Monks to spend

weekend on campus
Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery are visiting campus this week, and have been constructing a mandala sand painting at the International Student Lounge in the EMU since Wednesday and will continue their work today through Sunday.
The visit, sponsored by the UO Cultural Forum, also includes a photography exhibit on display in the Adell McMillan Art Gallery and a Saturday night performance at the Willamette Valley Folk Festival, called “The Mystical Arts of Tibet.”
The monks’ appearance at the festival and on campus is intended to promote peace, provide greater awareness of Tibetan civilization and to raise support for refugee communities in India. The mandala is an ancient spiritual art form that is said to heal both the environment and its inhabitants.
Their visit will conclude Sunday at 11 a.m. when the monks will erase the mandala and lead a procession to the Willamette River, where they will return the sand used in the painting to the Earth. Some of the sand will be given to participants in the procession as a sign of good luck and health.
Assembling of the mandala continues at 9 a.m. today until 9 p.m., and will resume Saturday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. The musical performance will run on the main stage at the EMU’s east lawn from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday night. The closing ceremonies will commence on Sunday at 10 a.m. and continue until noon. All events are free and open to the public.

— Jonathan House
 

APASU to portray college

students in ‘hereandnow’
The Asian-Pacific American Students Union will kick off its biggest event for Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month this weekend with music, games and a theatrical performance.
At 6 p.m. Saturday in the EMU Ballroom, APASU will be presenting “hereandnow,” an Asian American theater group from Los
Angeles that has performed across the nation for the past 10 years. APASU Co-Director Jeanice Chieng said the theater group will be addressing various Asian American stereotypes and issues such as homosexuality in the Asian community.
“This group portrays Asian college students and experiences that they face in their lives,” APASU member Kao Cha said.
Pocket Face and Thai will be the opening acts for the evening. Pocket Face, an alternative band from Eugene, will be performing to fundraise for their upcoming tour in Japan this summer. In addition, Thai, a Vietnamese American hip-hop artist from Portland, will be singing his hit single “Portland Love.”
On Sunday, APASU will host a Spring Mini Olympics. Students can meet for the event at 2 p.m. in the Multicultural Center. Participants will have the chance to play basketball, tennis and compete in a tug-of-war and sack races. All of APASU’s events are free to students and the general public.

— Danielle Gillespie