Today's Holy-day Art Preview: Nirvana Day is Feb. 15

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS
By Ted Givens, AIA

INDIA - Siddhartha, the prince who was to become the Buddha, was born into the royal family of Kapilavastu, a small kingdom in the Himalayan foothills. His was a divine conception and miraculous birth, at which sages predicted that he would become a universal conqueror, either of the physical world or of men's minds. It was the latter conquest that came to pass. Giving up the pleasures of the palace to seek the true purpose of life, Siddhartha first tried the path of severe asceticism, only to abandon it after six years as a futile exercise. He then sat down in yogic meditation beneath a banyan tree until he achieved enlightenment. He was known henceforth as the Buddha, or "Enlightened One." The Buddha's passing is observed on February 15 (Nirvana Day), and during this week Buddhist Monks in Atlanta, Georgia are designing an intricate Mandala, a religious art tool for achieving enlightenment.