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Thankas
are religious paintings used for meditation practices
and the blessful decoration of monasteries (Gompas),
shrines (Chorten) and house chapels. They usually depict
deities, religious leaders, protectors and guardians of
the religion. In many rituals these deities are invoked
to protect the people and the area. The art of Thanka
Painting has a very long tradition and is strongly
connected with the religious texts about these deities
and their entourage as well as their paraphernalia. In
Dolpo there are two very skilled Thanka painters of the
Bonpo tradition. One of them is the elderly painter
Yungdrung Yise Lama, whose paintbrush has been used on
most of the Bonpo monasteries in Dolpo.
In
1999 the first Thanka painting course with Yungdrung
Yise Lama, sharing his exceptional skills with 8 adult
students, was carried out with the support of the NGO
Friends of Dolpo. Since then the course has been
supported by Tapriza Verein and Friends of Dolpo in
co-operation by providing paints, materials, books and a
salary for the teacher.
As
a community contribution, the students donated voluntary
work to repair ancient crumbling paintings at shrines (Chorten)
or in monasteries (Gompas) as well as helping with new
wall paintings and Thankas. So far the students of the 3
courses have renovated two Chorten and painted the
bookshelf at Ringmo Gompa. We are currently
exploring ways in which the very talented students could
be further supported in their education since Yungdrung
Yise's sight is starting to fail. At the moment support
for Thanka painting students who want to continue their
education in Kathmandu is discussed with scholars,
teachers and donors.
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