Tibet Comes to Borrego: Lama Tashi Norbu Returns to Yellow Woman Ranch

Lama Tashi Norbu returns to Borrego Springs for four days of Tibetan art, teachings and traditions.

In December 2024, I was graced with a visit from Tibetan monk and internationally known artist, Lama Tashi Norbu. We sat. He chanted. We walked around the Ranch. He blessed it. And he promised to return.

And he did.

This October, Lama Tashi returns to Borrego Springs for four days at Yellow Woman Ranch, bringing with him art, Buddhist teachings, Tibetan traditions, and perhaps a little of the unexpected.

From October 24–27, the Ranch will host Tibet Comes to Borrego: A Tibetan Healing Festival with Lama Tashi Norbu, a series of experiences that reflects the many dimensions of a man whose life has been shaped by both ancient tradition and contemporary art.

Lama Tashi is an ordained Tibetan Buddhist monk and internationally recognized contemporary artist. Trained in traditional Tibetan art, his work has evolved to include painting, sculpture, calligraphy, performance, sacred tattoos, chanting, and other forms of artistic expression. He is also the founder of museums dedicated to contemporary Tibetan art and culture.

But this visit isn't intended to be something people simply come to watch.

Over the course of four days, visitors will have opportunities to paint, walk, cook, listen, ask questions, and create alongside him.

The festival begins Saturday, October 24, with Tibetan Sacred Tattoos, individual works created by Lama Tashi using imagery and symbolism rooted in Tibetan Buddhist art. Later that afternoon, The Three Doors: Tibetan Sacred Calligraphy explores the Buddhist teaching of body, speech, and mind, as well as compassion. Participants will begin with a mindful walk through three gates at Yellow Woman Ranch before gathering in the meditation circle for a hands-on calligraphy practice.

On Sunday, art takes center stage. Lama Tashi will teach The Art of the Buddha, a painting class introducing participants to some of the traditions and symbolism behind the Buddha image.

Throughout the afternoon, visitors can watch him paint live while chanting sacred Tibetan mantras.

And then Tibet comes to Borrego by way of the kitchen.

For A Taste of Tibet, Lama Tashi will lead participants in making and sharing momos, traditional Tibetan dumplings filled with meat or vegetables. There is, however, one rule.

Lama Tashi insists everyone eat the momos they make—no matter what they look like.

Monday brings another day of sacred tattoos and live Buddha painting before the group heads out into the Borrego landscape for A Mindful Walk at Sunset. Against the backdrop of the desert and one of Borrego Springs' enormous metal sculptures, the 350-foot serpent, Lama Tashi will lead participants in slowing down, observing, and experiencing the landscape in a different way.

The four-day visit concludes Tuesday with additional opportunities to watch Lama Tashi paint and chant, receive a sacred tattoo, and attend a Dharma Talk. In Buddhism, Dharma refers to the teachings of the Buddha and the path they offer for understanding ourselves and how we live.

Drawing from those teachings and his own life as a monk and artist, Lama Tashi will lead a conversation about how we look at our lives and purpose.

There is something especially fitting about bringing these traditions to Borrego Springs.

The desert has always invited contemplation. It strips away distraction. It gives us room to look, listen, and sometimes see things differently. Lama Tashi's work does much the same—drawing from traditions that are centuries old while continually finding new ways to express them.

When he visited Yellow Woman Ranch in 2024, I didn't know exactly what his promise to return might eventually look like.

Now I do.

For four days this October, Tibet is coming to Borrego.

And everyone is invited.





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