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This half-hour video was filmed in Thailand, and thus focuses primarily on Thai Buddhism. That does not mean, however, that it pushes one flavor of the great religion over another; it rather uses Thai monks and their daily lives as a means of addressing facets of Buddhism that tend to be important in a general sense. And there is a brief introduction to all the major schools of Buddhism. The video is quick to say that what is most important is "they way people live the religion." The early segment is with some monks in Bangkok: receiving offerings from their neighbors out in the street, giving reading lessons to children in a school, giving counsel and guidance to lay people who have come to seek it. There is also a segment on an initiation ceremony, as young monks begin their lives in the monastery. A second segment introduces legends of the Siddhartha’s life. The narration is done by Maryknoll missionary program host Walter Grimm, who tells of the Buddha’s encounters with old age, illness, and death, and his discovery of the middle path and ultimate enlightenment. Walking With Buddha makes a distinction between formal religion and "popular religiosity," which it describes as teachings and legends that make Buddha more "user friendly." Narrator Grimm is pleasant to listen to; I found his counterpart, Helen Jandamit of the World Fellowship of Buddhists, less so, in her short segment about Buddhism’s integration into aspects of daily life. The information is fine, it’s just that her presence on the film adds little to it. On the whole, this video is a visually pleasing introduction in both its views of Buddhist life in Thailand and its information about Buddhism in general; it works quite well for a high school class studying the religion. review © 2002 by David Streight and RSiSS |
