6. Conclusion： Inversion of Superiority and Inferiority(1) Bon, or neither Bon nor Buddhism ? The non-Buddhist deities and their worship places of them investigated at the seven temples and residences are organized as follows；
① Chime Lhakhan: Am Chokim (witch idol) at the corner of the altar in the main hall
② Kubun Lhakhan: Sippai Gelmo (Bon goddess idol) at Gyeongkhang
③ Benji Village: Muktseon (intangible basin deity) at Gyeongkhang of Nagtsang
with Katap idol (bouncer of the main god)
④ Chungdu Lhakhan: Chungdu & Joya (Watershed deity's idols) at the side
of the altar of the main hall
⑤ Jung family: Chungdu & Jowya (Watershed deity's idols) in front of the side wall
beside the altar
⑥ Dzong drakha Lhakhan: Danchen Dorji Lekpa (idol of the basin deity?)
at Gyeongkhang with Kathap
⑦ Dichempu Lhakhan: Genyen (intangible Himalayan guardian deity) in stone
Although the number of cases may seem small, it took 10 years to enter and investigate Gyeongkhangs. Of these seven locations, only two, ② Kubun Temple and ③ Bemji village, are definitely related to Bon. ② used to be Yungdrung Bon temple. It is once again attracting attention as the only remaining Yungdrung Bon monumental heritage in Bhutan. ③ Bemji is a village of the Bon people, who are said to have fled from Lhasa in ancient Tibet. Their deity is Muktsen, the guardian deity of the watershed, lives in the high rock mountains.It is not divine spirit of Yungdrung Bon, but an intangible entity. In Nagtsang's Gyeongkhang, Objects symbolizing Muktseng is worshipped. It is noteworthy that modern non-Buddhist deities are associated with ancient Bon people, and there is a sense of continuity between the Kvaerne IV period (modern folk beliefs) and the Kvaerne I period (primitive Bon), but the relationship between the two forms of belief is not as certain as it could be.
(2) Non-Buddhist deities from the viewpoint of idols and ritual sites Some informants said that ④⑤ Chundu brothers are Bon, but this is not an idea shared by the entire local population. However, idolized deities are enshrined in the Buddhist hall, which, along with Witch Am Chokim in Punakha, are strongly influenced by Buddhism. Thus, the degree of Buddhistization of non-Buddhist deities can be estimated using ritual sites and idolization as indicators. Focusing on these two points, the survey cases were divided into three types. Namely；
〈Type A〉 Enshrine an idol inside the Buddhist Hall；①④⑤
〈Type B〉 Enshrine an idol in Gyeongkhang outside the Buddhist Hall；②⑥
〈Type C〉 Enshrine the object symbolizing intangible deity hidden in Gyeongkhang outside the Buddhist hall；③⑦
Type A, as mentioned above, corresponds to the witch Am Chokim ① at Chime lhakhang and the watershed deity Chungdu brothers ④⑤. These are land deities that were subdued by Buddhist meditation and transformed into guardian deities on the Buddhist side. The Buddhist conversion is significant in terms of its ritual site and idolization. Although the places of worship for deities are corner of Buddhist hall, the importance as land deities has not wavered, even though it has been converted to a guardian deity on the Buddhist side. The people still revere Chungdu and Am Chokim more than Buddhist dignitaries, as deities influence their daily lives, and hold a large festival once a year.
Type B corresponds to the Kubun temple ② and the Dzongdrakha temple ⑥. Kubun was Yungdrung Bon temple and is therefore strongly influenced by Buddhism. Danchen Dorji Lekpha, the patron deity of Dzongdrakha, is worshipped in Gyeongkhang and has a Bon flag on the precinct. Lekpha and Khatap are idolized. In this respect, the influence of Buddhism is still felt strongly, but the Bon flag and the guardian deity are indigenous, and are representative examples of the fusion of both Buddhism and non-Buddhism.
Typical type C is Muktsen ③ of Nagtsang in Bemji Village. The deity is enshrined in an independent Gyeongkhang deep inside the Buddhist Hall. Muktsen is essentially a mountain-dwelling deity, reflecting the ancient worship of natural objects. However, the warrior god Khatap, who serves as a bouncer, is idolized and is also found in the Dzongdrakha Temple, which shows the influence of Buddhism. The guardian deity Genyen ⑦ of the Dechenphu Temple also appears to be old-fashioned in that it uses a natural stone as object of worship. Until the meeting with Gawan Namgyel, the founder of the country, Genyen was an intangible entity, but after the meeting, Genyen became imbued with a stone, which became the de facto object of worship. The new Gyeongkhang is on the third floor of the newly built main hall and enshrines an idol, making it Buddhist. It is thought that the idolization of indigenous deities came after the acceptance of Buddhism, and that originally, special natural objects such as stones and mountains were the objects of worship, while the deities themselves were intangible entities.
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