After the monks of the Namgyal Monastery finish their weeklong sacred sand painting called The Buddha of Compassion Mandala, they will dismantle their work and disperse the dyed sand into Port Gardner Bay.

Creating a work of such complexity, only to destroy it, might seem odd.

But these geometric symbols are considered a road map, pointing the pathways to heaven in Buddhism, one of the world's oldest religions.

The Tibetan monks come to Everett to begin a sand painting Tuesday. It will culminate in a dismantling ceremony April 11. The public is welcome to watch the large, circular picture evolve each day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the ballroom of the Monte Cristo Hotel.

A noon ceremony Tuesday in the hotel lobby marks the opening of the residency, in which the monks chant and play music. They then begin drawing the outline of the mandala on a circular platform about 5 feet in diameter.

Then comes the "painting," as the monks pour millions of grains of dyed sand through funnels to make the intricate design.

Based in Ithaca, NY, the Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies offers part time and full-time courses and workshops in Tibetan Buddhism. It is also headquarters for His Holiness the Dalai Lama when he is in North America. The Dalai Lama comes to Seattle for several appearances starting April 11.

Everett hosted a mandala painting in 2004, when Richard Gere Productions presented a show of "The Mystical Arts of Tibet" at the Everett Civic Auditorium. That year, monks from the Atlanta-based Drepung Lobsang Institute had a four-day residency creating a mandala sand painting at Everett Community College.

Diane Wright: 425-745-7815 or dwright@seattletimes.com