Daily life:

• Normally Bhutanese people greet each other by a slight bow with opened hands to show respect. Hand shaking is not common in Bhutan but it can be accepted as the norm of communication.
• Most of the people wear gho and kira, the national dress of the Kingdom. It is mandatory to wear these dresses in school, government office and formal occasion. Government expect visitors to wear proper dress when entering in Dzongs and monasteries.
• The Bhutanese family always serves the guest first. Culturally we don’t serve oneself. There are always some persons for the service particularly ladies members of the family serve invited person and other members of the family.
• Traditionally people eat their meal sitting on the wooden floor with their right hand. Before eating the meal, they make a short prayer and put small morsel of food on the floor as a symbol of offering to spirit and deities.
• Bhutanese people use both hands together for giving and receiving somethings. This is a sign of the respect towards giver or receiver.
• When we enter the room and sacred places, we leave our shoes outside the door. We don’t point out someone or sacred objects with index finger instead we show with the palm of the hand. Showing the sole towards someone or sacred object is considered impolite.
• The Dzongs, temples and monasteries are always rounded in clockwise direction. People also leave some money in the alter of the monastery or temple like a gesture of offering.

Birth:

Bhutanese people prohibit to visit the guest in the home of new born for 3 days. After third day’s purification ritual people come to visit to see new born baby. The head lama (Buddhist priest) of the local temple has a right to give a name to new born baby. So, parents go to the local temple to pay homage to the god and for name giving ritual in the temple. Often the name given to the baby is associated with the deities and the horoscope is written according to the time and date of birth of new born following Bhutanese calendar.

Marriage:

Traditionally arrange marriage is practiced in Bhutan and in the eastern Bhutan cross cuisine marriage is followed. But today most people marriage in their own choice. Even though the parents select future half of their children, they have right to reject or accept. So, they have more freedom to select their future wife or husband. Often the marriage takes place in the monastery or the temple performed by the head lama. After the marriage ceremony, the new couple receive the khada and gifts from the invited persons as symbol of blessing. Then the reception begins.

In the western Bhutan the husband goes to the parent’s house of his wife whereas in the eastern Bhutan wife moves into her husbands’ paents house.  They can choose their own house too.

Death:

In Bhutan the cremation is practiced when the person is dead. Parallelly in some parts of the Bhutan ground burial and sky burial are practiced. In sky burial they leave the flesh of deceased body to be devoured by vultures. In Bhutanese belief, death is the passage to reborn. So, many rituals are performed for a safe journey towards the new life.  7^th, 14^th, 21^st, and 49^th day after the death of the person are considered important and in these days the family of deceased person erect prayer flags in the name deceased and perform religious ritual. After the first year of death, according to the lunar calendar of Bhutan, the ritual death anniversary is held each year in the day of the dead. Relatives and neighbors come with alcohol and foods to attend such rituals.