On Saturday, July 27th, from 7p – 9p, at NalandaWest, enjoy a free theatrical presentation of two stories from the Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa by Tsangnyön Heruka, translated by Christopher Stagg. These performances of ‘The Offering of the Pigeon Goddess Girl’ and ‘Meeting Paldarbum’ will be given by Katiana Rangel and Lynne Conrad Marvet, and accompanied by cellist Lori Goldston.
There is no figure more revered by Tibetans than Milarepa, a great eleventh-century poet and saint. This ordinary man, through sheer force of effort, faith, and perseverance, overcame nearly insurmountable obstacles to achieve enlightenment, stands as an exemplar of what it is to lead a spiritual life. A cotton-clad yogi, Milarepa wandered and taught the dharma, most famously through spontaneously composed songs, in a down-to-earth way that conveys the immediacy and depth of the Buddhist faith teachings.
In ‘The Offering of the Pigeon Goddess Girl’, Milarepa is visited by eight goddesses who arrive in the form of pigeons to hide themselves ‘from people with negativity.’ The story warns of trusting the dharma through suffering and confusion will be difficult, and the ways to remedy the state of samsara through mindfulness. In ‘Meeting Paldarbum’, Milarepa responds to the many questions of Nyama Paldarbum, with profound and beneficial answers applicable to modern practice.
On July 27th, see three woman bring these two stories to life. Katiana Rangel has a long performance history in Brazil, and has collaborated on several performance pieces in New York City. A founding member of Les Ballets Nomades, Rangel believes in art as a portal to realization of the indescribable. Lynne Conrad Marvet, a founding director of NalandaWest, is a visual and performing artist who takes delight in whimsy, playfulness and life’s absurdities. Marvet makes mixed-media collages, masks, puppets and assemblage sculptures, and she has been a student of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche for three decades. Lori Goldston is a Stranger Genius Award winner and the only musician, besides Kurt Cobain, to play with both Nirvana and Earth. Classically-trained, Goldston is a cellist as well as a composer, improvisor, producer, writer and teacher, and she wanders recklessly across borders that separate genre, discipline, time and geography.
Reserve a seat for this FREE performance at NalandaWest on July 27th through the website (click here.) Learn more about Milarepa while enjoying these theatrical presentations of his teachings and songs.