Post a present and wish
With sporadic incoming greetings from friends, a heartfelt feeling for being 33 in its first hour gave me an impulse to "construct" this post (like the work of these monks). The beauty of this meditative creation serves well as my dedication to the compassion and peacefulness of all sentient beings (有情: I always find this term poetic and concise) at this grateful moment.The extraordinary perseverance and astonishing elaboration from a sense of total veneration to the subject has given the static "performance" its power. This mandala was constructed in more than 3 weeks at Ackland Art Museum in 2001. (I saw a similar one when I met the Dalai Lama the first time in Taiwan.) The destruction of it, cruelly, took only a minute, if not less. Such a seducing reminder of impermanence... which I take as a brilliant present to myself.
Note on Mandala from Ackland Online:
Mandala, a Sanskrit word that means "circle," is a sacred diagram created in sand or paint. It symbolizes the pure, perfected universe, and provides a visual framework for establishing feelings of peace, well-being and wholeness. Composed of millions of grains of dyed sand, the mandala is believed to have a positive effect on all who see it as each particle personifies goodness. Created by Buddhist monks and nuns, the mandala is part of initiation ceremonies -- accompanied by other ritual art objects, costumed dancers, music and chanting -- that grant the initiate the privilege to study and practice the teachings of a sutra or tantra, sacred texts that are guides to visualizing a particular deity.
2 Comments:
Happy Birthday!
Transient art is the best! No need to worry about security or insurance, either.
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