On Saturday, October 20, 2018 from 11am to 4pm, Do Ngak Kunphen Ling Tibetan Buddhist Center for Universal Peace (DNKL), located at 30 Putnam Park Road in Redding, will host its first annual Tibetan Cultural Festival. DNKL sees this as an opportunity to promote peace and improve life around the world by mingling Tibetan traditions with the American counterparts of their adopted home.
The days events are set to include a guest speaker, a number of art demonstrations, and a variety of products available for purchase. Some items on the itinerary are scheduled, while others will continue throughout the course of the festival.
- At 11am, upon entry, guests will be greeted with Tibetan tea and sweet rice.
- At 1pm, the monks will conduct a Prayer Flag Ceremony, offering a blessing and prayers before spreading barley to sow good fortune.
- At 2pm, guest speaker Lobsang Nyandak, an exiled Tibetan minister and President of the Tibet Fund, will deliver a lecture emphasizing dialogue, bridge-building, and the Middle Way as a path to peace in his homeland.
- At 2:50pm, a group of young musicians and performers will present both traditional and contemporary Tibetan music and dancing. Dance lessons are free to any attendees interested in participating!
Throughout the afternoon, traditional food including steamed and fried momos (meat or vegetarian dumplings served with hot sauce), noodles, and vegetables seasoned and cooked Tibetan-style will be available for purchase. Likewise, vendors will offer attendees the chance to buy handcrafted wares include Tibetan prayer flags, scarves, shawls, wool blankets, singing bowls, hats, t-shirts, jewelry, and other customary products. While parents immerse themselves in Tibetan culture, children can participate in age-appropriate activities across DNKL’s ninety-nine acre estate.
Elsewhere, a Tibetan herb specialist will be available offering consultations and information. Guests will also have the opportunity to engage with two master artisans, both of whom are eager to share the methods behind and significance of their practice.
Thangka artist Jampa Tsondue will also exhibit a collection of his work. Thangkas are paintings on pure cotton or silk that typically depict a scene from the life of the Buddha, a Buddhist deity or bodhisattva, an influential lama, or a mandala. After Ngawang Norbu, a visiting monk-painter, took note of his potential, a young Tsondue became an apprentice at the Gyudmed Tantric University. His most important project— recreating forty-one thangkas from the Dalai Lama’s collection—took four painters almost four years to complete.
At 4pm, the festival will conclude with a final dedication and thank you ceremony. All proceeds from the festival directly sustain DNKL. DNKL’s financial resources also support educational programs for Tibetan youth and adults in exile. Admission is set at $10 per person; please visit http://bit.ly/DNKLfestival to purchase tickets and learn more about the event. In the event of inclement weather, the festival will be moved to Sunday, October 21, running from 11am to 4pm.
ABOUT DNKL
Do Ngak Kunphen Ling Tibetan Buddhist Center for Universal Peace (DNKL) promotes peaceful living through teachings, study, meditation, and community service. Its unique program integrates the wisdom of Tibetan Buddhism with stewardship of its historic New England landscape. DNKL follows the spiritual tradition and lineage of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Located in the former home and estate of UNICEF founding director Maurice Pate and former Sweet Briar College president Martha Lucas Pate, the center is dedicated to benefiting and serving others.