The Tibetan legend of the skeleton dancers, 1925
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The monks in these images from 1925 are performing the dance known as Durdak Garcham, which roughly translates to “Dance of the Lords of the Cemetery” - a sacred Tibetan dance ritual found in the Himalayan Buddhist culture.⁠
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The skeletons are Chitipati, a pair of lovers known as the Lord and Lady of the charnel ground whose dance represents the eternal dance of death, as well as the attainment of perfect consciousness.⁠

Legend has it:

The Citipati were a couple of ascetics meditating near a graveyard. In their deep state of meditation, they did not notice a thief who had sneaked up on them. The thief beheaded them and threw them into the dirt, which caused them to reach the next stage of ascetic practices. Infuriated by the act, the Citipati swore vengeance to the thief and became the archenemy of thieves and other criminals.

The Citipati cannot leave cemeteries and can only grab thieves passing through them. While waiting for criminals, the Citipati pass their time by dancing and blowing horns, a ritual reenacted by Tibetan monks twice annually. Their dancing also serves as a symbol for death and rebirth, for the Citipati consist of both halves of the human body, male and female. Their skeletal form is a reminder of the impermanence of life and eternal change.
The Citipati is a protector of graveyards and is known as Lord of the Cemetery or Lord of the Crematorium.

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