NEWS RELEASE
Contact: Michelle Byrd
Director of Public Relations
mbyrd@mca.edu
(901) 272-5111

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 20, 2009

Tibetan Monks to Construct a Mandala Sand Painting at
Memphis College of Art

Memphis, TN- In honor of the Dalai Lama's visit to Memphis this September, Memphis College of Art and the Levitt Shell proudly host The Mystical Arts of Tibet. The Lamas of Drepung Loseling Monastery will begin a mandala sand painting during an opening ceremony Wednesday, September 2 at 6:00 pm in the Main Gallery, Rust Hall, at MCA’s campus in Overton Park.  Work on the mandala will take place daily from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, Thursday through Saturday.  A closing ceremony will take place Sunday, September 6 at 1:00 pm. Later on Sunday at 7:00 pm, the Levitt Shell will present the Drepung Loseling Monks in The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Sacred Music Sacred Dance, a performance of ancient temple music and dance for world healing. 

All events are free and open to the public.

During the opening ceremony, the monks consecrate the site and call forth the forces of goodness.  This is done by chanting, music and mantra recitation.  The lamas begin the exhibit by drawing an outline of the mandala on the wooden platform. On the following days they lay the colored sands. Each monk holds a traditional metal funnel called a chakpur while running a metal rod on its grated surface. The vibration causes the sands to flow like liquid onto the platform.

Traditionally most sand mandalas are destroyed shortly after their completion. This is done as a metaphor for the impermanence of life. The sands are swept up and placed in an urn; to fulfill the function of healing, half is distributed to the audience at the closing ceremony, while the remainder is carried to a nearby body of water, where it is deposited. The waters then carry the healing blessing to the ocean, and from there it spreads throughout the world for planetary healing. To learn more, visit The Mystical Arts of Tibet.