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In conjunction with Asia Week, two Tibetan Buddhist monks, Tenzin Thutop and Lobsang Gyaltsen, from Namgyal Monastery (associated with the Dalai Lama's monastery in Dharamsala, India) are visiting Austin College April 5-15 to create a sand mandala of the deity of compassion, Avalokiteshvara/ Chenrezig.The monks will be working in the Johnson Gallery of the Wright Campus Center daily from 9:00 am until 5:00 pm. You are encouraged to go and view the construction of the Mandala. Please feel free to ask the monks any questions you may have about the mandala, their work, or their lives.In addition to their daily work on the mandala, the monks will give a talk about the mandala and their lives as monks on Tuesday, April 6th, 4:30 pm in WCC 231. All events are open to the public.A mandala is a geometric visual representation of the universe of a deity often created for ritual purposes to help Buddhist practitioners reach enlightenment. The deity in the center symbolizes the goal, the achievement of Buddhahood. The specific design of the mandala represents the teaching of a particular method of spiritual practice in accordance with practitioners' needs and aptitudes.