Mebar Tsho
Mebar Tsho, widely known as the 'Burning Lake', is a deep, dark gorge pool in the Tang River of Bumthang District, Bhutan. Despite its name, Mebar Tsho is not a volcanic lake but a wide river pool famous for its profound connection to the 15th-century saint Pema Lingpa. In 1475, Pema Lingpa plunged into the turbulent pool carrying a burning butter lamp to prove his divine status as a treasure revealer (terton). He emerged unharmed holding sacred Buddhist scrolls and a statue, with the butter lamp still burning brightly. Revered as a gateway to the underwater realm of water spirits (Nagas), the pool is infamous for its lethal undercurrents, tragic drownings, ghost lights flickering above the black water, and disembodied voices warning visitors away from the ledge.