Sand Mandala in Tucson

September 20, 2013 — attachment, monks, sand mandala

We are lucky to have a tradition of sand mandala making at the U of Arizona Bookstore. Monks have been visiting to draw them on the floor in the basement for years. This is the third one I have been lucky enough to witness.  This time they are making the Buddha of Compassion.  After they create the image the sweep up the sand and dispose of some of it in water, in a ritual representing the cosmos.  This demonstration of attachment and enlightenment is illustrated clearly when the sand is swept and the American viewers rush in to get a bag of the magical sand to take home and keep.  The monks don’t need to do that; they are off to draw and destroy many more mandalas all over the world.  They do it to show the futility of attachment. It is a beautiful way to illustrate the point.