Additional Physical Form: For close shot version, see: *MGZIDF 817B.
Content: Paro Tsechu Programme Day Four: (Outside the Dzong): Shinjey Yab Yum - Dance of the Lord of Death and his Consort ; Shacham - Dance of the Four Stags ; Rakusha Mangcham - Dance of the Judgement of the Dead ; Dramitse Nga Cham - The Drum Dance of Dramitse ; (NB: not all the dances were filmed on this day).
Venue: Videotaped in performance at the outer courtyard, Paro Dzong, in Paro, Bhutan (looking back along the opposite diagonal from the upper level), on Mar. 24, 2005.
Acquisition: Gift; Core of Culture. NN-PD
Biographical/Historical: The annual Paro Tshechu is held from the 9th till the 15th of the 2nd month every year. It was first introduced by Gyalse Tenzin Rabgye in 1687, while the tshechu was initially held in the dzong, after the reconstruction in 1906 it was held outside. The highlight of the tshechu is the Thongdol which is believed to deliver from all sins. The Thongdol that was saved from the fire of 1906 was built by Lama Nawang Rabgay and is considered one of the oldest in Bhutan. It was slightly renovated by the government about twenty years ago. The material for the Thongdol was brought from Lhasa in Tibet.
Biographical/Historical: The history of Ringpung Dzong (Palace of the heap of jewels) or Paro Dzong: The construction of the Paro Dzong began in 1644 on the order of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the unifier of modern day Bhutan. Unlike most of the other dzongs in Bhutan, it survived the massive 1897 earthquake although it was damaged by fire in 1906.

Physical Description

Extent: 1 video file (ca. 10 min.) : sound, color

Abstract

Rakusha Gocham takes place at first inside the curtain - so this camera only shows the dancer after he s exited from inside. In this version he is alone - and there is no accompanying monkey figure. Paro Tshechu is held from the 11th to 15th day of the 2nd month of the Bhutanese calendar every year. Actually, the Tshechu begins with a chamjug or rehearsal day on the 10th day of the 2nd month, and ends on the 16th day of the 2nd month with a day s dances at Dzongdrakha monastery above Bondey.

Identifiers

NYPL Catalog ID (bnumber): b19887292
Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 188a48d0-e7f0-0130-553d-3c075448cc4b

Access

Core of Culture

Rights

This item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Type Of Resource

Moving Image

Cite this item

MLA format

Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library. "Raksha Gocham, Paro Tsechu, Day Four: Outside the Dzong [Wide shot]" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 2005. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/188a48d0-e7f0-0130-553d-3c075448cc4b

APA format

Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library. (2005). Raksha Gocham, Paro Tsechu, Day Four: Outside the Dzong [Wide shot] Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/188a48d0-e7f0-0130-553d-3c075448cc4b

Chicago/Turabian Format

Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library. "Raksha Gocham, Paro Tsechu, Day Four: Outside the Dzong [Wide shot]" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed November 7, 2025. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/188a48d0-e7f0-0130-553d-3c075448cc4b

Wikipedia citation

<ref name=NYPL>{{cite web | url=https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/188a48d0-e7f0-0130-553d-3c075448cc4b | title= (moving image) Raksha Gocham, Paro Tsechu, Day Four: Outside the Dzong [Wide shot] (2005) | author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library | accessdate=November 7, 2025 | publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations}}</ref>