The film details the personal experiences of five young Western men who were identified in childhood as being tulkus, or reincarnated Tibetan Buddhist masters.
Social & External
Self
An engaging reflection on the meaning of existence and on the theme of death in the different spiritual traditions of the East and West.
Explores the lives of seven Black Millennials – Atheist, Buddhist, Christians, Muslim, Ifa, and Spiritualist – and the challenges and discoveries with faith and spirituality.
Brilliant Moon chronicles the life of the writer, poet, and meditation master Khyentse Rinpoche, one of Tibet's most revered 20th-century Buddhist teachers. Spiritual guide to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Royal Family of Bhutan, his life and teachings were an inspiration to all who encountered him. Richard Gere and Lou Reed provide the narration for his dangerous journey out of China, the subsequent spread of his influence and the search for his reincarnation after his death.
Buddhist monks open up about the joys and challenges of living out the precepts of the Buddha as a full-time vocation. Controversies swirling within modern monastic Buddhism are examined, from celibacy and the role of women to racism and concerns about the environment.
A Zen priest in San Francisco and cookbook author use Zen Buddhism and cooking to relate to everyday life.
A view of the religious tensions between Muslims and Buddhist through the portrait of the Buddhist monk Ashin Wirathu, leader of anti-Muslim movement in Myanmar.
Vajra Sky is a cinematic pilgrimage to central Tibet, bearing witness to the indomitable faith of its Buddhist community and the imminent threat to its very survival. This poignant journey bears witness to the indomitable faith of its endangered Buddhist community and the imminent threat to its very survival. The vastness of the Tibetan sky, reflecting snowy mountains, rushing rivers, and turquoise lakes, leads the journey west. Tibetans respond to the denial of the human right to practice one's religion without interference with a defiant devotion.
The influential life and powerful messages of Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh are explored in this biographical documentary. For more than 50 years, this amazing social activist has preached self-awareness and compassion for all living beings. Follow him as he travels through France and the United States—including a stop at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C.—spreading peace by teaching mindfulness and forgiveness.
As a rising star in the field of abstract mathematics, Michael discovered that he could see beauty and pattern where others could not. But his path was not to be inside academia, or even inside society. He went on a grand adventure to unify his Buddhism with his ability to see an expanded view of reality. He created beauty in a place where nobody else would, and made his friends amongst dolphins.
Three leading figures in today's Buddhist-Christian dialogue share their personal journeys in the new documentary Jesus and Buddha: Practicing Across Traditions. We learn how following the path of the Buddha has informed and deepened their understanding of who Jesus was and what he taught. Their experience and insight bring these two liberating archetypes alive in a way that can help guide us through our own confusion and struggle toward lives filled with joy and gratitude, compassion and service.
A cinematic journey through the world. Non-verbal.
In 1981, a Buddhist monk teaching at the University of Madison, Wisconsin, made the bold request of the Dalai Lama to come and perform a rare ritual, never before done outside of India or Tibet: the Kalachakra, among the highest of the Buddhist tantric teachings. In just a few months, with a team of dedicated students, and cameras rolling, they constructed a temple and organized an event for over a thousand spiritual seekers, in a cornfield outside Madison. The incredible footage was tucked away in the Smithsonian vaults, until now. What unfolds is the story of a powerful ritual, its impact on the people that made it happen, and the meaning behind this ancient initiation.
In the last fifty years the culture of Zen has spread far beyond Japan. Zen centers and zen retreats have sprung up throughout America and Europe. When Dogen, the founder of Soto Zen, brought Zen to Japan from China 800 years ago, it quickly took root and became an integral part of Japanese life. Yet what do we know about zen practice in Japan today? The Zen Mind is a fascinating journey across Japan to explore zen in its natural habitat.
After World War II a group of young writers, outsiders and friends who were disillusioned by the pursuit of the American dream met in New York City. Associated through mutual friendships, these cultural dissidents looked for new ways and means to express themselves. Soon their writings found an audience and the American media took notice, dubbing them the Beat Generation. Members of this group included writers Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg. a trinity that would ultimately influence the works of others during that era, including the "hippie" movement of the '60s. In this 55-minute video narrated by Allen Ginsberg, members of the Beat Generation (including the aforementioned Burroughs, Anne Waldman, Peter Orlovsky, Amiri Baraka, Diane Di Prima, and Timothy Leary) are reunited at Naropa University in Boulder, CO during the late 1970's to share their works and influence a new generation of young American bohemians.
Following in the footsteps of his father, Folco Felzani embarks on an epic journey on foot in search of Mustang, the last lost kingdom, in northern Nepal. The story of a king without a kingdom. The adventure of a son without a father.
The Odd Monk is a personal journey through modern day Buddhism. German first time Filmmaker Jesco Puluj travels around the world, meeting a variety of monks and nuns to discover the essence of Buddhism.
In this fascinating and unusual conversation, writer and physician Deepak Chopra talks to religion professor Robert Thurman about the connections and differences between two of India's most important philosophical beliefs: Vedanta and Buddhism. Chopra explores the foundation of Vedanta, while Thurman -- the father of actress Uma Thurman -- provides the Buddhist point of view in this meeting held in 1999 at New York City's Tibet House.
More than 50 years ago, the Tibetan Bon Buddhist tradition was driven from its refuge deep within the Himalayas. This is the story of the long and difficult journey that followed. Told through the lens of one Bon teacher born in exile -- Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche -- this film reveals something very precious and very old: a rich spiritual heritage, hidden for millennia, whose secret teachings are only now becoming known to the world. There may be no unbroken spiritual tradition more ancient than Bon, which traces its beginnings to a buddha who predates Shakyamuni by thousands of years. Yet this tradition today may be facing its greatest challenge thus far: to preserve its rich heritage beyond the land of its birth.
Choenzey is a 47-year-old monk living in a Tibetan refugee monastery in South India. His spiritual master, Khensur Rinpoche, a revered high lama, has been dead for four years. According to Tibetan belief, he will soon be reincarnated. It is Choenzey's responsibility, as his closest disciple, to find the reincarnation and to look after him. The film follows Choenzey's search and his eventual discovery of an impish but gentle 4-year-old boy who is recognized by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan State Oracle to be the reincarnation. Without sentimentality, the film captures the moving relationship that develops between the erstwhile disciple and his young master. (columbia.edu)
Documentary on the Great Stupa at Sanchi, built by the Emperor Ashoka, and adorned with some of the finest examples of Buddhist art in the world.
