Tibetan Buddhist Sand Mandala
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This gallery of shots were taken at the Ackland Art Museum in 2001 and show the three and a half week process of two Buddhist monks creating a sand mandala. The monks first drew the five and a half foot outline of the Medicine Buddha and then spent the remainder of the time pouring the colored sand through their traditional funnel referred to as a chak-pur aided by an additional metal rod to help the sand flow like a liquid. Fourteen different colors of sand are used in sand mandalas: black and white and three shades of red, yellow, green and blue. After the mandala was completed, the ceremony was completed by its distruction. The sand was swept from the table into an urn and then dumped into the nearby Bolin Creek as a metaphor for the impermanence of life. Mandala in general are showing up more frequently in western culture, there is even a Mandala Project for people to share Mandala they have created. I find the intricacy of these sand paintings to be quite impressive and mandala in general to be pleasing to look at. |
digg Referer
Art Network – Sand Mandala
Mystical Arts of Tibet – Mandala Sand Painting
Link
A toddler recently danced through the middle of a manadala almost half way complete (Fark Referer). The monk’s response: “No problem.”
Comment by roclar — May 24, 2007 @ 1:12 pm
Monks must get paid by the hour.
Comment by Tommy — May 24, 2007 @ 2:50 pm