Ku Shen Chai, an artist in his early 30s, still lives with his mother, but he is suddenly shaken by the arrival of Yang Hui-ching, a mysterious princess on the run. Yang brings Ku into her circle of protectors, including a nameless monk whose spiritual guidance transforms him into a valiant fighter.
Two middle aged German brothers - one New Age and recently divorced, the other uptight and sceptical - travel to a Zen monastery in Japan in search of enlightenment, or perhaps just in search of themselves.
In the early 1200s, Dogen brought Chinese Zen philosophy to Japan, and established the Japanese Zen school of Buddhism. He taught that a person was capable of realizing Buddhahood within himself, by way of Zazen. Zazen is extended hours of sitting and meditating to achieve a state of “Mu” (nothingness, or empty existence).
After a big fight, a couple wakes up with an unbelievable problem: he can't speak and she can't hear anything. Doctors and exams are useless. A female Zen Master and a very special plant come to their aid.
Two monks on a mission choose very different paths
About three monks in a remote monastery; an aging master, a small orphan and a young man who left his city life to seek Enlightenment.
The entangled relations between the son of a seductive tea-ceremony teacher and the women in his father's life.
Based on the novel by Kawabata Yasunari.
A film about modern Japanese architecture, its roots in the Japanese tradition and its impact on the Nordic building-tradition. Winding its way through visions of the future, traditions, nature, concrete, gardens and high-tech, KOCHUU tells us how contemporary Japanese architects strive to unite the ways of modern man with the old philosophies in astounding constructions. Interviews with, and works by, Japanese architects Tadad Ando, Kisho Kurokawa, Toyo Ito and Kazuo Shinohara and Scandinavian architects Sverre Fehn, Kristian Gullichsen and Juhani Pallasmaa.
Hidden in the wooded mountains on the west coast of Japan lies the small Zen monastery Antaiji. A young woman sets off to immerse herself through autumn, winter and spring in the adventures of monastic life. The young woman is Sabine Timoteo from Switzerland. The abbot of the monastery is Muho Noelke, born in Berlin. An interplay between the philosophy of the Japanese Zen master Kodo Sawaki and the surprises brought forth by everyday life.
An immigrant in Istanbul, the Russian filmmaker finds himself caught between a rock and a hard place: on the one hand, his legal status becomes uncertain amid the turbulence of Turkish presidential elections, on the other hand, the crackdown on dissent in Russia makes his return impossible. In these circumstances he turns to the legacy of Moscow conceptualism, an art movement, which existed under the radar of Soviet authorities, to make a film that would convey his sentiment yet pass through the needle’s eye of censorship.
A Zen priest in San Francisco and cookbook author use Zen Buddhism and cooking to relate to everyday life.
Frank, an introspective astrophysics major, visits a remote lab to work with his mentor; doctor Roberts. After his arrival, he finds that Helen; a young woman seemingly from another world, a metaphysical realm, has been taken in by the doctor. The unexplainable phenomena that follow force Frank and doctor Roberts to look at life from a different angle.
Alan Watts talks about our perception of the world, and how we derive metaphysics from it. Watts recorded this video in 1971 as a pilot for a public television series in the United States.
Rock n' Roll Cops Lite is the PG version of the Scott Shaw Zen Film, The Rock n' Rock Cops. Gone is the nudity that some people may find offensive, remaining is all of the action and the adventure.
Evoking a cinema verite feel not found in most sports documentaries, Fast Break examines the 1977 Portland Trailblazers basketball team in a surprisingly personal and compelling fashion. Inter-cutting excerpts from the 1977 playoff / championship season, the film steps outside of the basketball court, and into the everyday lives of the Trailblazers, as well as their coach Jack Ramsey. Whether it’s biking the Oregon coast with star center Bill Walton, hosting a kids basketball camp with Dave Twardzik, or joking with Maurice Lucas at the pool – Fast Break lets the players speak for themselves: about basketball, life and playing in Portland. Fast Break, a film documentary about Bill Walton and the Portland Trail Blazers winning the 1976-77 NBA title and the aftermath of their accomplishment, is the greatest movie I have ever seen on the subject of professional team sports, basketball as a metaphor for life, and the perfect practice of Zen Buddhism in American society.
2012 documentary on John Cage celebrating his 100th birthday in the form of a re-edit of partially unused film material shot for the film 'Time is Music’ in 1987. Includes interviews and recordings of performances with the influential zen composer.
Thich Nhat Hanh, monk, zen teacher, writer and peace activist, born in Vietnam in 1926, was the organiser of a non-violent resistance movement after the outbreak of the Vietnam War. We follow Thich Nhat Hanh around the time of Memorial Day of 9/11 in Washington D.C., where he teaches Members of Congress the concepts of ‘Mindful Living’. He tries to convey his message of peace straight to the centre of world power. Thousands of people participate each year in the meditation retreats led by Thich Nhat Hanh. In his monastic community Plum Village in the south of France, his home base, he brings groups of Palestinians and Israelis together. Horrible experiences are exchanged and discussed for the first time, in the hope that people may come to recognize each other’s suffering.
A documentary exploring the rigorous training and meditation practices found at the Shōgen-ji, a Zen Buddhist monastery of the Rinzai school in Shimizu-ku, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.
Weaving together original film and photographic archives, A CLOUD NEVER DIES tells the story of a humble young Vietnamese monk and poet whose wisdom and compassion were forged in the suffering of war. In the face of violence, fear, and discrimination, Thích Nhất Hạnh’s courageous path of engaged action reveals how insight, community, and a deep aspiration to serve the world can offer hope, peace, and a way forward for millions.
Through poetic cinematography and stories of teachers sharing their wisdom with children from a range of backgrounds, the film showcases the benefits of mindfulness as a way out of violence and suffering, and as an attainable solution for younger generations.