพฒเฝผเฝเผ), which is identified with Canopus. This star is identified in Vedic astrology with the sage Agastya, one of the seven Vedic rishis or sages. The other rishis or sages are identified with the Great Bear or the Big Dipper. In Hindu folklore, Agastya is known as the sage who drank the seas and had the power to make rain and bless the water.
The Bhutanese astrologers, like other Himalayan astrologers, explain that the star Rishi is formed from crystal (เฝเฝดเผเฝคเฝบเฝฃเผ) and ketaka (เฝเฝบเผเฝเผเฝเผ) gemstone, which has the power to purify water. Thus, it is called the medicinal star. The rays emitting from the star are said to have the power to cleanse the impurities of water and disinfect the water of any pathogen and toxicity. Water touched by the light of Rishi is considered to be endowed with healing power and to possess the eight qualities of being cool, clear, clean, light, sweet, soothing and harmless to the throat and stomach. Thus, Sowa Rigpa medical tradition recommends using the water touched by the rays of the star Rishi to treat diseases and enhance health and vitality.
Sangay Gyamtsho, one of the foremost authorities of Sowa Rigpa, writes in his book entitled Blue Beryl: โDrink the water cleansed day and night and rendered poisonless by the shining Rishi.โ Such belief is also common among Himalayan people as the following Tibetan folk proverb suggests: โThe star Rishi is shining; there is no need for doctors (เฝฆเพเฝขเผเฝเผเฝขเฝฒเผเฝเพฑเฝฒเผเฝคเฝขเผเฝฆเฝผเฝเผเผ เผเฝฆเพจเฝเผเฝเฝ เฝฒเผเฝเฝเฝผเฝฆเผเฝเผเฝเฝฒเผเฝ เฝเฝดเฝ เผ)โ People put water in containers and place them outside to receive the light of the star and then use it for drinking and bathing, and go out and bath in open streams and ponds.
Some Buddhist followers further enhanced the belief in the healing power of the water during Trhuebab by adding another layer of Buddhist explanation to this Indian astrological theory. In the sacred mountains around Mt Meru, the gods, divinities and saints of yore are said to have created a statue of Buddha Vairocana with numerous precious stones. The crown of the Buddha Vairocana is said to have been made of the same materials of crystal and ketaka gem, which form the star Rishi. When the star Rishi shines above the Buddha for a week, drops of divine nectar are said to dribble down due to the prayers of the gods, divinities and saints of the past. These drops of celestial nectar then imbue the streams and rivers of the world with healing power and blessings. Thus, people drink and bathe in the waters during the week.
Whatever the reasons for the power and blessings invested in the world's waters, the Trhuebab is observed in Bhutan and other parts of the Himalayas as a bathing and cleansing festival. Astrologers calculate the exact time when the sun enters the space to shine on Rishi, and following the calculations, people wake up before daybreak to take showers and wash their clothes. They also go out to the streams and ponds to wash and have picnic feasts. In old Tibet, the Dalai Lama and his court would observe this event with long bathing sessions and feasts.
In eastern Bhutan, Trhuebab is a significant occasion for the family to get together and party. The first day is often spent with immediate family members, and men often play games in the subsequent days. Due to its significance and popularity, Trhuebab was reinstated as a public holiday in Bhutan after it was once controversially removed from the list some years ago.
The Loden Foundation wishes everyone a Blessed Water Day!
Author Lopen Karma Phuntsho
