Darshey is a traditional practice where a man holding a khadar (auspicious white scarf ) in his outstretched hands faces the seated crowd, and makes auspicious speeches at a ceremonial function, usually during religious and social occasions. (The origin of the tradition is attributed to Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal (1594-1651) when he introduced this practice during the consecration ceremony of Punakha Dzong in 1639.) The tradition, however, may vary slightly from village to village in the use of language and presentation such as making speeches decked with maxims or simply narratives. The worldly tradition of Darshey does not require to be sung like Gurma (Religious songs), Lu or Tsammo (Songs without choreographies) but is expressed more or less like a recitation. Darshey is usually performed during auspicious occasions. Atsara (masked clown) also makes similar speeches during Tshechus (Annual Mask Dance Festivals). Generally, ordinary people perceive Atsara as a comedian that appears during tshechus in the midst of mask dancers wearing a funny mask, usually holding a phallus and a rattle in his hands to entertain the audience. However, the word came from the Sanskrit term achāriya; a title attached to a great spiritual teacher, who can claim his place among the 84 Mahasiddhas, representing all those who have within one lifetime attained direct realisation of the Buddha’s teachings. Their appearance as clowns represents our ignorance through which we fail to see the ultimate truth. That is why our forefathers had regarded the senior atsaras as the embodiment of guardian deities and sublime beings. During such gatherings as tshechu all the dignitaries such as spiritual masters and monks, ministers, secretaries, merchants and the laities give them money as a mark of their appreciation. In return, the atsara also gives auspicious narration in the form of concluding words, which is a unique aspect of Bhutanese culture. Unfortunately, this good aspect of the atsara’s auspicious narration is now on the verge of disappearing.

Darshey is a traditional practice where a man holding a khadar (auspicious white scarf ) in his outstretched hands faces the seated crowd, and makes auspicious speeches at a ceremonial function, usually during religious and social occasions. (The origin of the tradition is attributed to Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal (1594-1651) when he introduced this practice during the consecration ceremony of Punakha Dzong in 1639.) The tradition, however, may vary slightly from village to village in the use of language and presentation such as making speeches decked with maxims or simply narratives. The worldly tradition of Darshey does not require to be sung like Gurma (Religious songs), Lu or Tsammo (Songs without choreographies) but is expressed more or less like a recitation. That is why a person may begin Darshey with the phrase such as ‘wo la so la …’ and end his speech by offering words of good wishes and aspirations such as ‘… let us pray that we see each other’s countenance again and again in future.’ Depending upon the talents and level of education, the performer applies poetic elegance in the speech; Darshey is usually performed during auspicious occasions. Atsara (masked clown) also makes similar speeches during Tshechus (Annual Mask Dance Festivals). Bhutan has a unique tradition of stressing on Tendrel (the independent arising of auspicious events). Any occasion or event has to begin and end on a positive and hopeful note. Whether it is house construction, marriage, promotion, or an important project, a ceremonial inauguration in the beginning and a well-wishing conclusion are very important social values. Thus, Darshey is an important item in any ceremonial programme. Darshey means narration of scarf, especially presented by an eloquent person to the guest of honour adding some melody in order to enhance the auspiciousness of the ceremony. It is an indigenous oral expression practiced all over Bhutan. Depending on the languages, dialects and cultures, Darshey is also called Legshey (elegant saying/narration of auspiciousness), Khashey (art of speech) and sometimes Nangwa drub (verbal approval). Unlike Gurma, Lu and Tsammo, Darshey has no complex melody, rather, it all depends on the tone and rhythm of the recitation. Regarding the lyrics, the reciter uses appropriate words to meet the occasion, mostly decorating these with similes and other literary flourishes. There are no specific lyrics for Darshey, and the elegance of the recitation depends on the literary and musical talents of the reciter. Moreover, there is great cultural diversity in Darshey, as the length, flow and rhythm of individual Darshey vary from village to village and dialect to dialect. However, Darshey normally starts right after the ceremonial ritual. When it is time to offer khadar to the guest of honour, presiding guest, or whoever else is being honoured, an eloquent speaker holds a silken scarf and begins the Darshey by saying “wo la so la” and concludes with well-wishing prayers and aspirations to the guest of honour and everyone gathered. Sadly, Darshey is slowly disappearing from our cultural landscape these days.

The predominant form of cultural expression among the Kyrgyz nomads is the narration of epics. The art of the Akyns, the Kyrgyz epic tellers, combines singing, improvisation and musical composition. The epics are performed at religious and private festivities, seasonal ceremonies and national holidays and have survived over the centuries by oral transmission. The value of the Kyrgyz epics lies largely in their dramatic plots and philosophical underpinnings. They represent an oral encyclopedia of Kyrgyz social values, cultural knowledge and history. The pre-eminent Kyrgyz epic is the 1000-year-old Manas trilogy, which is noteworthy not only for its great length (sixteen times longer than Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey), but also for its rich content. Blending fact and legend, the Manas immortalizes important events in Kyrgyz’s history since the ninth century. The Kyrgyzs have also preserved over forty “smaller” epics. While the Manas is a solo narration, these shorter works are generally performed to the accompaniment of the komuz, the three-stringed Kyrgyz lute. Each epic possesses a distinctive theme, melody and narrative style. Akyns were once highly respected figures who toured from region to region and frequently participated in storytelling contests. They were appreciated for their proficiency in narration, expressive gestures, intonation and lively facial expressions, so well suited to the epics’ emotionally charged content.

Kyrgyzstan 2008