Nicole Petranchuk
Tibetan Visit
Wadeñ nwa aweñha’
October 14, 2010
Onondaga Nation - On Tuesday October 12, 2010, the Onondaga Nation School was honored with a visit from Tibetan monks from India.
The monks came with an English interpreter who helped explain about the lifestyle of t
he Tibetan monks in their monastery back home in India through pictures and stories.
he Tibetan monks in their monastery back home in India through pictures and stories. He explained the life of the monk is spent mostly in school or meditation. Students as young as 6 years old wake up at 6am in the morning and don’t leave school until 4pm. Students go to school 6 out of seven days of the week! Older students begin to practice their debating skills. In debate class, a person asks a question and claps his hands. The student must then respond with the correct answer immediately. Students prepare for debate my memorizing their books, they don’t take notes!
The monks then shared with us a small part of their prayer. In their monastery, the monks pray by singing and playing their instruments for 18 straight hours.
Torrie of the 7th grade said of the prayer, ”It was pretty cool. Their voices sounded really different.”
The most important animal to the monks is the yak. From the yak they are provided with many things for the people to survive like milk and clothing. To demonstrate how important the yak is, the monks demonstrated a very exciting dance with the yak.
Camille of the 5th grade said of the dance, “It was funny and unusual”.
Maccoy also of the 5th grade added, “I thought it was going to be a real yak!”
When the Tibetan presentation was over, we led our guests to the cultural center for a social dance. Chris Thomas, Rick Lazore, and John Parsons helped sing the social songs as the students, staff, and our guests had an enjoyable time smiling and dancing together.
(Click to enlarge) photos by: J. Powless
(Click to enlarge) photos by: J. Powless
