Film screening: Something can only be danced!

Written by Angela Labrador on 23 May 2022. Posted in

A Poetic Documentary about Tibetan Ritual Mask Dance, Cham, by Aase-Hilde Brekke. 

Brekke will talk about how these particular dances are performed in honour of the Indian Guru and master Padmasambhava, who is also called The second Buddha. The dances shows both wrathful and peaceful dances, originally a copy of the celestial beings. The dances are believed to bring purifications and blessings for the surroundings, and train the dancers and the spectators to meet the different Bardo-stages in death.

The monastery Tashi Jong in Tibet, is well known for their elaborate dances, and they perform the dances four times a year. Due to the exile situation for the Tibetan refugees, they have lost a lot of costumes, masks and the religious texts as well.

As part of the programme, Brekke will also present ICOMOS’ work, and Eivind Falk will talk about ICOMOS’ and UNESCO’s work on Intangible Heritage.

Arranged by:  The research group Philosophy, Art and Culture, OsloMet, Oslo, Norway.

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The Mask dance of the drums from Drametse was inscribed in 2008 (3.COM) on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (originally proclaimed in 2005) https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/mask-dance-of-the-drums-from-drametse-00161