Mask dancers at the Thimphu Tshechu
Bhutan lives in festivals. These are the times when the mountains, forests, streams and people bask in the ethereal light of colors and jubilance. Many tourists come to Bhutan to witness religious festivals held annually in dzongs throughout the country. These festivals form an inseparable part of Bhutanese culture. Like most notable spectacle of these festivals, mask-dances in brilliant array of colorful silk costumes. The dancers reenact legendary events, with monks playing exotic Himalaya’s musical instruments.
There are three types of religious dances. Instructive dances tell us moral tales, dances intended to purify a place and protect it from evil spirits and dances that proclaim the victory of Buddhism and the glory of Gum Rimpoche. The Tshechus (festivals) are celebrated for three to five days in which both monks and laymen take part in the dances. The highlight of most Bhutanese Tshechus is the brief unfurling of the dzong's huge appliqué thangka, representing Guru Rimpoche and his eight manifestations. Better known as a Thongdrel, the Bhutanese believe that by viewing this they are delivered from the cycles of reincarnations. At the festivals the atsaras or clowns weaving expressive masks are a welcome sight. Tshechus are also a time for the Bhutanese people to socialize with family, friends and acquaintances. These festivals both in terms of the ways of celebrations and rituals are well preserved over centuries.
