རྩེ་དགུ་གཏོར་གྱི་གར་འཆམ་གྱི་བྱུང་བ་བརྗོད་པ་ The History of Tse Gutor, Ritual Dance

One of the most important ritual dances in Tibet, the Tse Gutor (Tse Potala Ritual on the 29th of the twelfth month), was performed annually by the monks of the Namgyal Monastery, the monastery of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. These unique ritual dances took place at the Potala Palace in Tibet on the 29th of the twelfth month, according to the Tibetan lunar calendar. The Namgyal Monastery was founded by the second Dalai Lama, Gedun Gyatso. Ever since then, the Namgyal Monastery has remained the personal monastery of the Dalai Lamas. Even though many monasteries have their ritual dances, the Tse Gutor was the official ritual dance for the government of Tibet. The Tse Gutor dances are unique in that the dancers prepare by going to retreats and by physical training. Due to Chinese occupation in 1959 and for many different reasons, the annual Tse Gutor Ritual Dances became almost lost. And unfortunately, most of the senior monks who were the Tse Gutor ritual dance masters are no longer alive. For 25 years, I lived in the monastery, where I had the fortune to learn and do research about the dances from these great masters. Here I am sharing with you a brief history along with the meaning of the dances in hopes of preserving and continuing this remarkable ancient practice, the Tse Gutor Ritual Dance.

Today is July 6, 2023, His Holiness' 88th birthday. Also on this day, Soo Kyong Kim and I are in Washington D.C. participating in the 56th year of the prestigious Smithsonian Folklife Festival. And for the occasion, I am presenting this Tse Gutor Ritual Dance film.