This week, Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Tashi Kyil Monastery will create a sand mandala, a process that takes several days.
After an opening ceremony at 9:30am Tuesday, the monks at The Fralin will painstakingly place colored sand in an elaborate arrangement that is specific to the Buddhist deity Avalokiteshvara. Known as Chenrezig in Tibetan language, this deity is considered to be the embodiment of pure compassion. As the monks create The Fralin mandala, they will focus their minds on cultivating compassion and reducing suffering for all living beings.
Mandala are tools used as part of Tibetan Buddhist meditation practices and are considered sacred spaces. Each color, figure, and shape has a specific meaning in Buddhist philosophy and practice that together provide meditators with resources to accomplish new levels of understanding and insight. Traditionally, once completed, these intricate sand arrangements are swept into a pile, an act that reinforces the Buddhist principle of impermanence.
The Tashi Kyil Monastery is located in Dehra Dun, Uttarakhand, India, and is a leading educational institution for monks following the Geluk tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. More than 140 monks currently live and study at Tashi Kyil.
Visitors are welcome to watch the creation process as well as the opening and closing ceremonies. This event is co-sponsored by the Fralin Museum of Art and the UVA Tibet Center.
