The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Featuring Personal Sacred Objects of the Dalai Lama

In 1988-89 the Drepung Loseling Monastery in India launched the first of several year-long international tours in which the monastery dispatched lamas trained in the temple music and dances of Tibet, as a means of contributing to world peace and healing. Their vision was that such an undertaking would increase awareness of the tremendous suffering and utter destruction that Tibet had endured during the Communist China invasion in 1949-50. Their hope was also to raise funds to help with the preservation of the Tibetan culture in exile, as many had fled the country for nearby Indian and Nepal. The first tour, in September of 1988, was billed as "The Mystical Arts of Tibet: Sacred Music, Sacred Dance for World Peace and Healing." Over the following year it visited 108 cities in North America and 21 in Europe, and received an overwhelmingly warm response. On subsequent tours, in addition to presenting the traditional sacred performing arts, the pageantry was broadened to include an exhibition of items of fine art which reflected the cultural heritage of Tibet. His Holiness the Dalai Lama graciously offered a number of objects that were especially sacred to him and suitable to such an undertaking. This book is not just a catalog of that exhibit, but rather serves as an introduction to the artistic history of Tibet and the world of its mysticism.