The Magnanimous Pelden Chodra

[Sequel story of One Night In An ATM Counter]

Bumthang Town                                                                Image: nopkin.com

On returning from his great grandmother’s funeral, a group of youngsters robbed him of all his belongings when he just entered inside a hotel room in Bumthang. One of the culprits had placed a sharp knife on his neck and had demanded the thick golden ring which his diseased great grandmother had left behind for him before she took her last breath. The ring was most valuable gift to him so he mustered all courage from his weepy heart and strength from the heat of the funeral pyre which his skin still feels. He could chase them away without the golden ring but lost all other belongings. Even his backpack was stolen where he had kept his wallet made of Bhutanese cloth.  

Later that night, in his dream he saw Syeldon Rewa Wangchuck sharing a cup of hot coffee with a faceless man. He went closer and closer and closer to see her beautiful face and wished to express his deepest love but heard his boss call his name in an angry mood “Peldennnnnnn…..” The voice awoke him and he couldn’t take the pleasure of looking at her face closely.

The morning was very cold. A thin blanket of snow was covering the ground where Pelden Chodra stood prostrating to Kurjey Lhankhang[ It was built on the site where Padmasmabhava left his body impression on a wall of a cave where he was meditating to subdue a local deity] . He prayed for the wellbeing of those culprits and forgives them of their deed. The bus blew final horn to depart and he quickly jumped in.

He didn’t reveal the incident to his fellow passengers nor report to police. Inside the moving bus he kept wondering why those youngsters targeted him and how could it possibly happen in the most religious district in our country; the place where Guru Rimpoche (Padmasmabhava) first visited Bhutan.

Amidst confusion he found himself tempering the golden ring with his fingers. Looking at the golden ring he is reminded of the unfulfilled promise of getting married soon. He wished that the faceless man with whom Syeldon was sharing a cup of hot coffee was himself. Looking eye to eye and holding hands tightly he made a wish to sing one of the latest romantic Bhutanese songs over that imagined coffee date.

Back in the capital, Pelden’s Boss started to hate him. He started to make numerous complain regarding Pelden. The Boss had not even sanctioned his Travel Allowances for an official tour performed a few weeks before dashing with Syeldon Rewa Wangchuck along the Norzin Lam.

A colleague of Pelden Chodra informed him that their boss is emotionally disturbed. He is to the verge of divorce with his wife because she is alleged of losing a huge amount of money from their joint-account in gambling. And their boss was also having a tough time in repaying the loan on his new black CRV.

Believing on the information provided by his friend regarding their boss Pelden immediately forgives him and he visited Dechenphu Lhakhang in north of Thimphu to pray for his Boss.

On returning from the Lhankhang, Pelden saw Syeldon Rewa Wangchuck with a young man sipping coffee in an open cafeteria near Bhutan Kitchen. He ordered a cup of Suja( traditional tea served with butter and salt) and seated nearby unnoticed by them. Overhearing their conversation he summed up that the young man with that funny French moustache and a curly hair was wooing his dream girl! And seeing Syeldon nodding her head made him uncomfortable. He quickly rushed to the counter, ordered a bouquet of red rose for Syeldon, paid the entire bill and moveed out of the cafeteria.