WWNO skyline header graphic
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Local Newscast
Hear the latest from the WWNO/WRKF Newsroom.

Tibetan Monks Constructing A Mandala

Thomas Walsh
/
WWNO

One part of the Dalai Lama’s visit to New Orleans is the creation of a sand sculpture by Tibetan monks. The meticulous process is open to public view outside Hall G at the Convention Center.

The scratching sound of sand fills the air as four monks bend over a table, releasing sand from metal funnels to create a mandala. They must place the colorful sand in just the right spot.

It takes three to five days to finish the design.

And then it’s swept away.

The ceremony symbolizes the impermanence of life. Monk LobsagDhondup explains:

“It tells a lot about the natures of our life. Natures of everything. It’s like, come together and be separated. Everything’s like that. You and I, talking, and after we’re done we go, separately, like that. So change is the main key things that the mandala is telling us.”   

Some of the sand will be given to guests as a blessing of health and healing. The rest will be, by tradition, poured into a flowing body of water — in this case, the Mississippi River.

The release represents the spreading of healing energies into the environment.

The public is invited to watch all stages of the mandala ceremony. Assembly continues today from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The closing ceremony is set to begin Friday at 4:30 p.m. at Hall G.  

Eileen is a news reporter and producer for WWNO. She researches, reports and produces the local daily news items. Eileen relocated to New Orleans in 2008 after working as a writer and producer with the Associated Press in Washington, D.C. for seven years.