The Wheel of Time

The Wheel of Time

Chico State was graced with the presence of the Tibetan scholar and teacher, the Venerable Lama Losang Samten. He came to us to show the techniques used in the art of sand painting, and also to share with us something important, a sense of unity among the community. He was located on the ground floor in the Bell Memorial Union from the beginning of February to the beginning of March. He was available to watch and communicate with on weekdays from around 9 to 5.  He was an attendant to the Dalai Lama and was sent to the west to “enlighten” us on the ways of Tibetan art. He is the founder of the Tibetan Buddhist Center of Philadelphia, and has shown his skills at many Universities.

We had the privileged of viewing him create one of the most sacred of all Buddhist paintings, the Kalachakra sand mandala, also known as the Wheel of Time. It is one of the most  complex in that it represents five mandalas, “each has its own purpose to purify body, speech, mind, and then consciousness, culminating in the ultimate tier of Great Bliss” (Wheel of Time: Sand painting, from a handout available at the ceremony). Although mandalals can be made with precious jewels, flowers, dyed rice, colored stones, or colored sand, sand crushed from precious stones is the tools most frequently used because of its precious quality. Each grain of sand is blessed with chants or prayers and funneled down a long metal tool. The scratching of the tool against the sand creates a meditative noise, and each grain is placed in its exact location, creating a complete blessed work of art.

Watching him make this mandala was truly amazing; it took extreme concentration and focus to make such a detailed work of art. I find that I was able to relate to the human characteristics that he was emphasizing. He was creating a painting, but he was also showing us the unification between positive energy, compassion and wisdom. These three entities are the basis that I live my life by, and seeing them represented by an artist’s masterpiece was very surreal. His ability to attract your eye with color and design was what drew me to him in the first place. I found it sad that he released such a beautiful piece of artwork into the creek, never to be seen again until I understood what he was doing. He was unifying the school and the community of Chico. He said, “It is not an ending, but really a beginning."

This is a picture of the the Palace of the Kalachakra...could you imagine how long it would take to make this one?