The Mystical Arts of Tibet Featuring the Tibetan Monks from Drepung Loseling Monastery
Tibetan Buddhist monks from Drepung Loseling Monastery will construct a mandala sand painting and perform special ceremonies August 20-23 in Asia Society Texas Center’s Louisa Stude Sarofim Gallery. During this ritual, millions of grains of sand are painstakingly laid into place in order to purify and heal the environment and its inhabitants.
Watch the live feed:
Thursday, 12 pm - 6 pm
Friday - Sunday, 10 am - 6 pm
Sunday, 10 am - Completion of Mandala (Closing ceremony at 3 pm)
Watch past videos here.
Regular gallery times are:
Thursday, August 20: 12 pm - 6 pm
Friday-Saturday, August 21-22: 10 am - 6 pm
Special event times are below:
Opening Ceremony - Thursday, August 20, 12 pm
The mandala sand painting begins with an opening ceremony, during which the lamas consecrate the site and call forth the forces of goodness through chanting, music, and mantra recitation. The lamas then begin the painting by drawing an outline of the mandala on a wooden platform. In the following days, they lay the colored sands using a traditional metal funnel called a chakpur. Guests will be able to view the monks’ progress in person and online through Asia Society Texas Center’s website.
Community Activity - Saturday, August 22, 10 am to 6 pm
Guests are invited to take part in the art by contributing to a separate community sand painting on Saturday. Instruction will be given on how to use the chakpur to fill in the design with sand.
Closing Ceremony - Sunday, August 23, 3 pm
The monks will dismantle the mandala, sweeping up the colored sands to symbolize the impermanence of life. Half of the sands will be distributed to the audience at the closing ceremony, while the remainder will be deposited into a natural body of water.
About Mandala Sand Paintings
This artistic tradition of Tantric Buddhism, painting with colored sand, ranks as one of the most unique and exquisite. Millions of grains of sand are painstakingly laid into place on a flat platform over a period of days or weeks to form the image of a mandala. To date, the monks from Drepung Loseling Monastery have created mandala sand paintings in more than 100 museums, art centers, and colleges and universities in the United States and Europe.
Mandala is a Sanskrit word meaning sacred cosmogram. These cosmograms can be created in various media, such as watercolor on canvas, wood carvings, and so forth. However, the most spectacular and enduringly popular are those made from colored sand.
In general, all mandalas have outer, inner, and secret meanings. On the outer level they represent the world in its divine form; on the inner level they represent a map by which the ordinary human mind is transformed into enlightened mind; and on the secret level they depict the primordially perfect balance of the subtle energies of the body and the clear-light dimension of the mind. The creation of a sand painting is said to effect purification and healing on these three levels.
Admission to this exhibition is free and open to the public
Hours
The exhibition, and its related events are free and open to the public. The gallery will be open during the following hours:
Thursday, August 20, 12 pm – 6pm (Opening Ceremony starts at 12 pm)
Friday, August 21, 10 am – 6pm
Saturday, August 22, 10 am – 6pm (Community mandala activity throughout the day)
Sunday, August 23, 10 am – 6pm (Closing Ceremony starts at 3 pm)
Photography
Photography of the exhibition without flash is permitted.
Thursday, August 20
Friday, August 21
Saturday, August 22
Sunday, August 23