Bhutan sets world record by building 108 stupas in nine hours for new mindfulness city

Bhutan has set a new Guinness World Record by erecting 108 Buddhist stupas in just nine hours. Gelephu Mindfulness City Governor Lotay Tshering received the official certificate in Gelephu on Tuesday evening, November 3, 2026.

The Record Feat

About 40,000 trained volunteers built the 108 stupas, also known as Jangchub Chortens, between 3 a.m. and 11:55 a.m. on November 1. This date marked the 18th coronation anniversary of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, along with the Day of Lord Buddha's Descent and Mother's Day. The volunteers worked in teams of 20 to 23 members at different sites along the Mau Chhu River in Gelephu, a town of about 10,000 people located 240 kilometres southeast of Thimphu. Each structure stands 14 metres tall and sits 108 metres apart from the next.

Project Purpose

Project 108 serves as the spiritual foundation for the Gelephu Mindfulness City, which the King designed as an ethical global economic hub grounded in traditional values. People, families, and institutions around the world contributed funds to the project. One specific structure, Chorten Number 76, was dedicated to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to honour India's support for the mindfulness city. King Wangchuck praised the unity and voluntary service of the Bhutanese people as the true achievement of the day.

Context

Stupas, or chortens, are traditional Buddhist monuments that hold sacred relics and serve as places for meditation and prayer in the Himalayan region. Large-scale community construction projects of this nature often rely on shared volunteer labour to bring communities together for national milestones. This particular event ties ancient spiritual traditions directly into the modern economic planning of Bhutan's new development zone.