The dawn of November 11, 1955
A nation celebrated the birth of its future king
An assurance of yet another generation of unprecedented leadership
Continuance of a legacy of monarchs in the true service of the people
The nation was overjoyed; their future secured.
Today, over thirty years since His accession to the Golden Throne
The legacy of the glorious Drukpa still lives on.
I cried, Your Majesty, even as a man I cried
(And I am not ashamed of my tears)
I cried to see You abdicate in favor of Your worthy heir
A son of a lion will always be a lion, no doubt
But a simple tribute I had to pay
For the future we are yet to see, the past stands witness to our admiration
When time comes, I shall not regret to cry again-of course!
I saw, Your Majesty, I saw You as a true monarch of the people
Genuine kindness and compassion! Gods are not only in heaven!
My eyes are not divine yet I saw,
I saw and I felt, I felt the joy of serving
I bow to you, for that’s the least I can do
I bow to Your magnanimity.
A promise I make, Your Majesty, a promise I shall keep
I promise to work, to work with integrity, to work with inspiration
To work with dedication and to work for a purpose
The purpose-realization of Your vision of Gross National Happiness
If for that my little efforts can contribute, even a trifle
I promise to work with sincerity
A Bhutan You visualized, I pray, will be a Bhutan that the future Bhutanese will live in
We are at the threshold of a new era
An era reluctantly accepted by the people of Bhutan
Will not the unprecedented peace and happiness we enjoyed
Become a fairytale of the past? Many wonder…
My dear fellow Bhutanese, the past was glorious
The future lies in our hands
Let us join hands to make His Majesty proud of us, as much as we are proud of Him
History, my dear friends, history will tell…
History will tell of a King who served and not ruled
History will tell of a King who listened and not commanded
History will tell of a King who led and not directed
And this history perhaps might repeat once in a million years!
Dear gods in the realms of heaven
My deepest respects and reverence
My lord, were I to live my life all over again
I should like it just as I have done
Neither do I complain of the past
Nor do I fear the future
Yet a small wish a beg of thee
That the dragon Kings continue to guide us
And that the glorious Palden Drukpa continues to shine
That’s all I ask thee, My Lord, that’s all I ask thee
(The above is a poem I had written in 2008 and published by Tarayana Foundation in the book “Jewel of Men”- compilation of poems dedicated to His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, on the occasion of the Coronation and Centenary Celebrations. )