Yesterday I posted about the Tibetan monks who came to my school to create a sand mandala. Part of this painstakingly beautiful and detailed process is the deconstruction of the creation which began at 2:30 p.m. The library was packed with children from 5 to 18, faculty, staff, parents. Everyone was mesmerized. The children were raptly attentive. The man who came with the monks explained the impermanence of the mandala and a beautiful ceremony followed with lots of chanting and instruments. I saw several people with tears in their eyes--and I was one of those people.
Here are two photos of the mandala when it was completed. The spokesman said this is a simple mandala but the larger ones take days to make--with the deconstruction being the sacred culmination.
The monks wore special clothing for the deconstruction ceremony--very colorful. The following photos show the monks in ceremonial dress and then one of the deconstruction itself. I will never, ever forget this.
The grains of sand ultimately lay in a small pile in the center of the table. Then the monks, using a small brass tool, filled tiny bags with sand for those who wanted to take some sand home. I got really teary when I got my sand and I thought to myself, "I want to have my family bury me with these grains of sand."
If you go to YouTube and type sand mandalas, there are countless videos of various sizes of mandalas you can see. I'm still feeling awe struck.
