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Archery Tournament

Archers from both teams refused to enter the Changlimithang archery range believing that entering the range before the opponent would
result in defeat.
The teams were even penalised, points were deducted, by the archery federation for causing unnecessary delay but it was an ample
display of the role of superstitious beliefs in the national sport.

The word of the Tsip (astrologer), the omnious body behind matches, is still strong in Bhutanese games like khuru, degor, and archery.

But it is more pronounced in archery. In the recent tournament too, teams sought help from Tsips. During the semi finals one team
reportedly hired a powerful Tsip of another competing team. The team, which had hired the Tsip won.

a Paw from Thimphu but by the time we reached Thimphu he had already left. We heard that he was reportedly threatened by one of the


Some veteran archers said that even if they have seeded players they do not feel secure and confident without invoking local deities or
consulting a Tsip. “To get a good Tsip you have to pay more,” said a veteran archer who added that in one tournament they hired a Tsip for
Nu. 35,000. “It was worth it because we won the tournament.”