May 7, 2018
TOKYO: Hundreds of Japanese attended a 9-day Tibet Festival at Aida Mitsuo Museum in Tokyo organized by the Liaison Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama from 28 April – 6 May. The festival showcased the rich tradition of Tibetan Buddhism by monks of Sera Jey Monastery based in south India. The theme of the festival was ‘Prayer for world peace: the world of mandala of compassion.’
Day’s programme for the 9-day festival consisted of morning prayer session, cham or ritual dance, Tibetan Buddhist Meditation and Practice, talks by senior monks of Sera monastery on various topics such as Life in Sera Monastery; Tantric Teaching and Essence of Sand Mandala; Compassion is the Key to Happiness; and Good Heart. Ms. Yamaguchi Naoko, who studied Tibetan Buddhism at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics for nearly two decades, was the translator during the festival.
In the evening, there were public talks by scholars on topics such as exchange between Tibetan and Japanese Buddhism by Koichi Hiraoka, executive head of Seifu senior high school; Living Tibetan Doctor in Japan by Dr. Nishikura Tsewang; Dalai Lama and Tibet by Prof. Ishihama Yumiko, Professor at Waseda University; Why Mongolians became students of Tibetan Buddhism by Miyawaki Junko, expert on Mongolian history and Relation between Tibet, and Aida Mitsuo Museum by Aida Kazuhito, Director of Aida Mitsuo Museum and writer.
Documentary movies on Tibetan history, escape of Tibetan refugees after invasion of Tibet by the People’s Republic of China, education of Tibetan refugees and preservation of Tibetan culture, language and religion in exile, were screened.
Japanese visitors were able to taste Tibetan butter tea and khabse during the 9-day festival.
The festival successfully concluded yesterday with a special prayer service followed by the dismantling of sand mandala of compassion constructed by the monks during the course of 9 days.
– Report filed by Office of Tibet, Japan –