Where does our name come from?

Genesis of the name “Bhutan Kurukulle Adventures”

Buddhists in Bhutan consult a lama (Buddhist Master) for many occasions including giving a name - be it a person or a name of a business. This name was proffered by a young Trulku (incarnate lama) who is currently studying in a Buddhist school in India as an auspicious name for this travel agency.

Kurukulle, an emanation of Tara (Drolma) also known as Jetsun Dolma in Bhutan, is a female Bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism who appears as a female Buddha in Vajrayana Buddhism. She is known as the “Mother of Liberation”, and represents the virtues of success in work and achievement. Tara is a tantric meditation deity whose practice is used by practitioners of the Vajrayana Buddhism to develop certain inner qualities and understand secret teachings about compassion and emptiness.

These may more properly be understood as different aspects of the same quality, as Bodhisattvas are often considered metaphors for Buddhist virtues. Goddess Tara, a female Buddha and meditational deity, is a popular goddess in the Buddhist pantheon. She is considered to be the goddess of universal compassion who represents virtuous and enlightened activity. The word Tara itself derived from the root “tri” (to cross), hence the implied meaning “the one who enables living beings to cross the Ocean of Existence and Suffering”. Her compassion for living beings, her desires to save them from suffering, is said to be even stronger than a mother’s love for children. Tara is regarded as a Bodhisattva of compassion and action.

The goddess Kurukulle is red in color so she is known as the Red Tara, and is invoked for the controlling of the activities of subjugating, magnetizing, and attracting.