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Atsara's Recitation

Most Bhutanese festivals have a clown figure to both entertain the crowd and help the smooth flow of the proceedings. The most common clowns are known as Atsaras. Some of these clowns have a great significance for the festival and also play important role in the festival. They may have performances during which they recite terse, witty, humourous and auspicious verses of blessings, wisdom and humour. The verses are often existent compositiosn which are memorised and chanted but the clowns may also create chants extemporaneously. The recitations are passed down orally and sometimes written down in manuals for Atsara performances.

Subject ID: S7448