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Press Releases | |
June 26, 1997
Contact: Jane Finalborgo
Tibetan Monks Construct Sacred Sand Painting
(516) 287 8313
Fax: (516) 283 4081
Starting Thursday morning, June 26, at 10 am, a group of 12 Tibetan Buddhist monks from Ganden Monastery in South India, will work on a two-dimensional Mandala of the Medicine Buddha at the Fine Arts Center of Southampton Graduate Campus of Long Island University.
Work on this creation of a Buddha's palace that symbolically evokes a world of goodness will continue daily from 10 am - 5 pm until it is dispersed into the ocean on Flying Point Beach in Water Mill on Sunday morning at 9:30 am. The public is invited to come and watch the work in progress.
A Mandala is an intricate design formed of sand and colored powders symbolic of a world transformed by wisdom and compassion.
The Mandala will be of the Medicine Buddha who transforms physical and mental pain and its causes. The main causes of all illness depends on the mind. The healing power of the Buddhas comes primarily from turning the inner obstacles of hatred, greed, possessiveness and ignorance into love, compassion, patience, generosity, wisdom and all good qualities. The place from which this process can ensue, that is, its beginning and end, is a Mandala.
Constructed like the blue print of an elaborate palace out of multi-colored powders, each feature represents a trait of the Buddha in its completeness. Constructing and invoking such a "world system"is believed to regenerate physical decline, mental strength, and restore the environment. It is meant as a blessing for the community, the sponsors and all living beings.
On Saturday evening at 7 p.m. in the Fine Arts Theatre, the monks will present a Chanting and Dance performance. Dressed in ornate costumes and impressive masks, the monks will perform ritual dances, sacred music, prayeres and songs to the tunes of long horns, oboes, drums and cymbals. A donation of $10 for adults and $5 for children is suggested.
For any questions, please contact:
- Ursula Bernis, 212-532-7509
- Olivia Motch, 516-726-9578