Enchoro or Enchorom is a native festival of a Kalizingkha village under Tseza Gewog (block) in Dagana with unique lyrics and melodies. It is performed by the people of Kalizingkha particularly by the children (both boys and girls) aged below 12 on the 30th day of the 11th Bhutanese month every year. Even today, the festival is still vibrant and popular in the community without any major transformations. There are minor transformations in terms of the path followed by children from the starting point until the village temple (traditionally from school campus but now from the way which leads to Gophu Gonpa (monastery) from Dzong (Fortress) and the meals served during the three days celebration. However, owing to the current pandemic and the government policies, the community could not celebrate this festival for the past two years but the locals are now very much hopeful that everything will become normal again with the government's new normal policies. The origin of this festival remains unknown. The locals believed in performing this festival mainly to drive away the evil forces, diseases and misfortunes from their household and their community and to wish for a successful and prosperous year and good luck for the people living in the locality.

Lomba is a popular local New Year celebration observed in the villages of Paro and Haa districts. Lomba is a celebration for the beginning of a New Year, which takes place from the 29th day of the 10th month of the lunar calendar. It is one of the most special annual occasions for the Parops and Haaps, residents of the valleys. The name “Lomba” expresses carrying good luck from one year to another. Ba literally means receiving wealth in one’s hand or to carry something forward, leaving the past behind. Lomba is celebrated by Haaps and Parops as a New Year festival from the 29th day of the 10th month of the lunar calendar. In Haa, Lomba often lasts until the 15th day of the 11th month, while Parops have a shorter celebration until the 2nd day of the 11th month. Although Lomba has been part of the culture of the two valleys for many generations, making it difficult to trace the origin. No specific written text has been found for early observances so far. According to folk understandings, some believe that Lomba began with the arrival of Phajo Drugom Zhigpo in the 13th century, while some believe that it began much earlier when men started working for food. According to Dasho Sangay Dorji (2011), Lomba observed in Paro and Haa districts may be the legacy of the Lhapas, but in some religious texts, the Lomba celebration dates to an influence from Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (1594-1651) who consolidated the Bhutanese region into a state in 1649. Himself hailing from Tibet to the north, he first introduced Bhutanese to the celebration of Nyi-lo winter solstice. The day marked the end of the year and welcomed another year of prosperity with bountiful harvest. With adequate food reserve stored on the rooftop, Haaps and Parops began to recognize the day as Lomba and ushered in the beginning of the dry season of winter. Temples and monasteries in the country would have also received the annual provisions of butter, meat, rice and wheat grains on Lomba. Since then, Lomba is celebrated every year, which would make it the earliest New Year festival celebrated in any district of Bhutan.

Wood turned utensils and dishes were present in Bhutan since ancient times. Communities from different parts of Bhutan have a similar type of craft as cups and plates are necessary for all household meals. However, the labour-intensive wood turned lacquer wares from Yangtse earned a considerable reputation in the kingdom. About a century-old traditional woodturning art (Shag-zo) in Yangtse is still a vibrant and popular means of family business and occupation. The present young artisans in Yangtse who are in their 20s and early 30s are the fifth-generation descendants of Lobazang from Kham in Tibet. Like other crafts of Bhutan, Shagzo demands a long process. The extracted wood knots and burls have to be dried; soaked in water; roughly shaped (first turned); roughly turned bowls are boiled; dried again; final turned bowls are smoothened with sandpapers and dried leaves of Trema politoria (locally known as Sog sogpa-shing). After colouring them yellow or red, it becomes ready for the next step – lacquering. Lacquering is another time-consuming process. Traditionally, lacquerers mostly use an urushiol-based lacquer common in East Asia derived primarily from toxic wax trees known as Sey Shing in Yangtse. These wooden bowls are an integral part of both the Bhutanese and Tibetan lifestyles and this explains the high demand for these products in Tibet. In the medieval period, people from Yangtse and Bumdeling traded wooden plates (not Dhapas) and bowls (cups) to Assam (India) and Go-phors (wooden bowl with lid), Lha-phor (bowl with lid used by monks), Dra-phor (bigger than other Phobs originally used by Tibetan Drapas), and Bay-phor (used by Tibetans, and has a deeper interior than Bhutanese hobs) to people of Tibet. Other than products historically exported to Assam and Tibet, Shagzopas make varieties of wood-turned products.

Bhutan, embodied with rich and unique culture heritage has largely remained intact for centuries because of its unique way of preserving its culture and tradition over the generation and of course being isolated from the rest of the world. Rukubji, a geopolitically located snake head village under Sephu Gewog (block) in the premises of Wangduephodrang Dzongkhag (district) celebrates Lochu. Lochu is the native sacred festival were offering for the wellbeing of locality led by Phajo (local shaman) with 25 Pazab (soldiers or guard) particularly performed. Lochu is said to be sacred performance initiated in around mid of 10th and 11th century after Zhabdrung Tshenden Dhelwa subdued the demonic forces and made into local deity (Phola) of the place. The villagers do a grand offering to the local deity to bring peace and happiness. In the past a sheep is slaughtered and made offering to the local deity. In recent times, the bonisim culture was being stopped and alternative offerings like forelegs/hindleg and ……. of a cow are done to appease the protector. Zhabdrung Tsenden Dhelwa was born in Tibet. It was around in mid of 10th and 11th century where Zhabdrung Tsenden Dhelwa visited the place. The place was not blessed by any other Lamas and it is said that first lama to visit in the region was Zhabdrung Tsenden Dhelwa where he subdued many demons and sanctified the place. Lochu was conducted consecutively every 3 years. It is believed that, failing to perform the offerings would bring bad luck, natural calamities such as flood (happened some 7-8 years ago) and the harvest of any crop (potato being the main cash crop of the locality) would be befallen. It is also believed to be said that the local deity, in order to bless the community with peace and happiness, an old man is always assigned to offer prayers to local deity (Phola) to bring peace and prosperity in the community. It so happened that one day the old man knew that due to his old age, worried that he wouldn’t be able to render his service in offering to Phola thereafter. Legends are being past that the local deity appeared before him and enlightened him with wisdoms. The old man, upon this wisdom advised his communities to conduct the Lochu on 5th or 6th day of every twelfth lunar month of the third year. Thereon, the festival is being celebrated in winters of every third year. Far and near community witnesses this festival and the locality celebrates grandeur day with feast and ceremony. It is said that in the olden days lochu is annually conducted on the 5th or 6th day of the twelfth lunar month. However, as time passes the communities could not conducted annually and made to conduct in every 3 years. Alternatively, if the locality couldn’t celebrate this occasion, the community comes together annually and recites Kangyuar (translated words of buddha) to bring good luck in community. As the time passes by, the community face problems like, finding Phajo (Shaman) since it is said that the way of offering is different. A man from every household was mandatory in the past for Pazab. As the time passes, 25 Pazab are required for the day which are mostly performed voluntarily. The community fears that the next celebration wouldn’t happen as there is no Phajo for the day. The previous one is unable to perform due to his illness.

Tamzhing Phag-chham is a solo mask dance with a mask made of a wild boar (Sus scrofa), which is very common on the Asian continent. The term "Phag-chham" sometimes has two different meanings; Phag-chham (tamzhing Phag-chham) and the other, the Phag-chham performed during the Raksha Mangchham (a theatrical mask dance of the Intermediate state). Tamzhing Phag-chham was originally composed by the Great Treasurer Terton Pama Lingpa (1450-1521) on the consecration of the temple Tamzhing Lhundrub Choeling on the 15th day of the Tiger Month (11th month) of the Wood Ox Year, which corresponds to the Gregorian year 1505, in Bumthang, one of the central districts of Bhutan. Later it was performed in other monasteries founded either by Terton himself or by his successors in most of the eastern and central parts of Bhutan. Phag-chham is among the most important and sacred mask dances in Tamzhing, and the festival "Tamzhing Phag-la Chod-pa" is also named after this dance, which is held every year from the 10th to the 12th of the eighth lunar month. It is performed by an amateur and can only be danced by the Chhamjug (the second leader of the mask dancers), who wears a wooden boar mask, exquisite brocade costumes with dangling skirts made of five eye-catching colored cloths, and holds two bundles of willow branches in both hands. The boar mask is considered one of the masterpieces of the founder himself, as are the dance steps themselves. Since the mask is considered sacred, it is received in a Chibdrel (traditional procession) when the dancer comes out of the Chhamkhang (preparation room). The origin of the mask dance lies in local tradition: Pema Lingpa was looking for a suitable place for his temple in the Choekhor valley when he saw a wild boar digging in the ground. He realized that this was a sign from the enlightened being Dorje Phagmo (deity Skt. Vajravarahi) to show him the suitable place. After the temple was built, he held a festival in honor of the patron deities during the inauguration as a symbol of gratitude. Since it is believed that the prophecy and the groundbreaking ceremony for the Tamzhing Temple was led by Dorje Phagmo, the festival is dedicated to her and is called Phagla-Chodpa. On the second day of the festival, Phag-chham leads the ground-breaking ceremony to sanctify the site before more mask dances are performed for the audience. Due to the unexpected loss of the Chham-yig (choreography manuscript) from the monastery many years ago, elders have regretfully found that the Phag-chham performed today no longer contains the complete steps and choreography. Elderly locals says that, at that time, there were more than 14 different types of steps, and due to faulty oral tradition, nearly 50% of the choreographies have been lost. The communities are concerned that without documentation, there is a risk of even more steps being lost and even new ones being added, as many of the artisans are either lay monks or farmers from the affiliated communities.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea People in Bukcheong, Hamgyeongnam-do (in North Korea) engaged in a folk play, wearing lion masks on the night of the full moon of January 15 on the lunar calendar thinking that a lion, a powerful animal, could drive away evil spirits for them. Lion-masked people from neighboring villages gathered together and competed with one another. Since the team from Toseong-ri, Cheonghae-myeon, Bukcheong-gun did better than the others, the play gradually disappeared in the other villages. The mask play had come to secure its rightful place among Koreans since the Three Kingdoms Period. Those from the North continued to play it, mostly in Seoul. The mask play was started with young people carrying torches on the night of January 14 and was continued until the daybreak of the following morning. On January 16, they would pay visits to the houses of well-to-do people as prearranged. Upon entering the property, they would go around the courtyard in a line and start dancing. Then, a lion-masked person would join them. The “lion” would go into the inner room and the kitchen and make a gesture of eating someone alive. Then, the lion would return to the courtyard and engage in a lively dance. The lion would make a big bow to the deities kept in the house as requested by the owner of the house. When the lion would pretend to fall down exhausted, people would call an eminent monk to energize it by reciting a phrase of Buddhist scripture or have an herbal doctor apply acupuncture. Upon regaining strength, the lion would dance again with all the others. Participants included those acting as yangban (noblemen), a freakishly tall person, a humpback, a petty local government official, a dancing boy, a dancing woman, a monk, an herbal doctor, a scholar, etc. The dancing boy, the dancing woman, the monk, the herbal doctor, and the scholar appeared without wearing a mask. The musical instruments used were tungso (six-holed vertical bamboo flute), buk (drum), jing (large gongs), and janggo (hourglass-shaped drum). A mask dance performed in Bukcheong often uses tungso as a main instrument while samhyeon yukgak (three strings and six wind instruments) is used in Gyeonggi-do and kkwaenggwari (small gong) in Gyeongsang-do. The owners of the house would have their children ride on the back of the lion based on the belief that it would make them live longer. Money or grains donated by the houses visited by the troupe were used as scholarship fund for children from needy families and to subsidize expenses for senior citizen associations and cover the expenses for the lion play. Bukcheong Saja Noreum is focused on merrymaking, featuring movements more powerful than other lion dances.

Tseza Bongkor is a native festival of Tseza Gewog (block) in Dagana with unique lyrics and dance steps performed by what we call in local dialect the Boegarps or the Pazaabs (Male participants/warriors). It is celebrated once in every three years in six villages under Tseza Gewog namely in Zamtog, Samey, Trashigang, Jangsagang, Tsanglaykha and Kalizingkha. In every village, the festival is celebrated for three days and it is mandatory for all the households of that particular village to take part in that celebration. At Samey, the festival is always celebrated on the 14th Day of the first Bhutanese month every three years at a place called Zingkha Pangna and only then, it is celebrated at Trashigang. It is because the festival at Trashigang is also presided over by the same Male Shaman (Pawo) and the Female Shaman (Neljorm) who conducts the festival at Samey. On the last day of the Samey Bonkor i.e. on 16th day of the first Bhutanese month, the Shaman and the Yogini heads towards Trashigang for the celebration of the same. The Trashigang Bonkor begins from 16th and ends on the 18th day of the first Bhutanese month. Although the festival is celebrated for three days in all the six villages but the date of celebration differs in all the villages. For instance the date for celebration of the festival is fixed at Samey and Trashigang but in the remaining four villages the dates are not fixed. They celebrates the festival depending upon the auspicious date that is mentioned in the Bhutanese Datho (Almanic calendar). Every household must dispatch at least one or two representatives (depending upon the number of person living in that house) for the celebration. Usually all the households are represented by two members i.e. one male representative who acts as a Boegarp (male dancer) and one female representative as a dancer. If the household has just one member, that particular person has to represent his or her household. If any household fails to send the member representative/s for the festival, they have to send their substitution or else they have to pay fine. Traditionally, the festival used to be presided over by a Male shaman (Pawo) and a Female shaman (Neljorm) but since the demise of the Pawo few years back, he is replaced by one of the village Lama. There are slight differences in the way the festival is celebrated in these six villages mainly in terms of the date of the celebration, materials and the costumes used in the celebration and the persons involved in the festival. The origin of the festival is still unknown but it is believed that the festival was instituted in the region mainly by the Tseza Nyagoes (Boegarps). According to Ap Sangay Dorji, the festival was instituted mainly to appease the Dralha (deities) in order to overcome any sort of obstacles and epidemics in the region. Tseza Bongkor is still vibrantly performed in the community and there is no major transformation in the way the festival is conducted even today. Traditionally every word written in the book Dralha Pangtoed (Ritual text) was dictated upon the Boegarps by the Pawo which is today replaced by the village Lam. Similarly, the house in which the shaman and the Female shaman live during the celebration Lha chim (shrine) was build using the mated bamboo but today it is constructed using the metal sheets, wood and bamboo. According to some oral history, traditionally the people of this region were following the Bon (locally called Ban choe) religion because of which their festival came to be known as Bangkor, the Bon festival of Tseza Gewog. Some oral tradition also says that during Zhabrung's era, The Pazaabs in Punakha performed their dances in circular (kora chap di) group to celebrate their victory over the Tibetan enemies. For the same reason, the Ngagoes (strong man) or the Boegarps of Tseza Gewog also performed the same dances following the same steps. Hence, the festival came to be known as Tseza Bangkor, the dance performed by Boegarps in a circular group. Tseza Gewog is one of the important Gewog under Dagana Dzongkhag (district) since Dagana falls under Tseza gewog and is where the Dzongkhag Administration's Headquarter is located. One of the most famous and special Temple in Dagana,  Shathong Lhakhang, founded by the Buddhist Master Dupthob (Siddhi) Shawa Ripa in the 18th century is also located under Tseza Gewog. Shawa Ripa is an ancient Buddhist Master who is said to have lived for over 900 years. Oral History also mentions that there is a big tree at Pele, which is believed to be a walking stick of Zhabdrung Jigme Chogyal (1862-1904) and a house in which the Zhabdrung halt his night on the way and back from Daga Dzong.

Hai Ba Trung Temple, also known as Ha Loi Temple, Me Linh Commune, has a very important historical significance. This is the place to worship two national heroines, Trung Trac and Trung Nhi - the leaders of the uprising to overthrow the Han Dynasty and regain national independence and autonomy in 40 - 43 (AD). Trưng Sisters Temple Festival - Me Linh is held annually at the beginning of the first lunar month at the Temple to commemorate the two Ladies' contributions. The main festival opens from the 6th to the 10th of January with incense offering ceremonies, processions, sacrifices, palanquin handovers... Every 5 years, in years ending in 0 and 5, people will organize a palanquin procession of Hai Ba Trung with the four tutelary deities of Ha Loi village. From the 4th of January, local people will perform a bathing ceremony, changing the cover of the statue of the Queen. Then, on the 4th and 5th, the locals will hold a ritual to worship the Two Ladies at the village communal house with the village's tutelary god, the four generals (the brothers Do, Ho, Bach, and Hac who helped Thanh Tan Vien restore the Hung dynasty). In the procession of the Two Ladies from the Temple to the Communal House, there will be: 2 elephants, 2 horses, a team of young women wearing white shirts carrying the palanquin, a team of female guards wearing brown shirts, wearing leggings, carrying swords like soldiers in ancient times, and two teams of women carrying the two palanquins. In addition, there will be a team of men wearing blue ceremonial shirts with seals, a team of musicians, a team of money bearers, a team carrying flags, long swords, and eight treasures, umbrellas, and parasols, creating a solemn atmosphere for the festival. On the morning of the 6th, the villagers will send the Two Ladies back to the capital. The Trưng Sisters Temple Festival in Me Linh has its own unique feature, which is the palanquin handover ceremony. The procession will have the following order: Thanh Hoang palanquin and General Cot Tung will stand on both sides of the yard to pay respect to the Two Ladies returning to the capital. When leaving the Temple, Trung Trac palanquin will go first. When reaching the road to the village communal house, Trung Nhi palanquin will go first. When reaching the communal house gate, the elder palanquin will go first, the younger palanquin will go after. Both sides will welcome the two ladies. This ceremony symbolizes the image of the king returning from the capital Me Linh to visit the village. From the 7th to the 10th of January, the Trưng Sisters Temple Festival will include the ritual to pay respect to the six female generals, the blessing ritual, the banquet and the thanksgiving ritual. After the ritual, the festival will feature many folk games such as: swing, blindfolded goat catching, traditional wrestling... and performances reenacting the heroic feat when the two ladies sacrificed the flag to start the uprising, creating a bustling and joyful atmosphere for the festival. The festival contains noble humanistic values, educating the tradition of patriotism, the morality of drinking water and remembering its source.

The title ‘Traditional Ainu Dance’ is defined as dances and songs transmitted among the Ainu people of distinctive cultures in Hokkaido located in the northern area of Japan. Those dances and songs are derived from the life and religion of the Ainu people; some are performed at ceremonies and banquets in local communities, and others privately performed in daily lives. Neither of them is accompanied with musical instruments. They are performed along with songs and handclaps of dancers and participants on site. The Ainu people used to live in a vast area including Hokkaido, the northern part of Honshu, the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin. Currently, however, most of them live mainly in Hokkaido, and its population is estimated at approximately twenty-four thousand. The Traditional Ainu Dance is transmitted by the seventeen preserving associations established in fifteen cities and towns where the Ainu people live. Allegedly the Ainu culture of today’s style was formed up approximately in the twelfth or thirteenth century. People at that time lived by fishing, hunting and gathering, and they also traded with other areas. In this way of life, the Ainu people have developed such a creed as they believe in deities which are omnipresent at anything related to their lives, namely the nature (the sun, rain, water, fire etc.) including animals and plants. Thus, they often conducted prayers and ceremonies in their daily life. The Traditional Ainu Dance can be performed at these prayers and ceremonies or banquets. ‘Iyomante,’ for example, is the biggest ceremony with the Traditional Ainu Dance for sending a deity disguised as a bear back to heaven. The Ainu people believe that a deity comes down to the human world in disguise of an animal or a plant which is a gift from the deity to be eaten by the human beings. Once people have physically eaten it up, they thank the remaining spirit of this invisible deity for its gift and hold a ceremony to send it back to heaven. During the ceremony people sing and dance. One of the features found in the Ainu performing arts is the imitation of calls and movements of animals and birds. During the ceremony of ‘Iyomante’ people repeatedly imitate calls and sounds accompanied with its movements of a bear, and words are inserted in such repetitions. On the other hand, performing arts which are privately performed in an Ainu daily life contain lullabies, improvisatory lyrical songs, incantations with melodies, and songs accompanied with movements of labours by several persons in a daily life. As mentioned above, the Traditional Ainu Dance is performed at important ceremonies and banquets to the Ainu people and also in their daily life, through which the Ainu people reconfirm the identity and deepen a sense of continuity. Currently, in addition to such ceremonies as mentioned above, the Traditional Ainu Dance is demonstrated at newly projected festivals and events. It is one element of the intangible cultural heritage transmitted from generations to generations and is continuously developed and reproduced according to the situations of each era. The traditional style of the Ainu dances is a big circle of many participants, proceeding right-handed with some fixed movements and singing together. They sing the same song together or in turns, otherwise they sing in a responding way between a chorus leader and the others. Some of those traditional songs are polyphonic; several women sit on a floor in a circle in surrounding a lid of a wooden container, make a rhythm in beating the lid, and sing the same melody with one sound successively delayed. Because there are currently many opportunities to perform it apart from a daily life, some dances and songs have been formed up as independent repertoires in paying due attention to the traditional performing style. As overviewed, they are (i) the imitation of calls and movements of animal, namely ‘crane dance’, ‘fox dance’ and ‘swallow dance’: (ii) the imitation of insects, namely ‘grasshopper dance’: (iii) the ritual one, namely ‘sword dance’ and ‘bow dance’: (iv) the entertaining one: (v) the improvisatory one. Thus, the Traditional Ainu Dance is simple and naive, and often retains the primordial quality inside. In this sense it can illustrate the origin of performing arts.

Japan 2009

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea In this performance, an exorcist disguised as an ox prays for a good harvest, good commercial business, and success for children. It is presumed that the performance started during the Joseon Period (1392 – 1910). This performance is preceded by Jeseokgeori (Ritual Song for the Deity Jeseok) that is said to control things relating to longevity, grains, clothes and fortune/misfortune. It used to be held in Giho and Haeseo, Hwanghae-do. The performance starts around sunset and continues until the daybreak of the following day. Six female exorcists play janggo (hourglass-shaped drum), jing (large gong), jeo (bamboo flute), and piri (flute). Eight fabric straps are hung from above indicating the path through which Eight Heavenly Maids will descend. At the bottom of the fabrics are placed eight tubs, where the fairies will take a bath. An exorcist disguised as Sambuljeseok (Three Heavenly Deities) in a white robe and a hat sings a song about how he arranged the foundation of Joseon as instructed by the Jade Emperor of Heaven. By this time, a cowman appears, leading a cow. The performance ends with a scene of the deity Jeseok taking a trip to Seocheon Seoyeokguk (ancient India), while patrolling officers engage in a round of dance. Buddhist deities appearing in the performance, including Sambuljeseok Buddha, are a unique sight that cannot be found in any other exorcism performances. Pyeongsan Sonoreumgut (Shamanic Ox Performance of Pyeongsan, Hwanghae-do) was able to be maintained thanks to Jang Bo-bae, an exorcist from Pyeongsan, who continued the performance after the country’s liberation. As an event strongly influenced by Buddhism, the performance also combines elements of entertainment and high artistic quality. It serves as an occasion to pray for the happiness of local people and to strengthen the ties among them.

Hayachine Kagura is a folk performing art expressed through the ritual dance of performers with masks of a deity on their faces, accompanied by instrumental music such as rhythms of big drums, in order to receive the blessings of a deity. The music for this Kagura is played by a big drum, small cymbals, and a flute along with songs. The stage is approximately 3.6 m2 large, and players of a big drum and cymbals seat themselves at the centre front of the stage with their backs toward the audience. A tapestry approximately 2 meters high is hung at the back, behind which is a dressing room. There are one to five dancers, depending on the piece. They appear onto the stage, lifting up the lower edge of a tapestry. The transmitted repertoire consists of approximately seventy pieces, composed of ritual dances, one featuring deities as protagonists, one with a theme of the Japanese legends of ancient time or war chronicles of medieval time, and one of a shishi (a lion-like imaginary animal), i.e. the deity of the Hayachine Shrine itself. This one-day Kagura begins with six ritual dances, then approximately five dances expressing a deity as a protagonist or telling some stories, and finally ends with the dance of a shishi deity. As a whole, the content is meant to demonstrate the majesty of the deity of the Hayachine Shrine and to bless the people. Hayachine Kagura has over seventy pieces in its transmitted repertoire, and its dances, together with characteristic music, are considered very beautiful. Hayachine Kagura is cultural heritage transmitted to the present day from the fourteenth or fifteenth century by the people who worshipped the Hayachine Shrine. Designated by the Government as Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property in 1975, it is currently recognized as one element of important cultural heritage which widely reflects the transition of the Japanese life style. For a while after its beginning, Hayachine Kagura was transmitted and performed only by holy officers of the Hayachine Shrine. From the late seventeenth to the mid-nineteenth century, however, those holy officers also transmitted it to neighbouring farmers and townsmen, and gradually performed it together. Iwate Prefecture, where the Hayachine Shrine is located, is a cold region, and life was difficult there. the local people worshipped Mt. Hayachine as a deity and wished for a better and more secure life, relying upon the power of a deity. In order to meet their expectations, the bearers of Hayachine Kagura regularly visited communities, taking with them a shishi’s head as a symbol of the power of the deity Hayachine, and blessed the people by demonstrating the power of the deity through the performance of kagura. In the early twentieth century it ceased to be performed in many communities. Currently, however, it has been transmitted from elder to younger generations by local people of two communities at Ohsako Town in Hanamaki City, Iwate Prefecture, and is performed on the eve and on the day of the Great Festival of the Hayachine Shrine on August 1st every year, which venerates nature, including Mt. Hayachine. Hayachine Kagura is regarded as part of the excellent and distinctive culture of which the group of bearers and people in the transmitting communities are proud in relation to groups of other communities and societies. To transmit Hayachine Kagura and display it to the public is, for the transmitting group and community, to reconfirm a sense of identity with its own group and society and also to contribute to the continuity of such a group and community. Hayachine Kagura is a folk performing art transmitted for a long time and still performed by ordinary Japanese people. The repertoire is derived from Japanese history and traditional culture, such as the Legend of Japan and war chronicles, and reflects the Japanese sense of performing arts. Moreover, the Japanese concept of deity and nature is seen in the background of the transmission and performance of Hayachine Kagura. Thus, Hayachine Kagura reflects the history, culture, and climate of Japan and still has significant meaning from a social and cultural point of view. In addition, the transmitters are eager to transmit Hayachine Kagura to the future through the performance which they have inherited from their own ancestors.

Japan 2009

Jakar Tshechu is a recent introduction, as noted above. It was established in 1994 on the 4th day of the sixth lunar month through the initiative of Dzongdag Dasho Pema Dorje and Thrimpon Dasho Sangay Rinzin. In the beginning, the mask dances were performed by Trongsa Rabdey as the dzong had no permanent monks. The duration of the tshechu was initially only one day long. Later, during the time of Dzongdag Nyima Tshering, it was extended to four days, running through the 8th to 11th days of the ninth lunar month. Given their prominence and importance, usually the annual district tshechu are sponsored and coordinated by the respective District administrations. Similarly, Jakar Tshechu is organized by the Bumthang District Administration in collaboration with the Jakar Rabdey. While at many festivals the local residents provide contributions, at Jakar Tshechu all the expenses are borne by the District Administration rather than by the locals. As the sponsor, the District Administration documents all expenditures for the duration of the tshechu, which includes meals for all participants, mask dancers and folk dancers, as well as their wages. Preparations for the festival are intense and involve significant manpower, financial resources and planning. Preparations begin well in advance, with the lam and dratshang overseeing the preparations for rituals and practice sessions for the mask dances. The dzongkhag takes on administrative responsibilities and plans the budget. A week before the festival, the dzongkhag staff prepare the performance area in the dzong courtyard. The district administration selects around thirty-two mask dancers, between ages of eighteen and forty-two, from the four gewogs. In addition, a troupe of approximately eleven folk dancers is chosen from each gewog to perform in between the mask dances. The troupes rotate each year, with each group performing every four years. The folk dancers and the mask dancers begin practicing about a month before the tshechu. On the 7th day of the ninth lunar month, dancers hold a rehearsal session, which is called chamjug. These rehearsals are held in the courtyard of the dzong where the festival takes place and include the use of musical instruments, such as trumpets and clarinets. The practice continues for much of the day, from around 8:30 a.m. until around 3 p.m. The two chief mask dancers, one from the monastic community and the other from the District Administration, oversee the practice to ensure that everything is perfect. During rehearsal, the dancers don’t wear the costumes or masks and only the main mask dances are rehearsed. a. Day One: (8th Day of the Ninth Lunar Month): The main event begins on the 8th day of the ninth lunar month, when the monks get up around 1:30 a.m. to perform the Lama Gongdue ritual. Before dawn, the ritual pauses at tshog lhagma for breakfast and preparation for the mask dance performances. Around 8 a.m., the dzongkhag staff gathers at the dzong to receive dzongda and drangpon and then they all wait to receive lam. Then the lam accompanied by Dzongkhag Administration officials including dzongdag and drangpon, move in a chibdrel procession to the zigrekhang (spectators’ pavilion) to witness tshechu proceedings. The mask dance performances begin by 8:30 a.m. In 2015, the mask dances were performed in the following order: - Shinje Yab-yum Cham (Yamantaka Father and Mother Dance); - Yoeluema Cham (Dance of the Malevolent Spirit); - Peling Ging Sum (Dance of the Three Gings): Ju Ging Cham (Stick Dance), Dri Ging Cham (Sword Dance) and Nga Ging Cham (Drum Dance); - Kel Cham (Farewell Dance); - Pholey Moley (Dance of the Noblemen and the Charming Ladies); - Shawo Gangley Phap (the first episode of chasing the stag down the mountain). At the conclusion of the mask dances, the lam and the monks resume the feast offering ritual in the lhakhang from where they left off in morning. b. Day Two: (9th Day of the Ninth Lunar Month): The morning’s programme on the 9th day of the ninth lunar month is same as the day prior. The ritual pauses at tshog lhagma for breakfast, and then the day’s mask dances begin around 8:30 a.m. as follows: - Zhana Cham (Black Hat Dance); - Zhana Nga Cham (Black Hat Drum Dance); - Dramitse Nga Cham (Dance of the Drums from Dramitse); - Durdhag Cham (Dance of the Lords of Cremation Grounds); - Ging Tsholing Cham (dance of the wrathful deities and the ging); - Shawa Shakhyi Thaley Tonpa (the second episode driving the stag out of low-lying jungles). As on the previous day, after mask dances, the monks and the lam resume conducting the ritual prayers in the lhakhang, starting from the tshog lhagma intermission and conclude the day’s programme. c. Day Three: (10th Day of the Ninth Lunar Month): The morning programme is same as days one and two. The ritual pauses at tshog lhagma for breakfast before the day’s mask dances begin. The day focuses on the judgment of the dead and depicts the consequences of karma on the afterlife, and people receive blessings from the Lord of Death. The mask dances are performed as follows: - Durdhag Cham (Dance of the Lords of Cremation Grounds); - Tum-ngam Cham (Dance of the Terrifying Deities); - Shazam Cham (dance of the four stags); - Raksha Go Cham (Ox-headed Dance); - Raksha Mang Cham (Intermediate State Dance). As on the previous days, the Lam Neten and monks resume the ritual prayers from the tshog lhagma to conclude the day’s events. d. Day Four: (11th Day of the Ninth Lunar Month): Thongdrol (giant tapestry) and Tenwang (blessing by sacred relics): The 11th day of the ninth lunar month is the last day of the tshechu, during which the thongdrol is unfurled and artefacts are displayed to the public, an act called tenwang. People gather in the dzong as early as 3 a.m. The main statue displayed for public blessing is a small statue of Yidam Thongwa Kundrol that Terton Pema Lingpa is said to have withdrawn from Mebartsho (the Burning Lake). The thongdrol was made in 2005 and shows Guru Tshengyed, the Eight Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche. In front of the hanging thongdrol, mask dances – specifically Pacham, Dram-nyen Choeje, and Zhengzhi Pemi Cham – are performed to pay homage to Guru Rinpoche. The day’s mask dance programme is presented in following order: - Unfurling of Guru Tshengyed Thongdrol; - Zhengzhi Pemi Cham (Dance offering with recitation of prayers to Guru Rinpoche); - Bekor Cham (Ceremonial Dance of the Monks); - Pa Cham (Dance of Heroes); - Guru Tshengyed Cham (Dance of the Eight Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche); - Rigma Chudrug (Dance of the Sixteen Wisdom Consorts); - Acho dang Phento (the story of the conversion of the hunter); - Atsara gi Lochoe (Atsara’s ritual) to mark the conclusion of tshechu. As on prior days, the events finish with the feast offering ritual in the lhakhang, though with additional rituals particular to the last day. Specifically, a torshag (cascading the ritualcakes) ritual followed by ngoedrub langwang (receive blessings) and trashi monlam (auspicious prayers), during which all participants gather and to offer collective dedications and auspicious prayers.