Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery
will conduct a mandala sand painting in McClung Museum’s
Native Peoples of Tennessee gallery beginning Tuesday,
September 22, & concluding on Friday, September 25,
open daily from 9:00am to 5:00pm.
The opening ceremony will take place at 11:30 am on Tuesday, September 22, and the closing ceremony will commence at
11:30 am on Friday, September 25, 2015.
From all the artistic traditions of Tantric Buddhism, that of
painting with colored sand ranks as one of the most unique
and exquisite. Millions of grains of sand are painstakingly laid
into place on a flat platform over a period of days or weeks to
form the image of a mandala. To date the monks have created
mandala sand paintings in more than 100 museums, art centers,
and colleges and universities in the United States and Europe.
Traditionally most sand mandalas are destroyed shortly after
their completion. This is done as a metaphor for the
impermanence of life.
Though this event is free and open to the public, groups must
make reservations by calling (865)974-2144.
This event is held in conjunction with the McClung
Museum’s special exhibit, Embodying Enlightenment:
Buddhist Art of the Himalayas.
Send email to museum@utk.edu or call the
museum at (865)974-2144 for more information.
