A group of Tibetan Monks are going to create sandpainting mandalas to heal and protect America: one in lower Manhattan in December; one in DC in January.
Tibetan monks will create a sand mandala painting to heal and protect America at the George Gustav Heye Center of Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, in New York City. One of the largest sand paintings ever created in the West, this 7-foot-by-7-foot mandala will be constructed between Dec. 11 and Dec. 23. The mandala sand painting is a sacred cosmogram representing the world in perfect harmony. For centuries the Tibetans have relied upon mandalas and accompanying prayer ceremonies for healing and protection in times of tragedy and crisis.
Following the New York event, the monks, who are traveling as part of the Mystical Arts of Tibet Tours for World Healing, will go to Washington, D.C., to build a similar sand mandala at the Smithsonian’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Jan. 11 - 27, 2002.
The most stirring part of the process of sand mandala making is that after all that painstaking time and effort to place every grain of sand just so… when the mandala is done, it’s all swept up and cast into the water.
I hope to see the DC mandala, Hazel. I’ve seen several mandalas made in the US. They are beautiful in their own right, and if anyone can go and see the monks creating them, it’s a wonderful experience.
In Tibetan tradition, mandalas create a sacred space. The monks who create them are working in a state of prayer meant to benefit all who view their art. When you see that guy in the maroon robe, concentrating over where to fit that flow of colored sand, what his mind is also going toward is the best blessing to those around him.
By coming to New York and DC, Tibetans are giving us their best grace of respect and effort toward healing the atrocity of Sept. 11. It’s a most sweet gift, and I hope we all turn out to appreciate it.
As I understand it, casting the sand into a river or stream causes the healing to spread wherever the water goes. And, given enough time, water goes everywhere.