CARLSBAD, Calif. — Tibetan monks from Southern India are constructing a sand mandala that will be finished this Friday and the public can see them work on the it all week in Carlsbad.
The monks are on their Sacred Arts of Tibet Tour from the Gaden Shartse Norling Monastery, something they’ve done for more than 30 years.
The monks are creatively working inside the Phes Gallery in Carlsbad where they are creating a sand mandala. They use tools to delicately place each grain of colored sand into a masterpiece only to dissolve it after it is completed to symbolize something meaningful.
"So here, the sand mandala, when we finish it means how hard we work on by doing so much effort. Each grain of the sand, when we finish, we have to dissolve it. It symbolizes impermanence," said monk, Tenzin Lekshey.
The monks also shared Buddha’s teachings and their sacred earth and healing arts.
"It's to teach about the concepts of Buddhism. One of them is about impermanence: that we don’t need to attach to things because eventually everything will be gone and to open your hearts without clinging to it. It's important for happiness," said Ellen Speert, co-owner of Phes Gallery.
Once the sand mandala is completed, they will have a dissolution ceremony where the monks sweep the mandala, carry the sand onto the beach and release it into the ocean to spread peace.
"In our society, we may be more into those material things, but to achieve the most happiness, the genuine happiness, is from internal practice which is the mind. To be able to work on that, the first step is let go of all those temptation things so you don’t subdue the mind," said Lekshey.
There’s a guided mediation everyday at 12 p.m. until Friday, including an interfaith panel Tuesday night at Phes Gallery.
WATCH RELATED: Deepak Chopra on new book 'Total Meditation' | Practices in Living the Awakened Life (Sep. 2020).
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