Tibet Through the Red Box

Even though every illustration in the book is breathtakingly intricate in detail, the picture that really caught my interest was the black page that coincided with the narrator’s father finally meeting the Dalai Lama. As this very minimalist page was preceded by several images of very colorful and decorated full-page illustrations, the simplicity of it was very interesting. There are no large symbols or patterns to distract the eye, and the central focus is just the small image of the Dalai Lama sitting cross-legged at a distance on a pedestal, with just the hint of a glimmering star over his head. Just as Peter’s father has a realization at this point, the construct of the page also sheds a level of clarity on the whole plot of the book. The illustrator also places a small, unidentifiable red object in the Dalai Lama’s hand.
When readers turn the page they are exposed to yet another page of just darkness with only Peter’s father’s red box sitting on the desk. The darkness of this picture is different from the blackness of the picture that came before it, but like the first picture, all other details are seen as silhouettes or shadows, and light only shines on the red box and the sculpture of the Dalai Lama, again with the star over his head.
I think this pair of images was a beautiful and brilliant way to culminate the book, as it drew parallels between the Dalai Lama, and Peter’s father. It is mentioned that Dalai Lama actually means “sea of knowledge,” and just as the Tibetan leader goes through the experience of enlightenment, which he then shares with his people, Peter’s father also shares a similar journey. Imparting his knowledge Peter’s father was Peter’s Dalai Lama, who first left, discovered himself and then came back to tell his child- who would keep his stories alive. The same effort to preserve history and tradition is seen when the time comes to search for a new Dalai Lama.
In Tibet, when one Dalai Lama dies, there is a massive search for the next one. The process is very complex and involves the state oracle, who defines a region where the next child-god-king will be found. When the child with the special qualities is found, he is given the task of identifying the late Dalai Lama’s belongings from a large pile of things that are meant to trick him. Similarly, after the death of his father, Peter must go through his father’s things and find the red box that will help keep history alive. In addition, in both of the mainly black images, the figure of the Dalai Lama is kept at a distance- signifying the difficulty with which enlightenment is obtained.