There has always been a deep interest in the western world for the spiritual and intellectual wealth of the East and Far East. The Dalai Lama and Tibet’s spiritual wealth has generated huge interest in many people around the world.
Students, professors and other folks at Frostburg University, Maryland USA, were given a golden chance to experience and savour a slice of life in Tibet. For five days Tibetan monks lived in the campus with students. The five monks of Drepung Loseling monastery led by Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi hosted two workshops, five lectures, and created a sand mandala and people thoroughly enjoyed the elixir of tranquility through their enlightening presence. This visit was facilitated by The Drepung Loseling Monastery Inc, Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies, Practices, and Culture, which is in Atlanta, Georgia under the project ‘The Mystical Arts of Tibet’.
The Drepung Loseling Monastery originally located in Lhasa, it has been set up in South India after Tibet was invaded and destroyed by in 1959. The Drepung Loseling monastery was the centre for ancient Buddhist scholars. It was also an abode for some of the earliest Dalai Lamas. It was one of the centres of Tibetan Buddhism and its culture in Tibet.
The communist Chinese led by their atheist beliefs and values went on a rampage and either killed or imprisoned majority of the monks living in the monastery. The oppression was so brutal that only 250 of the 10,000 monks were able to escape from its glitches.
Following this brutal oppression that has few parallels in history the remaining monks relocated to southern India. They established a new monastery and hence were able to preserve their practices alongside training new monks. The monastery is home to around 2,500 monks at present.
To conclude their visit to the Frostburg State University, the monks enchanted the audience with their performances of mystical arts of Tibet, Sacred Music and dance. The program also consisted of nine performances centred on communicating with good higher powers.
The monks also gave lectures to the audience on how to get rid of negative energy, healing the environment, society, and individuals. The whole program was divided into two parts.
The first part of the ceremony included Nyensen, or the Invocation of the Forces of Goodness, and the Tentru Yulture or Purifying the Environment. The monks cleansed the area of negative energy while inviting the forces of good to join in on the performance.
The second part of the ceremony consisted of songs and routines that the monks use in their daily lives. The audience was enthralled the most by Taksal which was a demonstration of debate used within the monastery to help reach deeper levels of knowledge and enhance enlightenment
Enchanted by the whole ceremony, Sidney Beaman, a student on campus stated, “The performance given by the monks was moving and inspirational. I’ve been attending their workshops and lectures all week and it has taught me a lot about a culture I didn’t know about. Getting to be here was an experience like none other!”
The monastery also runs a website drepung.org where the interested people can help to donate to the building of a Tibetan monastery under construction in Atlanta or they can choose to sponsor a monk.