This week, 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl reported from Bhutan, a small, remote country hidden in the Himalayan mountains.
The Buddhist kingdom is known for its awe-inspiring mountains, pristine forests, beautiful temples and spirituality.
“I’m not a spiritual person. But I had all kinds of emotional reactions to the beauty of Bhutan,” Stahl told 60 Minutes Overtime.
“Snow-capped mountains, lush forests… it’s charming, absolutely charming.”
Stahl arrived at Paro International Airport on a small plane from New Delhi, landing on a runway flanked by steep mountains.
“When you look out the window, you see yourself coming down these steep mountainsides. It’s horrifying. It’s also one of the most beautiful sights ever,” Stahl said.
Buddhism is the state religion in Bhutan and is practiced by most citizens.
On any given day you can see many people, young and old, at temples turning prayer wheels, large wooden cylinders, as they walk by.
Stahl spoke with Dr. Lotay Tshering, a former prime minister of Bhutan, in the center of Gelephu town, explaining how the prayer wheels work.
Tshering told her that they are filled with millions of written prayers, and people twist them, desiring longevity or the good of the world.
As the wheel is turned clockwise, the devotee mentally recites a wish that he hopes will come true.
“Even now I make my wish,” he told Stahl.
“Whatever reason why 60 Minutes is making this project, let it become a reality. That’s my prayer, wish for the day. So yes, these are very important in our lives.”
While the team was in the country’s capital, Thimphu, they saw a festival called Thimphu Drubchen, with ceremonial dances known as cham taking place every year.
Masked dancers perform carefully choreographed dances for a packed audience of Bhutanese to honor the female gods they believe provide protection.
Stahl watched from a balcony overlooking the courtyard of the Tashichho Dzong, a fortress-like monastery and administrative center where the festival is held, and spoke with Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay.
“This particular ceremony in Thimphu has been happening continuously for over 400 years, every year,” he told Stahl.
He told Stahl that while the spectacle is entertaining and enjoyable, witnessing it has a sacred religious purpose.
“Just by witnessing these dances… we believe we receive blessings to protect us for an entire year.”
On a lawn in Thimphu, Stahl watched an archery match with Rabsel Dorji, who works for the Bhutanese government.
Two teams of archers used traditional bamboo bows and arrows to target a target about 450 feet away, the length of a football field and a half.
“(The target) is quite far away and quite small. It’s only about a meter high and… a meter wide. So it’s a difficult task,” Dorji told Stahl.
Dorji explained that depending on where the arrow hits, the team gets one or two points. The first team to score 25 points wins a game. The team that wins the best out of three matches wins the match.
But points can be deducted from a team if the other team subsequently hits the goal.
“The game can be a very, very long time, a whole day… or a whole two- or three-day affair,” Dorji said.
Stahl expressed surprise when she saw a team singing and dancing after hitting a target.
Dorji explained that it is the equivalent of an end zone dance. “It’s a Bhutanese version of it,” he said, laughing.
Stahl told Overtime that it was visibly clear during her travels that Bhutan was still firmly tied to its ancient past.
“Many countries in the world have become so westernized that they have lost their character. Here they have kept their old traditions… they have kept their old architecture. They wear old-fashioned clothes,” she said.
But Bhutan is facing an economic challenge that has made its future uncertain: young people are leaving the country for better-paying jobs in countries like Australia.
Stahl and the 60 Minutes team were given a rare audience with the King of Bhutan, who described his plans to build a new city, the Gelephu Mindfulness City, in the south of the country, near the border with India.
The king hopes that the new city will provide employment that will bring these young people back.
“The king’s concept is that there will be a modern city, but it will be Bhutanese. Buddhism will be at the core of it. Clean air, clean water,” she told Overtime.
The king hired the famous Danish architect Bjarke Ingels to design the new city. Ingels showed Stahl renderings for several projects, including a huge, colorful dam that will be used to generate hydroelectric power.
“And in the middle of the dam is a temple, right in the middle of the dam,” Stahl said.
“One has to hope that this small country can manage to retain its character and spirituality.”
The video above was produced by Will Croxton. It was edited by Sarah Shafer Prediger.
