Rubin Museum's Mandala Lab Program Brings Himalayan Art to Classrooms for Emotional Learning

The Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art offers a free educational initiative called Mandala Lab in Your Classroom, designed to foster emotional awareness and compassion through Himalayan artistic traditions. This program integrates art-making exercises, guided conversations, and interactions with artifacts from the museum's holdings to help students manage difficult feelings and contemporary challenges using Social, Emotional, and Ethical (SEE) Learning® frameworks. While the in-person component is available to New York City schools, serving approximately 800 students by February 2026, the instructional materials are accessible globally for educators to implement in their own settings. The curriculum draws inspiration from the Mandala Lab installation and the Vairochana Mandala, introducing learners to mandalas as tools for examining five challenging mental states known as kleshas. Participants explore connections between mandala colors and emotions, then design board games to illustrate personal agency in emotional responses. Another lesson, The Power of Perception, uses optical illusion creation to demonstrate how perspective can shift emotional experiences. The program adapts to various grade levels from 3 through 12, including advanced placement psychology classes where concepts like neuroplasticity are discussed, and alternative schools serving students with diverse learning needs. Activities such as crafting crowns to highlight positive traits aim to build self-esteem. Authentic objects from the Rubin's collection, like a damaru drum from early 20th-century Tibet or Mongolia, are incorporated to teach mindfulness and present-moment awareness. Jacqueline D. Smith, Senior Manager of Curriculum Development and Education at the Rubin, notes the program's alignment with mindfulness, compassion, and interdependence themes in Himalayan art, aiming to help students develop balanced responses to life's difficulties. The initiative was developed with guidance from Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, emphasizing emotional awareness as a path to wisdom.