Technophiles miss out on the message of a transient, ancient art
Originally published in The Ubyssey & theubyssey.ca on Nov. 19, 2009 || Culture
Tsengdok Rinpoche braves the cold ocean to complete Tibetan ritual
For seven days, Tibetan monks hunched over a circular outline at the Museum of Anthropology at UBC. Using cone-like metal tools called chak-pur, they crafted an elaborate design using millions of grains of coloured sand.
On Sunday Tsengdok Rinpoche, from Vancouver’s Tsengdok Monastery, stood over the finished product: an intricate work of art known as a sand mandala.
Using a brush, he began to sweep it into a blur.
But the destruction of the design is part of the traditional Tibetan ritual.
“The meaning of the mandala is to remind people that nothing in life is permanent,” said Rinpoche through a translator. “Don’t get too attached, even to the most beautiful things.”
From November 8 to 15, five visiting monks from the Gaden Jangtse Monastery in India created and displayed the mandala in the Great Hall of the museum. Two Vancouver-based monks, including Rinpoche, hosted the quintet as part of their 2009 Sacred Art Tour.
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