Witness the Creation and Dissolution of a Sand Mandala at Agnes Scott This Week
October 28, 2009 | 1:30 pmUPDATE: Emily sends in some more recent pics. Check this out! (As always, click to enlarge)
The event started Monday, but you can still catch the ongoing creation of the sand mandala, free lecture and closing ceremony. Emily forwards the info. Schedule details after the jump.
Mystical Arts of Tibet: Faith & Learning
For the 2009-2010 Faith & Learning event, the college will host the Mystical Arts of Tibet. The monks will be in residence from October 26-30 to create a sand mandala in the sanctuary of the Julia Thompson Smith Chapel. The design includes ancient spiritual symbols and is created for the purpose of re-consecrating the world and its inhabitants.
Opening Ceremony – October 26, 2009, 10-11 a.m.
Featuring unique polyphonic chanting, Tibetan musical instruments and prayer, the opening ceremony sanctifies the beginning of the mandala construction. The sacred design chosen for Agnes ScottâАЩs mandala will be the Tibetan deity known as Green Tara, a female bodhisattva associated with growth and enlightened activity.
Monks in Residence – October 27-29, 2009, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily
The monks will be in residence from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day to create the sand mandala in the sanctuary of the chapel. Guests are welcome to view the process.
Lecture – October 29, 2009
Dr. Abraham Zablocki, assistant professor of religious studies and co-director of Asian studies. Time and place TBA.
Closing Ceremony – October 30, 2009, 10-11 a.m.
The dissolution of the sand mandala is a dramatic ceremony that is practiced as a metaphor for the impermanence of life. The sands of the magnificent design created during the week 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.
This event is free and open to the public. Tickets are not required.
How cool- I can’t wait to go to the closing ceremony!
You can view the mandala anytime between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. The monks work on it from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. It is truly astonishing. The monks are very welcoming and you are free to take pictures and ask questions (but not while they’re working on the mandala!). There will be a lapse photography video composed of pictures taken every 4 minutes throughout the process on the Agnes Scott website!
Parents, please don’t let this happen:
http://www.geekologie.com/2007/05/toddler_destroyes_monks_sand_p.php
Ayeeee! That was awful! Despite myself, laughed aloud at the blogger’s description of what he would’ve done in the monks’ place (which was wrong, but still funny)…
Luckily for them, the monks at ASC are working on a raised table.
But isn’t a rampant toddler disrupting their plans and destroying their mandala itself an apt illustration of the contingency and impermanence of life? It’s perfectly appropriate.
I will never subscribe to that that cop out. Sorry.
He may have been joking, but why is that a cop out? The designation “Toddler” should tell you everything. Don’t toddlers live a certain way? The monks, above all, should understand this–considering their religion. It’s not like the kid jumped on a table at Fellini’s and trampled your pizza.
Maybe he’s joking, but line of nonsense was the excuse commonly offered when this was a fresh news story a few years ago. Some people actually think that way.
It’s a cop out because it lets the parents off the hook because, hey, the monks were going to destroy it anyway, so if anything the toddler is not unruly and unsupervised, but enlightened.
Or some such utter hogwash.
*heavy sigh* Please tell me you’re joking, TOK.
Er, yes.
Isn’t ‘Kidcentric Tripe’ playing at the Earl this weekend?
(If it’s not already a band name then it should be.)
LOL, Robbie! Yes, ‘twould be a most excellent name for a band. I’d go see a band with a name like that.
That is awful- I am glad the monks had patience. Another example of toddlers gone wild (wonder what the parents and/or caretaker was doing)
Folks – this is definitely worth a stop if you have time. We checked it out this morning, and it’s very cool. Even my toddler (who was safely in my arms) was entranced.
Last chance to see the Mandala in progress is today until 5:30pm!
Dr. Zablocki’s lecture is at 7pm in the chapel around the Mandala and will be STANDING ROOM ONLY – there will be no additional seating for Dr. Zablocki’s lecture. Doors will open at 6:45pm tonight.
Tomorrow’s closing ceremony will take place in the chapel and will begin promptly at 10am – chapel doors will open at 9:30am
We just left the closing ceremony of the dissolution of the Mandala. What a tremendous experience! My daughter (8) enjoyed it too. Don’t tell the school that we snuck her out for an unauthorized field trip. Thank you so much for posting about this very moving event.