picture: Wangda
Autsho; The entrance to our ancestral home
Autsho was exquisitely set at the middle of highway between Lhuentse and Monger. The entrance gate to both spiritual and political leader’s ancestral home. Autsho was made up of few government offices, school, and basic health unit and around 72 house holding business licenses, patiently waiting for their town planning plots to issue. The place was gorgeously blessed by the Namdroling Monastery of current chief abort Trulku Jigme Choda. Where hundreds of monks where flooring their path for enlightenment. In the Earlier days, Autsho is one of the busiest shopping center in the Lhuentse. But, not as widespread as Paro Tshongdue during early 90’s. The places where jam-packed with sound of scrotal bell of horse and new faces with bamboo baskets. The People of adjoining village, not accessible to road and market will meet at Autsho for their essential goods and services. The people of Jarry and Ganglapong has became regular customers for the indigenous brokers. However, their sales were beat with the construction of motor-able roads and start-up of shops in their locality.
According to the 2008 edition of Sherig Saga and local people, they mentioned about name and meaning as, (ཨའུ་མཚོ) meaning Sister Lake. (ཨའུ) means sister in their local language which is Cho-cha-nga-cha-Kha and (མཚོ) means lake. In the earlier days, two sister lake from upper Kurtoe ran away along the Kurichu valley for their security. During their journey to the south. The sister lake denied to go and hang around current place called Autsho. After that they named this place as Autsho.
The interesting part is current land of Autsho doesn’t not belong to people of Autsho in olden days, The present small stupa in the heart of Autsho act as sat-sham(Land demarcation) between Domkhar and lower kurichu regions. The people of Domkhar has to reach their for receptions and to see of Ku-gongma (higher officials) like spiritual and administrative leaders. This small stupa was counted as one of the oldest stupa in the Lhuentse. As there is very limited information on this stupa. No one knows when it was built and who funded this. However, few senior people are sharing that they used to spend night at Autsho while they are traveling to Gudama (most probably “go down” i.e. Current Samdrupjongkhar) to get salt and other essential goods. They are sharing how they used to camp near this stupa and spend their night with travel mates. Yet, this stupa was vanished in the hand of few materialistic vandalizer in pass few years.
The community of Domkhar sold its land to one of the landlord called Lopen Norzin and Aum Tshomo with 1000 kg of rice, a pig, few Palang (wine container) of Chang (local wine) and other food grains. Later he sold his land to other local people and merchants. This is how current Place called came to existence.
Informants
1. Lopen Kezang, retired school teacher, Autsho, Tshhenkhar, Lhuntse.
2. Meme Pema, businessman, Autsho, Tshenkhar, Lhuntse.
3. Aum Jungchub Choden, local resident, Autsho, Tshenkhar, Lhuntse.
Researcher
Tenzin Rabgay, Student, College of Language and Culture Studies, Royal University of Bhutan, 2020
