Postponed until Fall 2022

Tibetan thangka master, Jamyong Singye, will give a lecture “In the Footsteps of the Snow Lion: A Meditative Journey from Eastern Tibet to the U.S.” on January 18, 2022 at 4 p.m. in 220 Chapman Hall. He will share his experience of Tibetan monastic life and culture and the art of  thangka painting. During his campus visit he will present a two-day thangka painting workshop for faculty and students. These events are sponsored by the Center for Asian and Pacific Studies and the Department of the History of Art and Architecture; cosponsored by the OHC’s Endowment for Public Outreach in the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities.  

 

A thangka painting is a Tibetan Buddhist scroll painting on cotton or silk with mineral and organic pigments derived from coral, agate, sapphire, pearl, and gold. The painting tradition began in the 10th century. Usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, or mandala, most thangkas were intended for personal meditation or instruction for monastic students. They often have elaborate compositions including many very small figures. A central deity is often surrounded by other figures in a symmetrical composition.

 

Jamyong Singye was born in remote Eastern Tibet. His parents were part of the first Tibetan diaspora, fleeing Tibet for North India, shortly after His Holiness the Dalai Lama left in 1959. After a treacherous two-year journey through the Himalayas they reached their new home, Himachal Pradesh.

 

Soon after arriving, six year old Singye entered the Sonada Monastery. His days were filled with chores, meditation, and rigorous instruction in Tibetan culture—its alphabet, tenets, rituals, and arts. The renowned thangka artist, Ge Ga Lama discovered Singye’s artistic gifts and took him under his wing when Singye was only 19. For the next decade Singye remained under his tutelage.

 

After years of intense study, Singye began lecturing throughout Asia and the Pacific on the art of thangka painting. With time to reflect on monastic life, he thought about ‘disrobing’ as a monk. He consulted the three great beings in his life, his teacher His Eminence Tai Situ, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and His Holiness the Karmapa. All gave him the same advice to follow his heart; but regardless, continue painting as it kept Tibetan culture alive in the world.

 

Recognized as a ‘Living Master,’ Singye realized his mission—to bring Tibetan culture and the understanding of thangka painting to the Buddhist and non-Buddhist world alike. Singye has devoted three decades to painting and lecturing around the world. He now lives in San Francisco. 

 

For more information about Jamyong Singye go to jamyongsingye.com