Last Saturday I went to see an evening screening of A Dog’s Journey. The cinematic sequel to A Dog’s Purpose, the film is unapologetically sappy and supernatural, with—to irreligious minds—an implausible premise of a dog returning in multiple canine bodies to try and find the same family. Having made a promise to its owner, Ethan, […]
media
Confessional Artists: The Spiritual Vocation of Creative Professionals
Bodhi Obfuscatus (Space Baby). By Michael Joo. From davidsenouf.com Since my schooldays I’ve been interested in exploring the discourse around “confessional” professions. In popular culture, it’s still assumed that one can trace a straight line from a business degree to a job in a bank, or from a law degree to a practicing barrister’s office. […]
Buddhist Media: Sketching the History of a Vibrant Discipline
Yang Renshan and one of his sons. From Weibo Here’s a bit of a Zen koan: how do you keep still in the Colorado rapids? How do you maintain that mental gap in between events – the gap that allows you to respond to those events in a considered way, with compassion and insight, rather […]
The Noble Reporter: Lessons about Right Speech and Media from “Roman Holiday”
Roman Holiday is one of my favourite movies, not only because it’s a moving comedic romance (one of the few romantic comedies I enjoy) but because it touches upon a timeless issue in journalism: what stories are worth reporting? It gets more complex than simply bad or boring stories versus good and entertaining ones. It’s […]
No Easy Answers: Bangladesh’s Buddhists and Rohingya Refugees
The tragedy of Myanmar’s displacement of Rohingya Muslims, aside from its complex ethnic, historical, and religious backdrop, is exacerbated by two essential political realities. The first is that Western media and governments erroneously saw what it wished to see in Aung San Suu Kyi throughout her difficult struggle against the Burmese junta. When she decided […]
Pop Culture: The Case for A Greater Buddhist Presence
I never bought the argument that sacred stories, figures, and themes should not be brought to pop culture media like films or novels. Some of our more powerful and compelling pieces of modern fiction (and indeed, fiction from any era) was informed by not just the author’s spiritual identity or values, but by their intentional […]