2025/3/14 6 grade by Annette

I let them watch the mandala video first, so I wasn’t competing with it during my explanation. I had a picture of a sand mandala which I explained represented the universe and was used as a Buddhist teaching tool. I then pointed out the different parts, and the N, S, E and W gates and the progression towards the center which represents enlightenment. 
We talked a bit about Cai’s interest in Eastern religions and his desire to incorporate that in his work (use of symbols, Tibetan pigments, etc.), how the destruction of the sand mandala paralleled his destruction of the gunpowder mandala illustrating the Buddhist teaching re: impermanence. The kids seemed interested in discussing this, volunteering examples of impermanence.

I can still use the picture of the sand mandala since the video goes pretty fast, but simplify for younger kids.