Sanctuary

I slip into the main hall of the lamasery, where the corridor opens up into a great hall. Hundreds of students sit cross-legged on the floor, their eyes fixed on a young lama standing in the center of the room. He's engaged in a formal debate, slapping his hands in emphasis as he makes his points. This is the art of gewa, a traditional method of study in Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries, intended to sharpen one's logic and analytical skills. I quietly approach the edge of the room, but my presence is soon detected by the students. I have unwittingly become a focal point.

Suddenly, someone touches my arm from behind. I turn to see an old abbott with a kind face creased by long Tibetan winters, motioning for me to follow him. I decide to follow. We make our way past the main hall and into a dark corridor. Squatting to avoid hitting my head on the beams above, I notice the smell of incense and aged wood. My eyes begin to adjust, and I realize we are crouching in the rafters above a large hall. Below us, I make out the outlines of two massive Buddha sculptures sitting in repose. This is an ancient part of the temple, one that I knew was not casually visited by outsiders and lamas alike. Together, we move along the perimeter of the hall, ascending a narrow flight of wooden stairs until we reach door in the ceiling. The abbott goes up, and I follow, pushing myself through the trap-door.

We step into a simple room, where the afternoon light spills in from a dirty window and onto the gnarled wooden floors. I notice the particles of fine dust hanging in a beam, and at its terminus: a stray kitten grooming its scraggly fur. It's peaceful here. The old abbott explains that this was once the room of the 3rd Dalai Lama, Sonam Gyatso, who founded the monastery nearly five hundred years ago. Removing from his wrist a simple red bracelet made of string, he places it on mine. "Whether Tibetan or Han Chinese, we are one family."  

Ganden Tubchen Chokhorling Monastery, Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. 

About this print:
Gicleé inks printed on Hahnemühle Torchon, a 0.50mm thick, 100% alpha-cellulose archival paper manufactured in Dassel, Germany. Acid & lignin free. A unique watercolor texture lends to a three-dimensional effect and excellent sense of depth.

Signed & Numbered, Limited Edition of 100. 

Note:
A 0.8-inch, white border runs along the perimeter of the image. Does not come framed. Please allow print to gently flatten out over a few days upon arrival before framing or hanging.