Coinciding with the auspicious Lord Buddha’s parinirvana, recovering addicts in Trashigang organised one-day prostration programme along the Trashigang-Trashiyangtse highway yesterday.

This, according to the organiser, SB Ghalley, is to change the mindset of the youth who are addicted to controlled substances and help them recover.

More than 20 recovering addicts, students of Trashigang Middle Secondary School and parents started prostrating along the highway at 5:30am from Korlung. They will prostrate till Gomkora monastery, which is about two kilometres away from Korlung.

SB Ghallay said this is the first prostration programme organised in eastern Bhutan. “We have organised such programmes in Thimphu.”

He said the programme is expected to create awareness among the controlled substance abusers and make them realise that abusing it is a bad habit.

He also said they have organised the programme coinciding with an auspicious day because it’s believed that the benefit of any activities initiated on such a day is manifold. “We also need not take leave on government holidays.”

The participants were not allowed to talk until they completed the prostration and they were also not allowed to take anything from travellers and people passing by.

The participants were served lunch by the Gomkora lam once they complete the prostration.

The programme ended after the participants made three rounds of prostration around the monastery.

SB Ghallay said most of the people addicted to controlled substances and alcohol do not come forward because of the withdrawal symptoms. “You just need the determination.”

Kelzang Wangchuk | Trashiyangtse

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