Tibetan Sacred Dances

Abstract

Entering the world of Tibetan spirituality, we observe a multitude of rituals that involve movement and music, used by the monks for various therapeutic and ritualic purposes. The history of Tibetan dance – the Cham tradition - runs in parallel with the history of Buddhism on this territory. Information on these rituals and dances is found in very few Tibetan documents, almost none in European works, and recently in several works printed in English. This can be explained by their oral transmission in special schools, as well as in secret initiations. As the title mentions, in this article, we will discuss the sacred dances of the Tibetans and not the folk ones. Thus, in the following pages, we will mention some of the dances practiced within the sacred rituals by Tibetan monks.