Cham dance

What it is

Cham is a dance of masked, robed figures, kept by monks in parts of Tibetan Buddhism. It is timed by musicians from among the monks, usually a leader who marks the beat on a percussion instrument such as cymbals. The one exception is Dramyin Cham, where a dramyin, a Tibetan stringed instrument, keeps the time. For those who dance it, the performance is prayer: the movement stills the mind, and the dance is given over to the deities. The steps carry a lesson about karuṇā, compassion for all living beings, and those who watch are held to gain merit. Early 20th century Western visitors called it the devil dance, a name drawn from how the masks looked to them.

Stories and origins

Many chams act out moments from the life of Padmasambhava, a teacher of the Nyingma school who lived in the 9th century, and from the lives of other saints. At Kumbum Monastery in Qinghai, a cham staged every year retells the great debate held at the Council of Lhasa, between Moheyan and Kamalaśīla. Another version is danced just before the Tibetan New Year, Losar. It remembers Langdarma, a harsh Tibetan king killed in 841 CE by the monk Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje. Wearing a black robe and a black hat, the monk danced outside the palace until he was let in before the king, and then killed him. The dance stands for good overcoming evil.

How it is kept

Monks do the dancing, and in Bhutan nuns and villagers may take part too. Each performer wears a mask and a costume, and the masks are looked after between festivals. A musician among the monks keeps time so that the group moves together. A cham can be a simple circling dance or a long narrative with many figures. The Black Hat dance, the one painters show most often, belongs to Vajrakilaya and works on two levels: it aims at enlightenment and at driving out evil forces. Its dancers hold a skull and a scarf tied together and fixed onto a purba, a ritual implement.

In Bhutan and India

In Bhutan, cham is part of the tshechu, the yearly religious festival held at the dzong in each district. Monks perform, and nuns and villagers sometimes join in. The dances honour Guru Rinpoche, another name for Padmasambhava, and retell his deeds so that onlookers grow in faith and understanding. Bhutan's Royal Academy of Performing Arts works to keep this culture alive. In India, cham is danced at religious and cultural festivals in Ladakh, Sikkim, Lahaul and Spiti, Tawang, and around Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Pedong, Dharamshala and Bylakuppe.

In Mongolia

Tsam reached Mongolia in the early 19th century and became popular quickly. It took in tantric Buddhist forms alongside older shamanic movement. The dance grew into a large part of Mongolian Buddhism, and it gained visibility through public celebrations, including an opera, the Tale of the Moon Cuckoo. After 1924 the communist authorities outlawed it. The purges that followed destroyed more than 700 monasteries, killed tens of thousands of monks and lamas, and forced thousands more to abandon monastic life. Few tsam dancers were left. Costumes and masks were hidden, buried, or given to collections; the Choijin Lama Temple Museum keeps some. Once the Soviet Union broke up in 1991 and a new constitution allowed religious practice, tsam returned and performances have grown greatly.

How Cham dance is kept

Monks are the usual dancers, with nuns and villagers joining in some places. One musician sets the beat, often with cymbals, while the group moves as a single body. Performers wear masks and costumes, and some hold a skull and scarf fastened to a purba, a ritual implement. A cham may follow a story, such as an episode from Padmasambhava's life, and a large one can take a long time to unfold. It is staged at festivals before big crowds, and dancers understand the work as prayer.

When and where

Cham belongs to festival days rather than one fixed date. In Bhutan it is part of the yearly tshechu in each district. In Tibet it appears at the Monlam Prayer Festival, and one version falls just before Losar. Mongolian tsam was kept at its own festivals.

Cham comes from Tibet and stays strongest across the Himalayan Buddhist world: Bhutan, the Tibetan parts of India such as Ladakh, Sikkim, Tawang and the Darjeeling hills, and Mongolia, where it is called tsam. In Tibet it belongs to the Monlam Prayer Festival; a 1922 performance at Rongbuk Monastery was filmed.

What Cham dance means

Those who keep cham treat it as prayer. The steps teach compassion for every living being, and watching is believed to earn merit. The Black Hat dance aims at enlightenment and at driving out evil. The killing of the tyrant Langdarma is remembered as good winning over evil. The mask and the costume turn the dancer into a sacred figure, and the beat holds a whole community in one rhythm.

Days Cham dance is marked

Questions people ask about Cham dance

See also

Kailash Mansarovar YatraA high-altitude pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar in TibetSatsangSitting in the company of truth, to hear, sing and meditate in northern IndiaOvooA stone cairn on a peak or pass, circled by travellers and honoured in sky worshipChota Char DhamFour Himalayan shrines in Uttarakhand, visited in one season each year

Good reading and sources

• Cham dance on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.