Five monks from the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center in Northern India will be on Providence Day’s campus September 18–21. Over the course of the four days, they will create a Sacred Sand Mandala of World Peace or "Avalokiteshvara" in the Fine Arts Foyer.

Students may observe the Tashi Kyil monks creating the mandala by using brightly colored sand in geometric patterns while learning about the culture and Buddhist religion of Tibet.

The monks’ visit begins with an opening ceremony on Monday, September 18, at 10:25 a.m., and culminates in a closing ceremony at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 21, the International Day of Peace.

Here is the proposed schedule:

• Monday, September 18
  Arrival at 8:45 a.m.
  Opening Ceremony at 10:25 a.m. (30 minutes)
  Departure 4:00 p.m.
   
• Tuesday, September 19
  Arrival at 8:45 a.m.
  Departure at 4:00 p.m.
   
• Wednesday, September 20
  Arrival 8:45 a.m.
  Departure 1:00 p.m.
   
• Thursday, September 21 (International Day of Peace)
  Arrival at 8:45 a.m.
  Closing ceremony at 1:30 p.m. (Spotlight on the Arts) (30 minutes)
  Clean up and departure

Note: The arrival and departure times are fluid, but the opening and closing ceremony times are set.

A brief background on the monks and their monastery: In 1958, Labrang Tashi Kyil was one of the largest monasteries located in eastern Tibet, but in the 1960s, the communist Chinese cultural revolution occurred, destroying more than 6,000 Tibetan Buddhist monasteries.

Rebuilt in 1967 and now known simply as Tashi Kyil, it is a small refugee monastery with about one hundred monks. To the present day, chanting styles, rituals, and other Buddhist practices are preserved just as they were in Labrang Tashi Kyil, along with classes in Tibetan grammar and English.

Tashi Kyil Monastery today