Clowning: An Ageless Tradition of Tricksters, Sacred Clowns, and Play
- Dan Rudolph
- Aug 22
- 5 min read
Updated: Aug 24
Clowns will be with us forever. They have been with us forever. It’s in our DNA. They appear in every culture in the world. They go back to pre-historical times. Nobody invented them. They are ageless. There is obviously something vital about it, it will outlive all this other garbage. - John Towsen
The Universality & and Particularity of the Clown Figure
Across cultures, clown figures, jesters, and tricksters often play roles that go far beyond entertainment. In many contexts, they embody innocence and wisdom, humor and subversion. They challenge norms, expose contradictions, and invite communities into deeper truths.
The great mythologist Joseph Campbell described the trickster as “immediately recognizable whatever cultural costume [s]he assumes… the spirit of disorder, the enemy of boundaries.”
At the same time, clowning is never just one thing. Each culture has different manifestations, according to its histories, cosmologies, and social needs. A Hopi clown functions differently than a European jester; the spider Anansi teaches through stories in West Africa while German Carnival clowns parody authority on the streets. What looks “universal” in the trickster’s energy always takes a distinct form in place and time.
Clown Through Mask: Richard Pochinko’s Legacy
This was brought home to me in a powerful way recently when I attended an Introduction to Clown Through Mask, a workshop in the lineage of Canadian teacher Richard Pochinko. Pochinko combined European mask work (influenced by Jacques Lecoq) with First Nations teachings.
Pochinko studied with Native elders and Indigenous knowledge keepers in Toronto in the 1970s. From this weaving of traditions, Pochinko created the Clown Through Mask process.
His student, Sue Morrison, became the primary lineage holder after his death. Morrison emphasizes that this work arises from an intercultural meeting: Indigenous cosmology and ceremony joined with Western mask-making and performance practice.
Below is a recording of a panel discussion with Sue and a handful of other Clown through Mask teachers and practitioners from last year’s Clownvergence.
The workshop I attended, led by Isaac Luy, offered a glimpse of this pedagogy - one that emphasizes intuition, connection with nature, and more-than-human intelligences. Like deep time in nature, the practice was as simple as much as it was profound.
One exercise invited us to listen to the inner textures, sounds, and energies of ourselves and our peers, and then to vocalize them and put them into movement. This moved me out of my “thinking mind” and into a different way of being - more playful, raw, and alive. The workshop was just a taste. I left yearning for more.
Global Tricksters and Sacred Clowns
We had the opportunity at last year's CLOWNVERGENCE to gain a deeper understanding of the diverse and culturally-specific ways that clowning shows up in different part of the world through a panel of elders, shamans and self-identified clowns shared perspectives from traditions around the world, including; Siberia, South Africa, the Hopi people of North America, Germany, and Peru.
Tatyana (Siberia), a shaman by birth from the Akh-Khaskha (“White Bone”) kin, shares how laughter, fooling, and clowning are deeply woven into shamanic traditions and rituals. She speaks about the spring festival of renewal and the spirit of joy, the fertility rituals that play symbolically between man and woman, and the way laughter itself is considered a vital element of shamanic practice. Even the most serious ceremonies, she explains, are accompanied by jokes and humor, as the trickster spirit helps communities overcome difficulties and restore balance.
Jacob Johns (Hopi & O'otham Nations) shares from his Hopi and O'otham traditions, where clown figures are ceremonial beings who remind the community of humility, balance, and sacred responsibility. He shares some incredible stories of the lessons that the kachinas offer to bring balance and deep teachings into the society including lighting themselves on fire and intentionally crashing cars!
Wanka Inti (Quechua from Peru) shares traditional views on the joking mythical character and order keeper from their cultural lens.
Wanka is a spiritual authority in the Inca Council and a Kuraka of the Wanka nation, dedicated to upholding his people's values. As a Chaski Willaq, he is a messenger of the Circle of Wise Grandmothers and Grandfathers of Mother Earth, and a bridge between generations, guiding young leaders. Wanka is a guardian of sacred sites, including Waka Ychsma-Maranga, and holds a key role in the Inti Raymi ceremonies.
Rutendo Ngara (South Africa) is an African Indigenous Knowledge Systems practitioner and transdisciplinary researcher. In her talk she explores the complexities of trickster figure in the African context, highlighting their roles as agents of chaos, communicators of wisdom, and societal mirrors. Discover how figures like the spider Anansi, the Zangbeto, and more use humor, disruption, and mimicry to educate, protect, and transform societies. Through this exploration, we understand how these characters embody the balance between order and chaos, facilitating cultural conservation and social commentary.
Martin Ciesielski (Germany) discusses the clown as a political and communal figure throughout German history sharing about key trickster figures as well as the role of Carnival in the German context.
Why Clown? Why Now?
Rutendo’s reflections on Anansi the Spider struck me deeply: though small, Anansi defeats the powerful using cleverness, humor, and wit. In a world that often feels dominated by brute force, conflict, and polarization, Anansi reminds us that transformation doesn’t always come through power-over, but through play, creativity, and the ability to turn systems upside down with an honest expression, clever trick, or a joke.
What is striking is that Anansi belongs to a very specific cultural lineage, rooted in West African and Caribbean traditions, yet his lessons resonate across contexts. Just as the Hopi clown, the German Carnival fool, or the Pochinko mask lineage each reflect their own histories and cosmologies, Anansi shows how the universal trickster impulse takes particular form in place and time.
This feels especially urgent today. The crises of our time - climate collapse, inequality, disconnection - can overwhelm us if we only meet them with seriousness and struggle. The trickster figure, in all its diverse expressions, points to another way: the clown as cultural medicine, revealing absurdity, loosening rigidity, and making space for collective renewal.
A dear friend who recently attended a sacred ceremony in Brazil came away with a profound realization: these times call not for more warriors, but for more tricksters and clowns. Perhaps this is because clowns offer what warriors cannot, levity in the face of despair, tenderness in the face of fear, and the courage to disrupt without destroying.
To ask “Why Clown, Why Now?” is to recognize that clowning is not an escape from reality, but a way of engaging it more fully. The clown disarms us, helps us see through illusions, and reminds us that joy, humility, and play can be agents of transformation in service of what is sacred.
The Call of Clown Spirit
In the beginning, we asked whether clowning is universal or culturally specific. The truth, as we’ve seen, is both: the clown spirit shows up everywhere, yet always in unique forms shaped by history, place, and tradition.
At Clown Spirit, our mission is to honor this paradox. We draw together multiple traditions under one umbrella while also respecting and learning from their cultural differences. We believe the clown spirit can transform oppressive systems and protect what is sacred. By unleashing more clowns into the world, we are not only striving to open up more pathways of connection, purpose, and freedom for individuals, but also to contribute to a wider cultural transformation towards what is sacredly beautiful.
Wherever you are in your clown journey, we invite you to join us.
And we’d love to hear from you:
💡 Are there clown or trickster figures in your culture?
💡 Who are they, and what lessons or stories do they carry?