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AT VARIOUS times of the year, the annual festivals known as Tshechus take place in different locations. Two of the most popular are held at Paro in the spring, and Thimphu in the autumn, but there are many others at temples, dzongs and monasteries throughout Bhutan. Dancers in brilliant silk costumes re-enact legendary events, accompanied by blaring horns, booming drums, and clashing cymbals as they whirl and leap against a background of sky and mountains. Certain dances require the participants to wear heavy masks, representing human forms, manifestations of Guru Rinpoche, animals, skulls or fearsome deities. There are three types of religious dance: instructive dances which tell a moral tale, dances intended to purify a place and to protect it from evil spirits, and dances that proclaim the victory of Buddhism and the glory of Guru Rinpoche. Crowds of people gather to watch the dances, dressed in the finely woven, brightly patterned cloth for which Bhutan is renowned, creating an intensely colourful and exciting scene, and one which has remained unchanged in its traditional purity for centuries. 

The Tsechus are celebrated for between three and five days, with both monks and laymen taking part in the dances, which tend to be performed in a similar programme at each of the Tsechus. Amongst the dancers at all festivals there are so called atsaras, or clowns, whose expressive masks and postures provide a welcome counterpoint to the formalised religious dances.

The atsaras confront the monks and, within prescribed limits, make fun of the whole affair. In a country where sacred matters are treated with the highest respect, only the atsaras are permitted to mock religion.

The climax of several of the Tsechus is the brief unfurling of a huge applique thangka, representing Guru Rinpoche and his eight manifestations. Known as a thongdroel, the festival-goers believe that simply by viewing this thangka they can be delivered from the cycle of reincarnations (which is the ultimate aim of all Buddhists).

The Bhutanese people attach great importance to festivals, which allow them to become immersed in their religion and to gain merit, and it is because of this importance that the festivals are so well preserved. These events are also a time for the Bhutanese to socialise, to laugh and joke with their neighbours and acquaintances, to dress in their finest clothes and jewellery, to eat well and generally to have a good time. 

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