By Karma Wangchuk · Sep 5, 2024 · Culture
Tshechus — Bhutan's mask-dance festivals — are not folkloric performances. They are living religious events.
What is happening
Each mask dance enacts a Buddhist teaching, a victory of good over ego, or the life of Guru Rinpoche. The dances are the same ones performed for 400 years, by the same monastic communities, in the same order.
How to watch
Sit when locals sit. Stand when they stand. Photograph from where the photographers stand, not from the centre. Cover knees and shoulders. Do not eat in the dance courtyard.
