The Meaning Of The Mandala
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids|July/August 2017

Losang Samten Brings an Ancient Tradition to School

The Meaning Of The Mandala

On a Monday morning in December, NEA National Heritage Fellow Losang Samten arrived at the Folk Arts-Cultural Treasures Charter School (FACTS) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Using markers, a straight edge, and a compass tool, he slowly and carefully began to draw precise intersecting lines and circles on a square table.

Losang emptied small bags of colored sand into shiny metal bowls and used one color to fill one foot-long hollow metal cone. The cone made a soothing and rhythmic sound as he rubbed it against a second cone, controlling each grain of sand placed at the exact center of the table. He chanted to help stay focused amid the noises of the busy school.

Under the watchful gaze of students and teachers, Losang spent a week creating an intricate and colorful mandala, a sand art masterpiece of Tibetan Buddhism. At the end of the week, FACTS students and staff helped him sweep the beautiful and meaningful artwork into a glass vase. The sand was deposited into a nearby river while Losang chanted prayers.

To those unfamiliar with the tradition of mandala making, this process raises many questions. Some of the answers were revealed during an interview that the FACTS seventh graders conducted with Losang about his school, his art, and his feelings about mandalas. Let’s find out what they discovered.

Student Questions

Q: Why did you join the Tibetan Buddhist monastery?

A: Each country has a different definition of “monastery,” but in my country, Tibet, joining the monastery means going to school. Some of the monks and people live at the monastery; some people live nearby and go every day to the monastery.

Denne historien er fra July/August 2017-utgaven av Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra July/August 2017-utgaven av Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA FACES - THE MAGAZINE OF PEOPLE, PLACES AND CULTURES FOR KIDSSe alt
Animal Central
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

Animal Central

From golden frogs to big cats to colorful birds, the national animals of Central America represent the geography and cultures of the region. For a quick sampling of creatures plain and beautiful, common and rare, read on.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 2021
31 Countries Biosphere
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

31 Countries Biosphere

The Trifinio Fraternidad Biosphere Reserve is located at a spot where El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras converge. A biosphere is the layer of planet Earth where life exists.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 2021
THE LEGEND OF THE QUETZAL BIRD
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

THE LEGEND OF THE QUETZAL BIRD

A Mayan Tale retold by Pat Betteley illustrated by Amanda Shepherd

time-read
4 mins  |
January 2021
Semana Santa GUATEMALA'S HOLY WEEK
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

Semana Santa GUATEMALA'S HOLY WEEK

What if Easter preparations meant dyeing sand, collecting pine needles, and staying up all night to work on an art project that you knew would be ruined the very next day? Well, welcome to Guatemala’s Semana Santa, or Holy Week.

time-read
4 mins  |
January 2021
ME OH-MAYA!
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

ME OH-MAYA!

The Maya are groups of people who live in parts of Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala. Their ancestors created a great society. At its peak, from 600-900 C.E., the Maya civilization was more advanced than its neighbors in the Americas.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 2021
Playing Games Honduras-style
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

Playing Games Honduras-style

Would you play the same games in Honduras that you do in the United States? You might. Children in Honduras enjoy many of the same games North Americans do. They go fishing and shoot baskets. They play sandlot baseball—called bate (BAH tay). They fly kites and ride bikes. Their parents may go horseback riding or play golf or tennis.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 2021
LIVING A LONG LIFE IN THE Blue Zone
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

LIVING A LONG LIFE IN THE Blue Zone

Most people would like to live as long a life as possible. No one really knows why some people live longer than others, but did you know that where you live can play a big part in how many years you’ll be alive? If you live in a Blue Zone, chances are that you will live much longer than people in other parts of the world.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 2021
ATTENTION WORLD: Belize Saves Their Coral Reef
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

ATTENTION WORLD: Belize Saves Their Coral Reef

Sea turtles float in clear waters, colorful corals hug the ocean floor, and aquatic animals glide among the mangrove roots. Welcome to the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, the second-largest coral reef in the world (Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is number one). Several years ago, this reef was in crisis, heading toward destruction. But the people of Belize fought back to save their reef’s health.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 2021
The Panama Canal
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

The Panama Canal

The Panama Canal is a 51-mile long canal that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 2021
This is Central America!
Faces - The Magazine of People, Places and Cultures for Kids

This is Central America!

It’s time to visit Central America. But first, it helps to know exactly where Central America is. Despite its name, it is the southernmost part of North America, which can seem a little confusing. It makes up most of the isthmus dividing the Pacific Ocean from the Caribbean Sea. An isthmus is a narrow strip of land that connects two larger landmasses and has water on both sides.

time-read
4 mins  |
January 2021