Jangchub Chorten in 3D: How Gelephu's 108 Stupas Are Built

By Best of Bhutan Research Desk · October 9, 2026 · 12 min read

A Jangchub Chorten, or Stupa of Enlightenment, is the form chosen for Project 108: 108 stupas, each 15 metres tall, to be raised in a single day along the Mau Chhu river in Gelephu Mindfulness City on 1 November 2026. The model below shows how one of them goes together, element by element, from the foundation and the relics at its core to the sun and moon at the top. Press play, step through it with the arrows, or drag to turn it.

An illustrative model based on the seven elements and dimensions published by the Gelephu Mindfulness City Authority. It is not the official architectural drawing, and proportions and decoration on the real chortens will differ.

Embed this model on your site. It is free to use with the credit link intact. Copy this code:

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Key Facts at a Glance

The Occasion: What Happens on 1 November

On 1 November the outer structures of all 108 chortens are to be raised on the same day, the culmination of eight months of preparation. The Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) Authority describes the day as a collective offering of peace. According to BBS, it will be the largest gathering ever held in Bhutan, with about 100,000 people expected and guests from around 20 countries.

The date is significant in the Bhutanese calendar. 1 November 2026 is Lhabab Duechen, the Descending Day of Lord Buddha, which marks the Buddha's return to the human realm after teaching his mother in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three. It is one of the main Buddhist observances of the year, a day traditionally given to prayer and merit-making. 1 November is also observed every year as Coronation Day of His Majesty the Fifth King. Both are national holidays, according to public holiday listings for Bhutan. The organisers' published material does not say whether the date was chosen for either observance, so treat the overlap as a coincidence of the calendar unless GMC says otherwise.

What the day will look like

• Rituals in the days before. His Holiness the Je Khenpo is expected in Gelephu from 21 October to lead prayers and purification and blessing rituals, BBS reported.
• Eight galleries are planned along the site for spiritual masters and monks to perform prayers and rituals on the day.
• Building teams. Earlier announcements called for 40,000 trained volunteers. The most recent BBS report says the chortens will be built by trained teams, and that the crowd attending will not take part in construction.
• Spectators come from across Bhutan. Police expect more than 30,000 vehicles and have announced parking zones, shuttles and road closures from 30 October to 4 November. Our Project 108 travel guide has the full traffic plan.
• A global livestream. The official Project 108 page invites people to sign up for the livestream link and the prayers and practices for the day.

Whether international tourists can attend in person is still not confirmed. Police said entry to Gelephu would be limited to invited guests, Bhutanese nationals and friends of the Bhutan-India Friendship Association. If you are in Bhutan that week, ask your tour operator before planning around the event.

How Project 108 Came About

His Majesty The King announced Project 108 on 21 February 2026, his birth anniversary. Daily Bhutan reported that the day is often used to launch major royal initiatives. His Majesty called it an undertaking that "demands courage, unity, and deep commitment," Daily Bhutan reported.

The project draws on zhabto, the Bhutanese tradition of voluntary communal labour. GMC presents it as spiritual practice as well as construction. Monks, students, farmers, professionals and members of the Bhutanese diaspora in Australia have spent months clearing land along the river.

Timeline

Sources: Daily Bhutan (inspection), BBS (sponsorship), Daily Bhutan (ground-breaking), BBS (ringsel), BBS (consecration), BBS (roads).

What a Jangchub Chorten Is

A chorten (the Dzongkha word for stupa) is a monument that holds relics and stands for the enlightened mind of the Buddha. Bhutanese and Tibetan tradition recognise eight classical types, each commemorating a different event in the Buddha's life. The Jangchub Chorten commemorates his enlightenment at Bodh Gaya. Its four stepped tiers between the base and the dome are its defining feature.

GMC describes the chorten as a physical form of prayer, and lists seven elements, read from the earth upwards:

Source: Project 108, Gelephu Mindfulness City Authority.

What goes inside

To the Bhutanese, a chorten's inner relics matter more than its outer shell. Three things go inside each Project 108 chorten:

• The sokshing, a specially prepared wooden pole at the centre of the chorten, described by Daily Bhutan as its spiritual spine. The relics are arranged around it.
• The zung, the sacred inner relics, including thousands of hand-rolled mantras and scriptures. Twenty Zung Lopens and 60 supporting monks have been preparing them at Sarpang Dzong, BBS reported. Members of the public were also invited to contribute traditional items, from farm tools to ritual instruments.
• Ringsel, small pearl-like relics. His Holiness the Je Khenpo offered 120 of them, and personally placed them in small chortens to be enshrined.

Before going into the chortens, the relics are consecrated in a 21-day rabney led by former Drabi Lopen Sangay Dorji, which began in late September, BBS reported.

Scale

At 15 metres, each chorten is about eight times the height of a person and taller than a three-storey building. GMC notes that the 108 stacked on top of each other would reach about 1.62 km. In a straight line, 108 metres apart, they cover about 12 km of riverbank.

Why 108

In Bhutanese Buddhism, 108 stands for the afflictive emotions a practitioner works to overcome, which is why prayer beads have 108 beads. The Kangyur, the collected teachings of the Buddha, runs to 108 volumes. There is also a local precedent. The 7th-century Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo is said to have built 108 temples across the Himalaya, two of which still stand in Bhutan: Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro and Jambay Lhakhang in Bumthang. For more, see BBS on why the number matters and our first Project 108 report.

Bhutan already has one famous set of 108 chortens: the memorial chortens on the Dochula pass between Thimphu and Punakha, one of the entries in our 108 facts about Bhutan. Project 108 is on a different scale: each Gelephu chorten is a full 15-metre Jangchub Chorten.

Who Is Paying for It

Sponsorship opened to the public in May. According to BBS, there are four tiers:

Contributions go through GMC-authorised accounts at DK Bank and the Bank of Bhutan, or a crowdfunding platform run by the Royal Securities Exchange of Bhutan. By mid-June, Daily Bhutan reported nearly Nu. 850 million raised in Bhutan and US$8.5 million from abroad, enough for about 88 chortens. BBS reported in May that most sponsors so far were from outside Bhutan.

How We Built the 3D Model

The model follows the seven elements and the 15-metre height published by GMC, and the classical proportions of a Bhutanese Jangchub Chorten: a whitewashed square pedestal with a red band, four steps, a vase-shaped dome on a round seat, a red square section (harmika) below a gilded spire of thirteen rings, a parasol, and a moon, sun and flame at the top. The final step shows the line of 108 along the river. The spacing in that view is compressed so the chortens stay visible; the real line is about 12 km long.

It is an illustration, not a copy of the official design. When photographs of the finished chortens are published after 1 November, we will compare the two and update the model where they differ.

The model is built with three.js, runs in any modern browser, pauses when it is off-screen, and shows the finished chorten without animation for visitors who have turned off motion in their settings.

Seeing Chortens in Bhutan

You do not need to be in Gelephu on 1 November to see great chortens. Three that are easy to include in an itinerary:

• National Memorial Chorten, Thimphu — built in 1974 in memory of the Third King, with golden spires and a constant stream of people walking the kora (circuit) around it.
• Chendebji Chorten, Trongsa — an 18th-century stupa modelled on Swayambhunath in Kathmandu, on the road to Trongsa.
• Chorten Kora, Trashiyangtse — a large white stupa on the riverbank in the far east, built in 1740 and modelled on Boudhanath in Nepal.

Once Project 108 is complete, the line of chortens along the Mau Chhu will be a permanent site in Gelephu. Visitors will need a Bhutan visa arranged through a licensed operator and pay the Sustainable Development Fee.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Jangchub Chorten?

A Jangchub Chorten, or Stupa of Enlightenment, is one of the eight classical types of Buddhist stupa. It commemorates the Buddha's enlightenment and has four stepped tiers between its base and its dome.

What are the parts of a Bhutanese chorten?

GMC lists seven elements from the ground up: thri (pedestal), bangrim (steps), bum-pa (dome), lhakhang (niche), khorlo (thirteen rings), dhug (parasol) and nyim-da (moon, sun and flame). Inside are a central wooden axis called the sokshing and sacred relics called zung.

When are the 108 stupas being built in Gelephu?

On 1 November 2026, which is also Lhabab Duechen and Coronation Day in Bhutan. All 108 are to be raised on the same day.

How tall are the Project 108 chortens?

Each is 15 metres tall. They stand 108 metres apart in a line about 12 km long along the Mau Chhu.

Can I watch Project 108 online?

Yes. The Gelephu Mindfulness City Authority plans a livestream and lets people sign up for the link on the official Project 108 page.

Can I use this 3D model on my own website?

Yes. Copy the embed code above. Please keep the credit link to Best of Bhutan.

Sources

• Gelephu Mindfulness City Authority, Project 108 official page
• BBS, Gelephu prepares to welcome tens of thousands for 108 Stupa event, 8 October 2026
• BBS, More than 30,000 vehicles registered for Gelephu's Project 108, 8 October 2026
• BBS, Sacred relics for 108 chortens undergo 21-day consecration, 29 September 2026
• BBS, His Holiness the Je Khenpo offers sacred Ringsel to Project 108, 23 July 2026
• BBS, GMC opens 108 Jangchub Chorten initiative for public contribution, 13 May 2026
• BBS, 108 sacred stupas to rise in GMC, here is why that number matters, 30 May 2026
• Daily Bhutan, Bhutan begins preparing sacred relics for Project 108's chortens, 19 June 2026
• Daily Bhutan, Project 108: Bhutan's ambitious vision to build a line of prayer across the land, 5 May 2026
• Daily Bhutan, His Majesty inspects site for 108 Jangchub Chorten in Gelephu Mindfulness City, 25 March 2026
• Wikipedia, Lhabab Duchen and Public holidays in Bhutan
• qppstudio, Public holidays on 1 November 2026

Details may change before 1 November. If you have updated information from the GMC Authority, please get in touch.

Planning a trip around Bhutan's sacred sites? Talk to us. We can build an itinerary around chortens, lhakhangs and festivals, and route you around the Gelephu closures in early November.