Discovering World Religions at 24 Frames Per Second Goes Beyond the Written Page, Offering an Exploration of the Same Religious Traditions Through Feature ﬁ Lm

RELIGION • EDUCATION ATLA PUBLICATIONS SERIES, NO. 4 Traditionally, university students study world religions by reading primary texts. Fielding Discovering World Religions at 24 Frames per Second goes beyond the written page, offering an exploration of the same religious traditions through feature fi lm. DISCOVERING The many defi nitions of religion are examined, along with its various components, including doctrine, myth, ethics, ritual, and symbol. Specifi c religious traditions, including Hinduism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, and Shinto are examined. Biographical sketches of directors whose fi lms tend to WORLD RELIGIONS focus on a particular religious tradition are also included, such as Zhang Yimou, Hayao Miyazaki, Deepa Mehta, and Akira Kurosawa. AT 24 FRAMES PER SECOND AT DISCOVERING WORLD RELIGIONS AT 24 FRAMES Discovering World Religions at 24 Frames per Second is unique in the area of religion and fi lm studies because it isn’t just a collection of essays—instead, it acts as a primer, providing the introductory student with the necessary background information on the various religions before looking at concepts, not through texts PER SECOND but through the cinematic medium. To keep the conversation fresh, most of the fi lms used in the book were made within the last decade; several, most notably The Brave One, The Lookout, and Water, were made within the last few years. Further- more, examples range from popular, mainstream fare, such as Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, to lesser-known foreign fi lms, such as The Wooden Man’s Bride and The Great Yokai War. Several fi lms with a “cult-like” following are also discussed, such as Fight Club, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, and Jacob’s Ladder. This book is unique in that instead of drawing upon the Judeo-Christian tradition, it draws from Eastern traditions. Julien R. Fielding is a part-time lecturer at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, where she teaches Introduction to World Religions in the Department of Philosophy and Religions. She has a bachelor’s degree in art history from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a master’s degree in religious studies from the University of Kansas at Lawrence. For orders and information please contact the publisher Scarecrow Press, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefi eld Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200 Lanham, Maryland 20706 1-800-462-6420 • fax 717-794-3803 www.scarecrowpress.com ISBN-13: 978-0-8108-5996-8 Cover image: Ian McKellan as “Gandalf” in ISBN-10: 0-8108-5996-3 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 2003. 90000 Julien R. Fielding © Pictorial Press/Alamy images 9 780810 859968 Cover design by Neil D. Cotterill DiscoveringWorldPODLITH.indd 1 8/22/08 10:04:09 AM ATLA PUBLICATIONS SERIES Edited by Justin Harkins 1. The Literature of Islam: A Guide to Primary Sources in English Translation, by Paula Youngman Skreslet and Rebecca Skreslet, 2006. 2. A Broadening Conversation: Classic Readings in Theological Librarianship, edited by Melody Layton McMahon and David R. Stewart, 2006. 3. Donald G. Bloesch: A Research Bibliography, by Paul E. Maher, 2008. 4. Discovering World Religions at 24 Frames Per Second, by Julien R. Fielding, 2009. Discovering World Religions at 24 Frames Per Second JULIEN R. FIELDING ATLA Publications Series, No. 4 THE SCARECROW PRESS, INC. Lanham, Maryland • Toronto • Plymouth, UK 2008 SCARECROW PRESS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Scarecrow Press, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.scarecrowpress.com Estover Road Plymouth PL6 7PY United Kingdom Copyright © 2008 by Julien R. Fielding All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Fielding, Julien R., 1969- Discovering world religions at 24 frames per second / Julien R. Fielding. p. cm. — (Atla publications series ; no. 4) ISBN-13: 978-0-8108-5996-8 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8108-5996-3 (hardcover : alk. paper) eISBN-13: 978-0-8108-6266-1 eISBN-10: 0-8108-6266-2 1. Religion in motion pictures. 2. Asia—In motion pictures. I. Title. II. Title: Discovering world religions at twenty-four frames per second. PN1995.9.R4F54 2008 791.43'682—dc22 2008018837 ϱ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Contents List of Films vii Preface xi Acknowledgments xv 1 What Is Religion? 1 2 Religions in India 43 3 Buddhism 107 4 Religions of China 207 5 Religions of Japan 303 6 Multiple Interpretations 385 7 Hybrid Films 427 Bibliography 509 Index 533 About the Author 543 v List of Films A Little Princess 78 ABCD 71 American Desi 57 Being Cyrus 86 Bend It Like Beckham 87 Bollywood/Hollywood 88 Brave One, The 160 Bride and Prejudice 88 Cave of the Yellow Dog 189 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 262 Cup, The 185 Curse of the Golden Flower 237 Daredevil 33 Dreaming Lhasa 142 Dreams 349 Earth 94 Enlightenment Guaranteed 145 Eye, The 274 Fall, The 90 Fearless 267 Fight Club 473 vii viii LIST OF FILMS Fire 93 Forbidden Kingdom, The 271 Great Yokai War, The 356 Groundhog Day 180 Guru, The 75 Happy Times 260 Heirloom, The 277 House of Flying Daggers 266 Jacob’s Ladder 171 Ju Dou 231 Kamichu! 321 Khadak 192 King of Masks, The 249 Kundun 33 Kung Fu Panda 487 Legend of Bagger Vance, The 70 Little Buddha 129 Locker 369 Lookout, The 156 Lord of the Rings, The 388 Love Guru, The 76 Maid, The 282 Mongolian Ping Pong 191 Mountain Patrol: Kekexili 141–142 Mr. and Mrs. Iyer 73 My Neighbor Totoro 315 Mystic Masseur, The 77 Outsourced 83 Pom Poko 361 Princess Mononoke 328 Raise the Red Lantern 232 Red Sorghum 231 Rinne 175 Road Home, The 259 Seven Years in Tibet 141 Shadow Kill 80 LIST OF FILMS ix Shower 260 Silent Waters 88 Spirited Away 339 Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter . and Spring 147 Star Wars 428 Stay 165 Story of the Weeping Camel 188 Such a Long Journey 84 Temptation of a Monk 147 Travelers and Magicians 186 Water 62 What Dreams May Come 457 White Rainbow 69 Why Has Bodhi Dharma Left for the East? 146 Wooden Man’s Bride, The 234 Zen Noir 146 Preface Traditionally, university students have sat in a classroom, listened to a lecture, and read an accompanying textbook. Because of technology, times are chang- ing. The average student checks and sends text messages through his phone, conducts research by using the Internet, watches movies on his iPod or on YouTube, and writes a blog—often all during the same sitting. This interactive environment has produced students who crave more stimulation; they want more than a dry regurgitation of facts. Because of this, educators need to make some changes to the classroom. And by that, I mean making learning more entertaining and interactive. For my Introduction to World Religions class, I have always assigned a textbook. Not only is it portable but it also gives students something to read, high- light, and reread. They can use its dictionary, review its vocabulary lists, and answer provided questions. This said, a large number of students admit to hav- ing never read their texts. Their excuse is that they don’t have either the time or the interest. Because of this, they rely on the educator for their information, and yet they complain that they have to endure another “boring old lecture.” After one semester into teaching, I decided that I needed to enliven the learning environment. It was then that I hit upon the notion of screening, in class, a few feature films that contained obvious, and sometimes not so obvious, religious ideas. To see if this would be an effective tool for learning, I asked for feedback. About 98% of the students were enthusiastic. One student explained that “the xi xii PREFACE study of religion can be very difficult, and I think that films can tell stories that scripture and scholarly texts cannot.”Another said, “I can read for days about [religion], and I will retain only about half of the information. Films help to paint a bigger picture.” Finally, another student explained that seeing “the religion come alive on the screen helps me to remember the information better.” A significant number of students admitted to being visual learners and that watching a film gave them a greater opportunity to succeed. Before screening a film, I always give an overview of the material so that they aren’t watching the film “cold.”To make them active learners, I give them a list of questions to ponder while they watch the film. When we’re done watching the film, we discuss every aspect, from story and characters to sym- bols. This gives them a chance to ask questions. Hook them with interesting characters and a good storyline, and they are sure to learn something—even if it’s accidental. This text was born from my in-class experiments, and it can be used in a variety of ways. Religious studies instructors can supplement traditional teaching techniques by screening a few films throughout the semester. I’ve found that this is the best way to see if students can take the ideas “off the page” and apply them.

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