MEANING OF PEACE

MEANING OF PEACE
 Once there was a king who offered a prize to the artist who could paint the best representation of peace. Many artists tried, and the king looked closely at all their pictures. But there were only two he really liked, and he had to choose between them.

One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror for peaceful towering mountains all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect picture of peace. The other picture had mountains, too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky, from which rain fell and in which lightning played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not look peaceful at all.

But when the king looked closely, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest - in perfect peace. Which picture do you think won the prize? The king chose the second picture. Why?

“Because,” explained the king, “peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be calm in midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace.”

Mandala Explained

MANDALA EXPLAINED


According to Tibetan Buddhist history, the purpose, meaning and the techniques involved in the spiritual art of the sand Mandala painting were taught by Buddha Sakyamuni in the 6th century B. C. in India. The subject of a Tibetan sand painting is known in Sanskrit as a Mandala. In general all mandala’s have outer, inner and secret meanings. On the outer level they represent the world in its divine form; on the inner level they represent a map by which the ordinary human mind is transformed into enlightened mind; and on the secret level they depict the primordially perfect balance of the subtle energies of the body and the clear light dimension of the mind. The creation of a sand painting is said to effect purification and healing on these three levels.

Creation Process

Mandala can be visualized, painted or constructed from wood, precious jewels, rice, flower and so forth. From all the artistic traditions of Tantric Buddhism, that of painting with colored sand ranks as one of the most unique and exquisite because of its number and the great skill required to create the mandala's exquisite details. In Tibetan this art is called dul-tson-kyil-khor, which literally means "Mandala of colored powders

Before laying down the sand, the monks assigned to the project will draw the geometric measurements associated with the Mandala. The sand granules are then applied using small tubes, funnels, and scrapers, until the desired pattern over-top is achieved.

Ritual destruction

Traditionally most sand mandala’s are destroyed shortly after their completion Since the sand mandala’s are created in the spirit of impermanence and non attachment of live, after they are completed, they are dismantled with a ceremony and swept up placed in an urn carried to a nearby water and offered to the body of water The waters then carry the healing energies to the ocean, and from there it spreads throughout the world for planetary healing for the benefit of marine life, the environment and all sentient beings.

Map of PeaceLing