Related Guides
Films
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- Secrets of Shangri-la: Quest for Sacred Caves (dvd) Is there a real Shangri-La? This fascinating documentary brings viewers inside ancient caves containing manuscripts and paintings that have survived the degradations of time. This National Geographic program examines these mysterious Buddhist repositories for clues to the kind of mythical paradise depicted in James Hilton's renowned novel "Lost Horizon.
- Secret Heart of Asia: Buddha on the Silk Road (dvd) Xuan Zang, the famous 7th-century monk, scholar, diarist and poet traveled the Silk Road in search of the original scriptures of the Buddha Sutras - bringing the sacred teachings from India to China. This program follows his trail to Bodhgaya, where the Buddha achieved enlightenment. On the way, we hear the tales of Xuan Zang still told by the villagers, discover sacred art treasures rescued from the desert sands, explore the Caves of a Thousand Buddhas at Dunhuang, and visit the monastery where Xuan Zang's ashes are preserved and his memory commemorated in prayer and song.
- Sand Painting: Sacred Art of Tibet (streaming, Academic Video Online) The ancient art of Tibetan sand painting has been preserved in the monasteries of India and Tibet for some 2,500 years. Traditionally practiced in seclusion, this unique art form has only been practiced publicly in the last decades. In this beautifully photographed and fascinating documentary, Tibetan monks from the Dalai Lama's personal monastery, Namgyal, create the mandala of Kalachakra, the most sacred of all Buddhist sand paintings.
