The
Literature of Tibet
Samples from Tibetan Literary Arts:
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Twelve flags embossed with Tibetan text on the lawn in front
of Neilson Library represent part of Tibetan Literary Arts,
an exhibition that opened on May 9 in conjunction with the
campus visit of the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso.
The exhibition aims to introduce Tibetan literature to the
Smith community, with an emphasis on early poetry. It is
displayed in three other locations in addition to the Nielson
Lawn: the Morgan Gallery inside the entrance to Neilson Library;
the Mair Reference Room; and the Hillyer Art Library.
Tibetan Literary Arts was curated by Marit Cranmer, School
of Library and Information Studies, University of Rhode Island.
“This exhibition is a modest attempt to introduce
a few of the treasures within the vast and extraordinary
field of Tibetan literature,” said Cranmer in the exhibition
catalog. “Tibet’s written tradition has a rich
history full of complexity that is only recently becoming
know in the West. And its poetry, valuing as it does wisdom
and intrinsic awareness, stands with the great world poetry
of the human spirit.”
The 12 flags on Neilson Lawn are positioned inside two eternity
knows, one of the eight auspicious Tibetan religious symbols,
Cranmer explains, and accompanied by a Tibetan blessing carved
in stone for the occasion by a member of the local Tibetan
community.
Tibetan Literary Arts
consists of about 80 objects on display spanning hundreds
of years, including excerpts and poems from 300 B.C. to those
written in the 19th century. A free exhibition guide will
be available in Neilson and Hillyer libraries. The exhibition
catalog will be available for sale in the library administrative
offices.
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