DHARAMSHALA, March 27: The Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama graced the 20th Shoton opera festival of Tibet at the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts, a premiere body set up in 1959 in India for the preservation of Tibetan performing culture, on Friday.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama walked from the entrance of the institute as Wangdue Tsering Pesur, the newly appointed director of the institute, led His Holiness with incense offering.
The Tibetan leader watched premiere abstracts from the performances of various opera stories by different opera troupes. His Holiness did not address the gathering but met with some 400 members from eleven different opera troupes from India and Nepal outside the box from where he watched the opera performances.
The Tibetan Prime Minister Lobsang Sangay, Speaker of the Parliament Penpa Tsering, members of the Tibetan cabinet, members of the Tibetan parliament were present among some 2000 people gathered at the institute.
Eleven different opera troupes – Mundgod, Bylakupee, Kathmandu, Kalimpong, Orissa, Bandhara, Mussoorie, Kollegal, Sharkhumbu, Chauntra and TIPA – are participating in this edition of Shoton festival which was revived in exile in 1993. Kollegal, Sharkhumbu and Chauntra, which are debuting at this Shoton will not be performing the full versions of their opera script.
Mr. Wangdue Tsering, while reading out the work report, expressed his institute’s gratitude to His Holiness the Dalai Lama for gracing the event with his presence.
The current festival will feature a new opera based on the life of Lord Buddha, performed by the artistes of the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts. Geshe Lobsang Drakpa, scripture master at Namgyal Monastery, has led the team that wrote the script for the Lord Buddha opera.
Tenzin Lhaksam, the Secretary of the Institute, said his institute seeks to revive the enthusiasm for Tibetan opera in the Tibetan community, especially among youngsters. Two opera troupes are school children from Tibetan Homes’ Foundation Mussoorie, and TCV School Chauntra. “His Holiness has said many times in the past that the tradition of Tibetan opera is a very precious part of the Tibetan culture. So a festival like this is a great platform for various artistes to meet and possibly learn from each other,” said Tenzin.
He added that a gathering of such a large number of artistes from 11 troupes takes a lot of work and financial arrangement. He said though many individuals and associations have contributed financially or otherwise he would like to thank the Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development.
One version of the origin of Shoton says that Lord Buddha initiated the practice of monks going on a summer retreat. When Buddhism flourished in Tibet, this practice was believed to have been adopted by many monasteries in Tibet. The monks of Drepung monasteries in Tibet go into summer retreat on the 15th day of the sixth month of the Tibetan calendar. These ‘Disciplinary Monks’ were replaced on the 30th day of the same month. This particular occasion is known as Drepung Shoton.
In Tibet, the festival is held each year from the end of the sixth month to the middle of the seventh month on the Tibetan Lunar calendar.
However, in Tibet; such popular Tibetan festivals, which attract large Tibetan gatherings, are strictly monitored and controlled by Chinese authorities disturbing free celebration of the events. The Communist authorities remain suspicious anticipating possible Tibetan demonstrations against China.
