On April 7th, three Buddhist monks from Tibet, who are currently living in exile in Nepal, visited Peace Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens, home of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness and Peace Theological Seminary.
They were invited to come by MSIAer Hedy Brody and her friend Patricia Casado. Patricia’s family owns a restaurant in the nearby Larchmont area where the monks are currently constructing a mandala, or traditional Tibetan prayer design, made of multicolored sand laid out in incredibly intricate patterns on the floor. They construct it for several days, praying into it daily, and at the end of the time, upon completion, comes a “dissolution” ceremony, when the sand is brushed together into a vessel and then poured into a local body of water. Patricia told me her family has hosted several groups of monks, as well as the Dalai Lama himself, at their restaurant.
In March of 2002 we had the Gyuto Monks visit us, and it was the same kind of pleasure to have this group of three monks here. The monks were fascinated with the intricate and beautiful woodwork in the house, and seemed to really “get” the energy in the solarium and meditation garden. They also loved the flowers and plants, and touched and viewed up close a lot of blossoms and leaves. It was great to show them around, mostly using gestures and the occasional English word we both understood, but the main communication was in the international language — of the peace we shared just being together walking around the property. Their gentle humor came out of what seemed to be a wonderful innocence, and they were fascinated with the digital camera our photographer David Sand demonstrated to them. I had a lot of fun joking and laughing just about nothing with one of the monks.
One of the monks walked the labyrinth with us as the other two sat and relaxed, chatted and concentrated on the workings of their camera. I enjoyed seeing the reverence the monk brought to his walking, and the delicate gesture he made just before exiting the walk, near the Hu symbol. When they first saw the Hu at the entrance to the labyrinth, one of the monks pointed and said “Hoo!” enthusiastically. Apparently the Hu is a symbol and sound they also use in their chants.
When we said goodbye in the foyer they gave David and me each a pin with a picture of the mandala they are making on it. It felt such an honor to be gifted with that, and to have been able to spend the afternoon with them. As they left they turned around and gestured for us to pose at the door so they could take a picture. There was a lot of laughing and waving. I think it’s good to have monks at Prana.
