Mongar is home to a variety of Bhutanese languages and dialects. In the east, the East Bodish Tshangla (Sharchopkha) is the dominant language, also used as a regional lingua franca.
Central Mongar is the only region where the East Bodish Chali language is spoken, by about at total of 8,200 people in Wangmakhar, Gorsum and Tormazhong villages, mainly in and around Chhali Gewog on the east bank of the Kuri Chhu River. Some people from Tormazhong speaks kurteop too.
Southern Mongar is likewise unique for its 1,000 Gongduk speakers living in a few inaccessible villages of Gongdue Gewog near the Kuri Chhu river. The language appears to be the sole representative of a unique branch of the Tibeto-Burman language family and retains the complex verbal agreement system of Proto-Tibeto-Burman.
In southwestern Mongar, residents speak Khengkha, an East Bodish language closely related to Bumtap – kha languages including Kurtoep. Bumtap – kha itself is also spoken by the natives of extreme northwest Mongar. Residents of the Kuri Chhu valley of northern Mongar speak Chochangachakha language, a Central Bodish language very closely related to Dzongkha, the national language.
SOME OF THE TOP ATTRACTIONS ARE :
MONGAR DZONG
was built in 1930 and its composition was like Lamai Goenpa in Bumthang, the palace of the 1st King Gongsar Ugyen Wangchuck.
They constructed this Dzong in the year as the administrative headquarters for the District and to house the divine monks. The Dzong still houses the relics of the former Zhongar Dzong besides the other monuments. The Mongar festival is held annually in November/December, corresponding to the 8-10th day of the 10th month of the Bhutanese calendar year.
These dates differ from year to year corresponding to the Buddhist calendar. Astrologers complete these determine before the year commences.
YAGANG LHAKHANG
is an alone-owned monastery established by Lama Sangdag, the 6th child of Terton Pema Lingpa. It is a 20-minute hike from Mongar town.
The monastery holds one of the strong cultural magnitudes as it is an archive of a comprehensive collection of sacred treasures and many religious objects recognized to have been explored by Terton Pema Lingpa. As Pema Lingpa is the ultimate Bhutanese master and was homegrown, all his activity for the benefit of beings arose here in Bhutan and he is certainly the exemplar of Bhutan. The teachings and spiritual practices are preserved without the deterioration in values and conduct in precise consonance with Peling traditions.
DRAMETSE LHAKHANG
One of the most notable religious sites is the Drametse Lhakhang built in the 16th century by Ani Cheten Zangmo, the grand-daughter of the renowned Terton Pema Lingpa to spread Nyingmapa teachings in the east. It’s one of the most popular monasteries in the region. People from Dramedtse and also nearby districts visit it mainly during the annual festival. The Drametse Ngacham or the “Dance of the Drums of Drametse,” was born in this lhakhang in the 16th century. Today, it is a popular dance performed at all major festivals.
This is the best-known dance of all, composed in the 16th century at Drametse Monastery in eastern Bhutan by a saint who had a vision of Guru Rinpoche’s heaven. Twelve men wearing yellow skirts and animal masks beat drums as they dance; they represent Guru Rinpoche’s entourage and they are celebrating the victory of religion. This dance brings ” liberation to those who see it.
AJA NYE
According to Wangchuk (2004), the story of Aja Nye dates back to around 830 AD. At that time, the Tibetan demon King, Khikha-rathoed (who had the head of a goat and the mouth of a dog), was banished to a deserted jungle in the south. Upon learning that the demon king was planning to live in the Aja valley, Guru Rinpoche set off from Tormi-jangsa, through Tashi Yangtse, to stop him. Guru Rinpoche spent over three months meditating in the Aja valley, waiting for the right time to suppress Khikha-rathoed. During this time, he also concealed several religious sites and treasures within the valley.
The cave located next to the Aja Chu is believed to have been inscribed with the letter Aa by Guru Rinpoche. According to tradition, there are said to be a hundred Aa inscribed on the walls of the cave, which is why the place is called Aa-ja (meaning “hundred Aa”). Some of these imprints can still be seen on the walls of the cave today.
In the 14th century, Terton Ugyen Lingpa was the first to discover the religious site of Aja Nye, followed by Terton Rigzin Goeki Dhemthrug. Guru Rinpoche had predicted that the ninth Karmapa, Wangchuk Dorji (1556-1603), would be the one to uncover and decipher the site. However, the ninth Karmapa instead asked his disciple, Lama Karma Jamyang, to do so.
PHUNYING LA
The story of Nye Chen Phunying La is as ancient as the history of Aja Nye itself. It is considered that Guru Rinpoche meditated within Phunying mountain rims for a few months while driving away the demon king Khikha-rathoed who had fled from Aja to Baeyul Khempa Jong, situated towards the North of Kurtoe.
The Nye was deciphered by Lama Karma Jamyang, who revealed the entire Aja Nye. It is believed that there are four religious hidden sites located in the four major cardinal directions with Pema Yangzom (alias for Aja) at its center.
Additionally, Nye Chen Phunying La is contemplated to be the western section and is referred to as the heart of all ridges on the earth and consists of numerous religious sites related to the Guru Rimpoche.
Recently, the Nye has played as a desert retreat and meditation refuge for many profoundly regarded Yogis such as Lama Sonam Zangpo in the 1960s. The Nye consists of more than 50 religious sites along the circumambulatory passage and consists of indications of the Guru Padmasambhava treasure box and imprints of Khandro Drowa Zangmo’s cranium.