Tashi Lhunpo Monks – The Power of Peace

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A magnificent performance from the Tashi Lhunpo Monks

Tibet, the Land of Snows, is home to Buddhist lamas whose ancient rituals have fascinated people for centuries. Tashi Lhunpo Monks – The Power of Peace comes to Norden Farm Centre for the Arts on Thursday 9 July at 7pm. Tickets are £20.

Captain John Noel’s films Climbing Mount Everest and The Epic of Everest introduced Western audiences to moving images of the 1922 and 1924 British expeditions, their Sherpas and guides and the Himalayan landscape to for the first time.

He later invited seven Tibetan lamas from Gyantse in Central Tibet to travel to Europe to perform a ‘prologue’ to screenings of The Epic of Everest during its 1924 – 1925 tour.

Now, a century later, monks from Tashi Lhunpo Monastery recreate this original prologue using the same magnificent instruments and distinctive music that captivated audiences in the 1920s, followed by a screening of The Epic of Everest, culminating in a live performance.

The Tashi Lhunpo Monastery is one of the most important monasteries in Central Tibet besides being the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama. After the Tibetan national uprising that took place in 1959, a handful of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery monks along with many thousands of Tibetans escaped to India. The Monastery was then subsequently re-established in Bylakuppe in Karnataka State India. With the induction of new recruits over the years, the Monastery today has about 400 monks. Most major monasteries are thriving but Tashi Lhunpo is still facing difficulties.

The Power of Peace presents sacred mantras, music and dance from the monastery, offering a window into a world of reincarnation and mysticism. From mesmerising chanting of Buddhist texts to swirling, costumed masked dances. The performance is accompanied by ancient Tantric instruments.

Together, the monks evoke the atmosphere of sacred Tibet, offering a rare glimpse into an ancient and endangered culture.