Taking a Zen Approach

Monks from the Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangtsen bring lessons of patience and grace to the Lawrenceville School Jan. 14-17.

By: Susan Van Dongen

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Above, a Tibetan monk from Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangtsen works on the Green Tara sand mandala.


   Around the third week of January, the glow of the holiday season is over and the reality sinks in — especially when the credit card bills come in the mail. It’s an ideal time for a visit from a group of enlightened artists from the East. They’re arriving when the excess of the holidays is behind us and the stillness of winter invites a few moments of reflection.
   The Lawrenceville School will host a group of eight Tibetan monks from Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangtsen, bringing lessons of grace, patience and impermanence from their monastery in Mundgod, South India. As part of their 2002-2003 Tour for World Peace and Universal Compassion, from Jan. 14-17 the monks will construct, then dismantle, an intricate sand mandala in the rotunda of the Hutchins Gallery of the Gruss Center of Visual Arts.
   The public is invited to observe the painstaking creation of the mandala, as well as a performance of traditional Tibetan dance on Jan. 16 at the school’s Kirby Arts Center. People also are invited to see the elaborate work of art swept away on the last day of the monks’ visit, Jan. 17.
   Jamie Greenfield, director of the Hutchins Gallery and head of the art department at the Lawrenceville School, hopes the monks will follow their tradition of carrying the sand from the mandala to nearest body of flowing water.
   "I’m hoping they’ll do this here because we have a beautiful pond on campus," Ms. Greenfield says. "Then, when they empty the sand into the water, the force of it creates a series of ripples spreading out — in essence, it’s another mandala."
   By releasing the sand into the water, the monks are also symbolically sending their artwork around the world through the elements of nature. The waters of the pond will evaporate into the atmosphere, eventually turning to rain and bringing the particles back down to Earth — if not in central New Jersey, somewhere else in the world.
   "This represents the Eastern (philosophical) concept of connectedness, the circular nature of life and the regenerative powers of the creative spirit," Ms. Greenfield says. "There’s this incredible amount of work and beauty being taken apart. It’s not destruction, but letting things go. In (American) culture, we have a tendency to keep or hold onto things, and this is a whole different way of looking at beauty. It (brings the creator) into a state of receptiveness, open to what comes next."
   The monks’ visit is a joint effort between the visual arts and religion departments at the Lawrenceville School. Ms. Greenfield says the monks will also invite the students, faculty and community members to join them in their early morning meditation before they begin to work.
   Ms. Greenfield had seen the construction and dismantling of a sand mandala before, when a group of Tibetan monks were in residence at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
   "I think that’s why I jumped on the opportunity to bring the monks here — the memory I have of watching this activity," she says. "I was mesmerized. I probably stood there for two hours."

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The public is invited to observe the creation of a mandala, as well as a performance of traditional Tibetan dance on Jan. 16 at the Lawrenceville School’s Kirby Arts Center.


   Although one might be struck silent by the monks’ concentration and skill, viewers are invited to ask questions, and a translator will be available to assist.
   "It’ll be interesting for the students in a number of ways," Ms. Greenfield says. "Usually the gallery presents finished works of art but this way, the students will see a work in process. They’ll see all the effort involved, and get a sense of the philosophical aspects involved. Any artist who takes something from conception through completion has a special kind of creative devotion."
   Remembering her experience at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Ms. Greenfield was energized when she learned about several groups of Tibetan monks journeying through North America, visiting schools, museums and community centers to create their fleeting works of art. She thought live art would be something quite different for the Hutchins Gallery.
   The monks launched their tour in March of 2002, traveling through the United States and Canada to share the spiritual and cultural life of Tibet. The touring monks were chosen specifically for their talents in the ritual arts, the purity of their practice and their sincere wish to bring peace and happiness to all they encounter. The initiations, teachings, consultations and rituals offered by the monks of Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangtsen are considered to be very powerful in getting rid of spiritual obstacles as well as generating countless blessings.
   The original Gaden Monastery was established in 1409, in Lhasa, Tibet, by the great teacher and scholar Je Tsong Khapa. It was the second largest monastery in Tibet, at one point housing 7,000 monks. Nothing remains of that monastery today, but it is presently being rebuilt in South India.
   Since the communist Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959, virtually all of that country’s Buddhist temples were destroyed and the various treasures of Tibetan heritage were confiscated. In the last 40 years, more than one million Tibetans have been killed, thousands of monasteries looted and destroyed, ancient scriptures burned and the language itself outlawed. The Tibetans have fled persecution within their native land to seek sanctuary in India, where, thanks to donations of land made possible by the Indian government, the monasteries are gradually being rebuilt.
   This tour represents an attempt to generate funds to support the monks of Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangtsen, as well as efforts to raise awareness of the plight of the Tibetans and their heritage.
   The monks travel with their Western representative, Janie Dvorak Compton, as well as a doctor of Tibetan medicine. Ms. Greenfield says the monks need to stay together for spiritual reasons, so finding adequate nearby housing was a challenge. They’ll be residing in a large house on the campus of the Lawrenceville School, which gives the students even more of an opportunity for interaction.
   "Everyone is excited about this," Ms. Greenfield says. "Lawrenceville is a small community and there’s not much of a chance for people from other cultures to come and live with us. We’ve gone into this with good intentions and high hopes. We’re not exactly sure how things will work out, but we’re rolling with the punches — taking a Zen approach."
The Monks of Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangtsen will be in the rotunda of the Hutchins Gallery, the Gruss Center of Visual Arts, the Lawrenceville School, 2500 Main St. (Route 206), Lawrenceville, Jan. 14-17. Gallery hours: Mon-Tues., Thurs.-Fri. 9 a.m.-noon, 1-4:30 p.m.; Wed., Sat. 9 a.m.-noon. There will be a traditional Tibetan dance performance at the Lawrenceville School’s Kirby Arts Center, Jan. 16, 7 p.m. Free admission to all events. For information, call (609) 620-6026. On the Web: www.lville.pvt.k12.nj.us. The Gaden Jangtse Tsawa Khangsten monks on the Web: www.gaden-tsawa.org