Lyon, France 21, March – ‘Peoples of Himalaya’, an exhibition of Tibetan culture and religion, was one of the themes of an international trade fair which is expected to draw more than 2 million people from across Europe and other parts of the world in 10 days. ‘Foirre de Lyon’, one of the biggest international trade fairs in France, began here yesterday. The fair is organised by Eurexpo, a firm based in Lyon.
Despite cold weather, thousands of people visited the stands displaying Tibetan scroll art (thangka), Tibetan stone carving art, religious artefacts, traditional costumes etc. ‘Tibet Art’, a Tibetan cultural and art enterprise, based in the French capital represented Tibet at the Fair. Dorjee Sangpo of Tibet Art aims to create awareness about Tibet through its culture and religion. “People here respect His Holiness the Dalai Lama a lot and are fond of Tibet and Tibetans. I think it is their interest in Tibetan culture and Buddhism that has made this possible. And this in turn garners more support to the Tibetan cause”.
Curious visitors swarmed to see monks from an Indian monastery create sand mandala of Buddha Amitayu as Dorjee Sangpo explained the significance of mandala.
“Tibet has a very rich culture and we want to bring this great culture to the French people whose children we hope will know what Tibet is and the facts about it”, says Alexander Cavalli and Pascal, organisers of the ‘Peoples of Himalaya’. Alexander Cavalli and Pascal had organised several other exhibitions on Tibet in conjunction with Tibet Art.
The fact that France has one of the highest number of Tibetan Buddhist centres and non Tibetan Buddhists in the world was evidently clear from the all-day busy stands showcasing Tibetan culture. The Tibetans were surprised at the visitors who asked questions on Tibetan Buddhism which were not at all amateurish. There is apparently a strong enthusiasm among the French people about the visit of the Dalai Lama to Rennes, France, in July.
Visitors listened with great curiosity to Wangpo Bashi from the Office of Tibet, Paris, on 18 March as he talked about Tibetan culture, history and the exile Tibetan government. Bashi gave a brief outline about the current situation of Tibet and the exile government’s approach to the resolution of the Tibet issue including the recent visit of the Dalai Lama’s envoys to China.
The fair will conclude on 27 March.
