The Buddha Comes to Sussex - BBC Documentary (English with Thai subtitles). A look at the foundation of the Thai Forest Tradition in England by Ajahn Chah in 1979
Luang Por Sumedho, 40+ years ago, was so (relatively) young, and his voice was so clear and strong, I almost didn't recognize him. Over the years, he has spoken many times about the challenges the monks faced in making the dilapidated buildings of Cittaviveka habitable, but here we see some of it. He wasn't exaggerating! These vintage documentaries that Buddhist Insights has been posting, have been a treasure. They offer a remarkable window into the shape of Western thought and culture in the 1960's and 70's, as it was suddenly (it seemed) confronted by other cultural, religious and philosophical ideas and traditions. I was a child of the 1950's who emerged into adulthood in the 1970's, so I remember those endless public discussions, in which alarm, rage and delight at the new ideas were expressed in turns by the "Establishment". This video is a good addition to the more academic "Long Search" episodes you posted last week. And I'm looking forward to the film about Venerable Buddhadassa and the 1962 Buddhism documentary, which I haven't seen yet. Thank you so much! Sadhu, sadhu, sadhu!
Wonderful to watch, thank you. But I couldn't help thinking that if only the filmmakers had given a little more time to Ajahn Chah! Luong Por Cha had an easy charisma and an authenticity that communicated through his natural presence. By all accounts, he was one of the great Lao-Thai Buddhist teachers of the last century and we're very lucky indeed to have hosted him and to continue to his students like Ajahn Sumedho in Sussex, (which is the county I grew up in.) Luckier than we most of us know, in fact!
