Bhutan Dance Festival: The Significant Mask Dance in Bhutan Festivals

An integral part of the religious festivals in Bhutan, Mask Dances, is known locally as Cham Dances. There are few festivals in the kingdom that do not have some form of masked dancing, whether it is from monks and lamas or the local community. As part of the performances of the festivals, the dancers wear masks made from papier mache, colorfully painted and decorated with cloths, threads, beads, and feathers. The dances take place in temples and monasteries across the country, and these spectacular annual events are widely regarded as the most important religious and social occasions in Bhutan.

History of Mask Dance in Bhutan

While Buddhism has been a major part of the Bhutanese national identity and culture for more than 1,200 years, mask dances came along later, firstly as a remembrance and reverence to the master of the Cham Dance, Padmasambhava, who is said to have performed the first such dance in around 740-760 AD at the site of the Samye Monastery in Tibet. The cham dances used in Bhutan were originally performed to tell religious messages, and many of the major dances are about the life and deeds of Guru Rinpoche, as Padmasambhava is known in the kingdom.

Other dances were later created by the Bhutanese Terton Pema Lingpa, the Zhabdrung Rinpoche, and other later saints of Tibetan Buddhism. The dances were originally said to suppress the evil spirits and beings that prevent the spread of Chhoe, or The Doctrine, and invoke the blessings of the tantric deities and allow the Chhoe to flourish and bring happiness and joy to all the sentient beings of the world.

The Mask Dances Performed Today in Bhutan

Today, much as the mask dances are still a major part of the rituals of Buddhism in Bhutan, and are still believed to have the power to suppress demons and evil beings, most of the dances play a larger part in the cultural development of the people. Each community or village in the kingdom has its rich traditions of dances, to celebrate communal occasions, to share experiences, and to mark the passing of the different seasons, most importantly the harvest season.

Just as the Dzongs were important in defending Bhutan and the Chhoesi System teaches the doctrines of Buddha to all, the Cham Dances also have a way of bringing the communities and villages together in a socio-religious unity. This is still so true today, in the modern world where social interactions are so all-important to modern millennials, even those in isolated kingdoms such as Bhutan. So it is suggested to take a Bhutan festival tour if your time is flexible. During the festival tour in Bhutan, you can experience the traditional ways to celebrate the ancient festivals that kept for centuries.

Different Types of Mask Dances in Bhutan

Pacham Dance

Known as the “Dance of the Heroes”, the Pacham is a common religious performance in Bhutanese festivals and is referring to the elegant and uninhibited displays of the enlightened beings. The movements in Pacham represent the expressions of the energy of enlightenment through more graceful movements to portray the acts of the male or female deities.

Shawa Shachi Dance

Known as “The Dance of the Stag and the Hounds, the Shawa Shachi is a semi-operatic performance found in many of the festivals in the east of Bhutan, though it can be found anywhere in the country. The performance is designed to convey the message of non-violence and consists of two main chapters performed over two days.

Dranyen Cham Dance

The Dance with the Dranyen as it is known in Bhutan was originally performed to celebrate the Drukpa Lineage in Bhutan by the Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal. Performers are somewhat weighted down, as the dancers carry large swords, and wear heavy woolen clothes, felt boots, and huge circular headdresses. The Dranyen of the title is a musical instrument similar to a lute, which is carried by one of the sword-less dancers.

Sha Na Cham (Black Hat Dance)

An unusual dance for a festival, this dance commemorates the killing of the anti-Buddhist King Langdarma in 842 by the monk, Pelkyi Dorji. The dancers represent powerful yogis who take possession of the dancing area, driving out the demons and evil beings with their constant stamping on the ground. The dance is known as the “Black Hat Dance, and the costumes include brocade dresses, black aprons, and tall wide-brimmed black hats, to represent the protective deities.

Pholay Molay Dance

Not so much a religious dance as a rather crude play, the “Dance of the Noblemen and Ladies” is about two princesses left behind with an old couple when their princes go to war. A group of red-faced Atsaras corrupt the princesses and the old woman, and on their return, the princes find out and are furious. The women are all punished by having their noses cut off, but the play ends with everyone reconciling and the princes and princesses marrying.

Drametsi Nga Cham Dance

Known as the “Dance of the Drummers from Drametsi”, this unique dance was created based on a vision that the son of Pema Lingpa had. The dance depicts 100 deities, both peaceful and wrathful, and the dancers wear yellow knee-length skirts and colorful animal masks, carrying a drum and drumstick to keep time in the dance.

Dungtam Dance

A performance about the entourage of one of the Eight Manifestations of Padmasambhava, known as Dorji Drolo, the Dance of the Wrathful Deities shows the Dorji and the entourage armed with ritual daggers to execute and release and evil spirit, shown in the performance as a small mannequin. The dance is a representation of the liberation of consciousness from the body in Buddhist teachings.

Raksha Mangcham Dance

One of the highlights of many of the major Tshechus in Bhutan, the “Dance of the Rakshas and the Judgement of the Dead” represents the spiritual drama of two deceased men brought before the lord of the underworld. Dressed in black, the first to be judged is the sinner, whose sins outweigh his good deeds, so he is dragged down to the hell realms. The second to be judged is dressed in white, and the Lord of the Underworld hears of his good and bad actions, and he is found to be a virtuous man. But the Black Demon tries to grab him, and after a tussle, the White God wins, and he is led to the pure lands.

Guru Tshengye Dance

Known as the Eight Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava), this dance is about all of them together, and the Guru Rinpoche figure is accompanied by his two human consorts, Mandarava on his left and Yeshe Tsogyal on his right. Both dance and drama play, the Eight Manifestations begin with Dorji Drolo with his terrible red mask, as he enters the dance area, followed by the other seven manifestations in a long procession of players and dancers.

Chhoeshey Dance

A religious song that is sung at almost all of the Tshechus in Bhutan, it commemorates an event in Tibet. Sung about the opening of the Eastern Gate, an entrance to the sacred pilgrimage site of Tsara in western Tibet by the founder of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism, Tsangpa Gyarey, and the song is long and solemn, with an air of religious reverence about it.

Popular Mask Dance Festivals in Bhutan

Mask Dances are held all over the country, and almost every festival in Bhutan has them, often several throughout some of the longer 5-7 days’ festivals. The Major Tshechus, which are held in Thimphu, Paro, and Punakha, are some of the best festivals in the kingdom for visiting.

Thimphu Tshechu

The largest festival in the kingdom, the Thimphu Tshechu festival is held in the Bhutanese capital for three days in the Tashichho Dzong. Witnessed by thousands of people, both Bhutanese and tourists,Thimphu Tshechu is one of the best festivals for the Cham Dances, and includes many of the top dances, including the Guru Tshengye and the Shawa Shachi. The festival is normally held in the early part of October in the Gregorian calendar.

Paro Tshechu

Second only to the Thimphu Tshechu for popularity and size, the Paro Tshechu is held in the courtyard of the famous Rinpung Dzong, one of the oldest Dzongs in Bhutan. The main events, such as the performances of plays and the Cham Dances, are held in the courtyard area on the first day of the festival and are limited for access due to the size. However, the main festival is held outside the fortress, in the main square for the other four days of the festival. The Paro Tshechu is held in the middle of March.

Punakha Drubchen

The precursor to the amazing Punakha Tshechu, the Drubchen is held to showcase and commemorate the famous Punakha Dzong, which held off an invasion from Tibet in 1637, while still under construction. The sacred Mask Dances are performed by the members of the Central Monastic Body of Bhutan and the locals of Punakha Dzongkhag, and tell the story of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel and the internal and external conflicts he faced. The Drubchen is held in February or March, just after the New Year in Bhutan and before the tenth day of the first month in the Bhutanese calendar.

Jambay Lhakhang Drup

During the building of the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet, the Tibetan King, Songtsen Gampo is said to have destroyed an ogress and had her body split into 108 pieces to be buried underneath 108 new temples. The Jambay Lhakhang is said to be one of those 108 temples, in the Bumthang Dzongkhag.

This unique Jambay Lhakhang Drup festival is one of the most interesting events in Bhutan and is the location of the only Cham Dance not open to outsiders. The famous Terchham, or Naked Dance, is held inside the Lhakhang at midnight and is performed by male dancers to bring fertility to barren and childless women. The dance was first initiated by the Terton Pema Lingpa, and it accompanies such popular Cham Dances as the Mewang, Macham, Ging Tsholing, Dramtse Ngacham, and Zhana Cham, which are held in the courtyard. The festival is held in the first few weeks of November and lasts for five days.

Tips for Joining in a Bhutan Dance Festival

Tshechus in Bhutan are very much religious festivals, and you should be mindful of the significance of the religious ceremonies to the local people. However, that said, once the religious part of the festival is done, which is usually on the first day, the rest of the time is spent in merry-making, eating, dancing, singing, and other such social activities, and you are welcome to join in. Most locals will even ask you to join them, so feel free. Just remember to follow the advice of your guide when it comes to good form.

Conclusion of Bhutan Dance Festivals

The dance festival in Bhutan actually refers to the festivals during which you can see the traditional mask dances in Bhutan. Almost of the religions tshechu of Bhutan include the performance of the mask dances.

In fact, there are kinds of mask dances that tell different Buddhist stories. You can choose to join different festivals to see the different dances.

The most popular tshechus in Bhutan including mask dance performances are Thimphu Tshechu, Paro Tshechu and Punakha Tshechu, which attract thousands of tourists from all over the world every year. If you are looking for a little more realism and authenticity in your festival visit to Bhutan, try heading out to the more remote areas in the east, where village Tshechus are still the same as they have always been.

Please remember that no matter when you will go to Bhutan for a festival tour, make you reservation as early as possible.