Mask Makers Web

Sito ufficiale di Mamuthones e Issohadores di Mamoiada (NU-Sardegna, Italia)dell'associazione Peppino B?ccoi-Costantino Atzeni.

Added on: Oct 15, 2005 | Hits: 11160

The Tshechu is a festival honouring Guru Padmasambhava, "one who was born from a lotus flower." This Indian saint contributed enormously to the diffusion of Tantric Buddhism in the Himalayan regions of Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan etc. around 800 AD. He is the founder of the Nyingmapa, the "old school" of Lamaism which still has numerous followers. The biography of Guru is highlighted by 12 episodes of the model of the Buddha Shakyamuni?s life. Each episode is commemorated around the year on the 10th day of the month by "the Tschechu". The dates and the duration of the festivals vary from one district to another but they always take place on or around the 10th day of the month according to the Bhutanese calendar. During Tshechus, the dances are performed by monks as well as by laymen. The Tshechu is a religious festival and by attending it, it is believed one gains merits. It is also a yearly social gathering where the people, dressed in all their finery, come together to rejoice.

Added on: Sep 29, 2005 | Hits: 13211

Queensland is unique amongst all of the states of Australia in being the traditional home of two different indigenous communities. The Torres Strait Islander people, who originate from the islands located between Australia and Papua New Guinea, have separate cultural traditions to the Aboriginal people of the mainland.

Added on: Jul 25, 2003 | Hits: 8483

Photos of Shaman masks from various tribes

Added on: Apr 28, 2003 | Hits: 8928

The Dan of Liberia are famous for a variety of ritual masks. One of the most prominent is the type on display that is used during young mens' rite of passage ceremonies. Perfectly carved with naturalistic features this hard wood facial cover features two rows of old cowry shells attached to a fabric bundled headdress. Stripes of tin that mimic scarification and highlight the eyes are added for richness. One large bell known as a "summoners bell" is suspended from the chin. The bell is used to call upon spirits during the ritual. This is a beautiful well crafted piece. It was created in the mid 20th century.

Added on: Apr 16, 2003 | Hits: 9001

by M. Macha NightMare Covenant of the Goddess is a bunch of Witches. We presumably share values and beliefs. And we try to work by consensus. However, we have only one annual meeting, called Grand Council, to conduct all business for the upcoming year. This takes place over a mere three days, so there's pressure to get business taken care of. In our concern for completing the "business" of CoG, we sometimes overlook or forget the shared values that have brought us together in the first place. In Starhawk's novel, The Fifth Sacred Thing, a sense of the sacred, of the presence of the whole of nature, is injected into business meetings by having mask-wearers, each aspecting a different element or animal, taking part in the meeting. The novel inspired me to put the idea into practice. With masks made by sculptor Eleanor Myers, I first employed this method at CoG's Grand Council in 1996. I hoped to bring back to meetings a visible and tangible reminder, to resacralize our meetings with the constant physical presence of the Elements of Life. I hoped it would remind us of the sacredness and balance we need if our work is to have meaning.

Added on: Feb 10, 2003 | Hits: 10500

Iroquois medicine mask, 1800's, typical of those made to resemble and call forth healing spirits. Carved from wood and used in group dances to rid dwellings and individuals of illness. While the early white man looked upon such rituals as primitive and ignorant, the Iroquois were nonetheless understood to be advanced to the point that the principles of their confederation were adopted to become the U.S. Constitution.

Added on: Nov 17, 2002 | Hits: 9016

The death of a village elder is cause for a celebration ritual. As the the griot whips the crowd into a frenzy, I lose myself in the magical energy of the dance of the spirits.

Added on: Nov 17, 2002 | Hits: 7367

Today the priests still dance at forty different locations throughout the year. Twenty-one times they dance in the different old quarters of Bhaktapur itself, the rest of the time they tour the various villages in the North-Eastern rim of the Katmandu Valley. Afterwards they return to Bhaktapur where the goddesses ceremonially die and the masks are burnt before the annual rains. In the fall they are resurrected and the masks built anew for another cycle

Added on: Aug 10, 2002 | Hits: 6303

German ritual. site in german

Added on: Jul 24, 2002 | Hits: 9399

+ photos of giant demons The most interesting part of Nyepi for visitors is the visual spectacles of ogoh-ogoh (monsters) created by many of the villages throughout Bali to be used as a part of a huge island-wide exorcism on the eve of Nyepi. The youth of the various village banjar (local council areas) take great delight in competing with the neighbouring villages to create the most gruesome and terrifying-looking ogoh-ogoh in the month preceding Nyepi.

Added on: Jul 21, 2002 | Hits: 7850

Describing the rituals. (+ Ogoh-ogoh )

Added on: Jul 21, 2002 | Hits: 10842

Article. Jakarta Post Initially, the giant dolls, popularly known as ogoh-ogoh, were created as the symbol of demonic spirits. In the Ngerupuk ritual, a sort of exorcism ritual taking place the night before Nyepi, the ogoh-ogoh are paraded around the village area to ward off any evil spirits. In the parade, the ogoh-ogoh is accompanied by hundreds of screaming people carrying torches, striking gongs or manipulating any sound-producing implements available in an apparent attempt to scare away the demons. At the end of the ritual, the ogoh-ogoh is usually taken to the village's main intersection and set on fire......

Added on: Jul 21, 2002 | Hits: 11747

lesson description ( dance )

Added on: Jul 18, 2002 | Hits: 9149

Site in German. (Possibility to join a masked trance event.) Der Trance-Maskentanz, der im Zusammenhang mit den "Rituellen K?rperhaltungen" und der ekstatischen Trance in jedem Sommer in der L?neburger Heide und an anderen Orten stattfindet, wird versucht, durch diese T?r zu gehen. Trancehaltungen bringen uns in Kontakt mit dem Feld der uns umgebenden Energien, in dem wir durch unsere Rituale helfen k?nnen, verwirrte F?den neu zu ordnen. Wahrnehmungs?bungen, die Begegnung in der Trance mit uns in unserem Vorhaben helfenden Kr?ften, Tiergeistern sowie der Maskenbau und das Ritual des Maskentanzes k?nnen eine Br?cke bauen zum schamanischen Wissen unserer Ahnen. Die Erfahrung dieses Wissens k?nnen wir in unseren "Alltag" verweben. So weben wir unsere Wirklichkeit und den Ablauf unserer Zeit immer wieder neu ein in das Netz aller Lebensenergien - sichtbar oder unsichtbar.

Added on: Jul 01, 2002 | Hits: 11677

Everywhere shamans make masks. The mask embodies the spirit, and donning it the shaman accepts the presence of the spirit into him/herself. The Tlingit and Tibetan shamans alike "utter the words of the spirit" when wearing the mask. Elaborate masked pantomime dances punctuate the sacred calendar in South India with Kathakali, in Japan it's Bogaku, in Tibet Cham, in Pueblo land the Kachina dances. Such masked dances are also witnessed in Africa, the Pacific Islands, North & South America as well as ancient civilizations like the Egyptian, Mayan, Inca, etc. Architecture was originated by shamanic cultures. So called "primitive" tribal peoples all over the world have built sophisticated giant structures and statuary to serve the community. Natural cultivation of mental faculties enhanced through their shamanic traditions, enabled them to cut, shape and move heavy stone with simple tools. Their impressive creative abilities can be attributed to a greater group consciousness, sense of cooperation, adaptability, intuition and psychic awareness

Added on: Jun 30, 2002 | Hits: 8867

We had an opportunity to witness several masked dance ceremonies. The regal lively dances always drew a crowd, both local people and any tourists present. The costumes complementing the masks were vivid and contributed to the overall effect. Most masks were made of wood and/or coarse fabric.

Added on: Jun 15, 2002 | Hits: 9936

A Tsam ceremony was held at the beginning of the year to exorcise evil. It consisted of a series of masked dances and often had a narrative content. Tsam (in Tibetan, Cham) means masked dance, and local variations of the festival were once practiced in Tibet, Ladakh, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, China and Mongolia, but only in Ladakh and Bhutan and at a few remote, inaccessible monasteries has it been protected from destructive politics and the impact of Western civilization

Added on: Jun 13, 2002 | Hits: 7675

brief story

Added on: Jun 02, 2002 | Hits: 9655

The Kukeri: A Bulgarian Ritual to ensure the advent of SpringIn the rural (farming) villages of Bulgaria, the "Kukeri" is a important masked ritual, carried forward from the Thracians. They dance in the last days of the winter, just before nature comes back to life.

Added on: Jun 02, 2002 | Hits: 6482

By Thomas Murray Photography by Don Tuttle Great article with photos.

Added on: Jun 02, 2002 | Hits: 8292

No one is allowed to photograph them. In fact, the myth about nouna masks goes on to say that if you try to do so, the film will not contain an image. They are ritual symbols and only make public appearance for certain kind of traditional ceremonies: death of an elder belonging to the family of the masks, annual home coming of the masks, and sacrifices offered to the "siou" which is the spirit and essence of masks. They have antic heads and black robes, and some of the heads are over centuries old.

Added on: May 20, 2002 | Hits: 8173