Skip to content

Dharma Documentaries

Dharma. Culture. Ecology.

Menu
  • Dharma
  • Culture
  • Ecology
  • Archives
  • About
Menu

Our Life is like our Breath

Posted on February 10, 2017April 9, 2022 by Dharma Documentaries
A film following a western monk and his lifestyle in the Thai forest monastery, Wat Pa Nanachat, in the 1990s.

Our Life is like our Breath

This is a very fine film by Hartwig Rohrmann from 1996 tracing the life of a western monk in Wat Pa Nanachat, the monastery Ajahn Chah founded for his western disciples; at that time Ajahn Pasanno was the Abbot, so it is before his founding of Abhayagiri in California, and it is not long after the passing of Ajahn Chah.

The film revolves around a fictitious monk from Europe, Phra Nyanadharo (who seems to be played by Phra Kemaradho), and his life in the monastery, and also on location at Dtao Dum near the River Kwai, where Ajahn Pasanno had been invited to set up a new monastery.

The film is interspersed with Nyanadharo’s own thoughts on the Buddhist teaching, and also includes extensive quotations form Ajahn Chah’s teachings, and reflections on the interplay between monks and lay people who support them.

Although the character of Phra Nyanadharo is made up, he nevertheless does seem to truly reflect many of the western monks in that tradition, and the film is a very good mix of personal reflection and teaching about Buddhist ideas and practices.

 

if this video is no longer available please leave a comment so I can update the page
(the comment is not published)

 

to see an album of stills click here

 

TAGS:
Dharma, Ajahn Chah, Monasteries, Monastics, Thailand, Theravada

2 thoughts on “Our Life is like our Breath”

  1. Bill Walton says:
    August 30, 2017 at 4:59 am

    …….a wonderful look into the world of the forest monk……

    Reply
  2. Irene Wong says:
    February 3, 2019 at 2:42 pm

    Very inspiring movie to show the living Sangha. Thank you.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please Note: Comments are Moderated before Publication

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search

Subscriptions

Follow our Facebook Page Follow our Tweets Subscribe to our Feed

Subscribe by Email

Email


Shortlink and QR

https://dharma-documentaries.net/b/3Zs

Donations

This site has taken more than a dozen years and 1000s of hours to build, and has 800+ documentaries on it. If you would like to help, you can do so here. Even small amounts make a difference.

or Bank Transfer to:
Mr. Ng Choon Aun, Public Bank Berhad (Malaysia), Acc. No. 6352323912, Swift: PBBEMYKL

Copyright

If anyone has any copyright claims please contact me at dharmadocus@gmail.com and the posts and films will be immediately removed.

Top Ten Tags

Theravada
Mahayana
Vajrayana

India
Silk Road
China
Tibet

Arts
Lectures
Rights

Popular Posts

  • The Freedom of being a Buddhist Nun
  • Bright and Shining Mind in a Disabled Body
  • The Leshan Giant Buddha Statue
  • The Silk Road Series 7/16: Khotan-Oasis of Silk and Jade
  • David Eckel: Buddhism 3-4 of 24
  • The Tibetan Oracles
  • The Mountain Yogi, Lama Govinda
  • Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar: The Untold Truth
  • Indian Roots of Tibetan Buddhism
  • Avalokiteshvara (Chinese Movie)

Recent Posts

  • Zen Buddhism – In Search of Self
  • Why Has Bodhidharma Left for the East?
  • Bright and Shining Mind in a Disabled Body
  • From Myanmar to the World 2, Caves to Pagodas
  • From Myanmar to the World 1, Overland to India
  • The Rise of Dhamma
  • Lempad of Bali
  • Bagan, City of Temples (Fall of Civilizations)
  • Escape from Tibet
  • Escape from Tibet 2 (The Dalai Lama)

Random Posts

  • Beyond the Himalayas 1, Other Side Of The Mountain
  • The Sacred Journey
  • Lost Treasures of Afghanistan
  • Escape from Tibet 2 (The Dalai Lama)
  • Ladakh, Capitalism reaches the Top of the World
  • The Secrets of the Mongolian Steppe
  • Tathagata Buddha
  • Kashi Vishwanath Gange by Krishna Das
  • India’ and Indonesia’s Shared Ancient and Modern Cultural Heritage
  • Women Who Make America 1: Awakening

Related Posts

  • Alms Bowls to Newcastle
  • The Monks In The Forest
  • A Simple Life (Thai Monasticism)
  • A Monk’s Life (Thailand)
  • The Path of Ordination
  • The Making of a Novice Monk (Wat Ban Khun)
  • The Sacred Journey
  • Khru Ba Sriwichai, the Thai Engineer Monk
  • Footprint of the Buddha
  • The Buddha comes to Sussex
© 2023 Dharma Documentaries | Powered by Minimalist Blog WordPress Theme