2024 is an auspicious year for the people of Sibford, as it marks the return to our village after 10 years of the Tibetan Tashi Lhunpo Monks who live in exile in their monastery in India. Once again they will be sharing their unique culture, including the creation and ritual destruction of a sand mandala, and interactive workshops.

At the Saturday evening performance, the eight monks will evoke the atmosphere of sacred Tibet from the mesmerising chant of Buddhist texts to swirling costumed masked dances accompanied by ancient musical instruments - horns made from human leg bones, skull-drums, cymbals, bells and the great dungchen (long horns). Don’t miss this opportunity to experience an ancient, endangered culture.

There will be another anniversary celebration this weekend. Thirty years after the filming of the renowned documentary Escape from Tibet, the producers and film crew will be reunited in Sibford with the two brothers, now British citizens, whose dangerous journey from the Roof of the World is told in the film. Using film clips and photographs, they will tell the story of how the film was made.

To reserve your seats and meals:

• call Diana on 01295 788 214, or
• call Ginny on 01295 780 373, or
• email tlm@thesibfords.uk.

Some tickets will be available at the door but since numbers are limited please book in advance to avoid disappointment. Where no price is shown for an event below, just turn up!

The net proceeds of the weekend will help support the monks, young and old, who study and live in Tashi Lhunpo, benefitting the whole community.

For further information about the weekend please call Diana on 01295 788 214.

Friday 18th October

4.30pm Dedication Ceremony of the sand mandala - construction begins!

Saturday 19th October

10am Morning Prayers

11am Hands-on Workshop: making a sand mandala, printing prayer flags.
£5 per person

2.30pm Performance Workshop: an introduction to the musical instruments, dance moves and hand gestures used in the evening performance.
£5 per person

4pm Tea

4.30pm ‘Escape from Tibet’ 30 Years On: the film crew and the escaping brothers reunite and recall how they made the film.

5.30pm Curry Supper
£10 per person

7.30pm From the Roof of The World

Performance of masked dancers and sacred chants.
Adult £16, Child £5. Doors open from 7pm.

Sunday 20th October

10.45am Ceremony of Destruction of the sand mandala and procession to the Sib

Read on for more information about

• Tashi Lhunpo Monastery (and Why Sibford?)
• Sand Mandala
• Workshops
• The film Escape from Tibet

The Tashi Lhunpo Monks

Tashi Lhunpo Monastery is the seat of the lineage of the Panchen Lamas – second only in importance as spiritual leaders of Tibet to the Dalai Lama. The monastery was founded by the First Dalai Lama in 1447 in Shigatse, Tibet’s second largest city. In 1959, with the Chinese Occupation of Tibet, only 250 of the 5000 monks were able to follow the Dalai Lama into exile. Tashi Lhunpo monastery was re-established in in S.India.

Tashi Lhunpo Monastery UK Trust was founded in 2003. It aims to develop awareness and facilitate access to the unique culture of Tibet, with its tours of educational workshops  and performances of masked dance and sacred chants.

Ten years ago the monks visited Sibford at the invitation of Sibford resident Diana Hughes, whose connection with Tibet stems from her father’s time as medical officer in Bhutan and Tibet in the 1940s. The monks were welcomed into the homes of Sibfordians, as they will be this year. As well as the events listed above, they will visit Sibford Endowed Primary School.

Review highlights of their UK tour this year on Facebook.

Sand Mandala

A sand mandala is an intricate picture, made entirely of grains of coloured sand, used in the Tantric tradition of Tibetan Buddhism as an aid to meditation as part of an initiation.

On Friday 18th October, after their visit to the Primary School, the monks will begin the construction of a Sand Mandala in the small Village Hall, in a Dedication Ceremony at 4.30pm.

The monks will be working on the mandala throughout the weekend. Once it is complete, and the final grain of sand has been put into position, at 10.45am on Sunday morning the mandala is blessed, and then destroyed in a moving ceremony. After a short procession to the Sib, the grains of sand are poured away into running water.

You are welcome to attend either mandala ceremony and to come and watch the monks making the mandala on Saturday morning or afternoon – there is no charge.

Workshops on Tibetan Art

On Saturday 19th October the monks will lead two workshops in the Village Hall:

The Hands-on Workshop, 11am - 12.30pm, includes:

• Butter Sculpture: A demonstration of how these very decorative designs are made for the New Year rituals in the monastery.
• Sand Mandala Making: See how sand mandalas are created; how millions of grains of coloured sand are used to draw intricate patterns as part of the major prayer ceremonies.
• Tibetan Script and language: The beautiful Tibetan scripts are illustrated – examples of some of the many different alphabets used in Tibetan writing. Have your name written in Tibetan and learn some basic language.
• Prayer Flag Printing: An original wood block of a traditional prayer flag is printed using ink and roller onto coloured paper.

The Performance Workshop, 2.30pm  - 4pm, introduces Tibetan Monastic Culture:

• Introduction: An introduction to Tashi Lhunpo Monastery and the life of a monk.
• Music: The monastic instruments, long horns, oboes, drums and cymbals are demonstrated, as is the technique of circular breathing.
• Costumes: Learn more about the significance of the magnificent costumes used in monastic dance.
• Dance: An opportunity to try one of the dances under the tuition of the Tibetan monk masters.
• Debate: An exhibition of the art of dialectical debate or Taksel used by the monks to demonstrate their knowledge of the scriptures.
• The Mudras: Learn from the Tibetan monks some of the Tantric offering mudras or hand gestures used to help visualise the qualities of the deities in meditation.

There is a charge of £5 per person for each workshop.
The Hands-on Workshop is limited to 30 participants.
Reserve your place by calling Diana on 01295 788 214 or Ginny on 01295 780 373 or email tlm@thesibfords.uk

Escape from Tibet - an encounter at 19,000 feet

It was 30 years ago in October 1994 that a group of Tibetans escaping from Chinese repression reached the highest point of their route to freedom - at a pass at 19,000 feet near Mount Everest.

Among the group was Pasang, a 19-year-old novice monk, and Tenzin, his 11-year-old brother. They looked over to the fluttering prayer flags which marked the border between their country, and Nepal.

At the same time they saw with horror what looked like Chinese border guards crouched over a machine gun. But they weren’t Chinese, they weren’t guards. They were a British film crew, and it was not a machine gun, but a camera on a tripod.

These were the first (camera) shots in the making of ESCAPE FROM TIBET, a film that was seen all over the world, publicising the plight of the Tibetan people.

Thirty years later, Pasang and Tenzin (now British citizens) will be reunited in Sibford with the film-makers. Together they will tell the story of how the film was made, illustrated with clips from the film. There won't be enough time to show the whole film.

“Although the conditions for filming this documentary were extremely difficult, Escape From Tibet accurately conveys the experiences of the refugees. We are grateful to all who made this film possible.”

Tempa Tsering, Secretary, Department of Information and International Relations, Government of Tibet

Saturday 19th October, 4.30pm in the Village Hall, no entrance charge.