“The Mandala”
“Somewhere below their intellects, the friends understood that Gyatso was creating a divine order in the mandala, a reminder to them of the perfect grace, balance, and beauty that existed in the hidden world that lay behind this visible one, which was, quite to the contrary, often notable for its crudity, distortion, and ugliness. From the material floor of his earthy cave, the holy man was constructing a paradise of spiritual equilibrium and perfection. With his rough, weathered hands, Gyatso was revealing the gentle, unblemished glory of the Enlightened Beings who secretly supported terrestrial life.”