Filmography - Eastern Philosophies and Religions

This is a selective list of video holdings in the American University Library. Filmographies are created by doing multiple keyword searches in the catalog to capture as many titles on a topic as possible. 

For complete, up-to-date holdings please search the library catalog search box on the Media Services homepage. (http://www.american.edu/library/mediaservices/) Finding Aids on the same page includes other subject oriented content.

For more information take a look at the Streaming Video Guides and Browsing Collections.

American made. 2003. 1 videodisc (25 min.). A Sikh family on the way to the Grand Canyon is stranded in a remote area when their car breaks down. The father, clad in a traditional turban, tries to get the attention of passing motorists, but they speed by. His teenaged son thinks that no motorists will stop because they think his dad looks like a terrorist. Thus begins a conflict between assimilation and identity, faith and compromise, conformity versus prejudice. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4097

Earth. International cinema. 2003. 1 videodisc (101 min.). A romantic drama set in 1947 in Lahore before India and Pakistan became independent, where Hindu, Sikh, Parsee, and Muslim share a peaceful co-existence. Events are seen from the point of view of eight-year-old Lenny, a girl from an affluent Parsee family. Lenny's nanny, Shantya, is involved with the Muslim Masseur. When a train of Muslims arrives at the local depot and all the passengers are found murdered, the various sects turn against each other, and the city is soon aflame. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4675

Fornication: A Religious Perspective. 2003. 1 streaming video (37 min.). Whether viewed as a spiritual matter of immorality or a secular concern with maintaining family lineage, premarital and extramarital sex have caused consternation since ancient times. In this program, theologians Melissa Raphael and Gavin D'Costa, author Ruqaiyyah Waris Maqsood, and others explain what constitutes adultery and talk about how Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Sikhism regard women, virginity, chastity, promiscuity, prostitution, and polygamy. In addition, punishments that may await people in this life or hereafter who engage in fornication are described. Contains mature themes and explicit language and imagery. Streaming video

Homosexuality: A Religious Perspective. 2003. 1 streaming video (37 min.). Throughout history, homosexuality has been censured by some of the world's major religions-and often punished to the severest degree. This program studies the scriptures and doctrines of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam to understand why, and then contrasts their stances with those of Hinduism, Sikhism, and the Rome of Hadrian. A compassionate and compelling discussion of gay marriage and child adoption by gay couples involving the Reverend Richard Kirker, of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement; Rabbi Chaim Rapoport; and others is featured. Genetic predisposition toward homosexuality is considered, and homosexual acts in the animal world, as they relate to scripture, are addressed. Contains mature themes and explicit language and imagery. Streaming video

India. 2003. 1 streaming video (37 min.). This program captures the increasingly political nature of Hinduism and its volatile relationship with Islam-India's leading minority religion. It argues that this volatility results from their past history, when large parts of India were dominated by the Muslim rulers, the Mughals. Today, many Hindus demand greater recognition of Hinduism in governmental affairs and oppose what they feel is the favoring of Muslims and other minorities. In other words, Hindus call for a tougher form of Hinduism. But there are many religious beliefs in India: Sikh and Buddhist, Christian, and even atheist. Does this mean there is a contradiction between Hinduism as politics and Hinduism as faith? Streaming video

India: love and devotion. World Explorer. 2000. 1 videodisc (54 min.). "Looks at the six main religions in India -- Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Jainism, Sikhism, and Christianity -- while exploring the breathtaking architecture and landscape of India's holy sites."-- container. DVD 1521

India: The River of Life. 1998. 1 streaming video (50 min.). Containing nearly a sixth of the world's population, India is home to almost a billion people, more than half of whom live in rural villages. This program provides an overview of topics such as the caste system as it exists in the holy Hindu town of Varanasi and the massive pilgrimages to Allahabad, where millions of Hindus come to ritually bathe at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna Rivers. Also discussed are arranged marriages; local trades in Agra, site of the matchless Taj Mahal; Sikhism in the city of Amritsar; the Indian/Pakistani tug-of-war for Kashmir; and the plight of small farmers, driven from their holdings by powerful landowners. Streaming video

Khamosh pani = Silent waters. 2004. 1 videodisc (95 min.). It is 1979 and Pakistan is embracing nationalism through its Islamic identity. Widowed Ayesha lives in Charkhi, Punjab with her son Saleem, who joins a group of fundamentalists. When a group of Sikh pilgrims come to town, the family's faith comes into question. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3239

Marital Sex: A Religious Perspective. 2003. 1 streaming video (38 min.). This program examines religious guidelines designed to regulate and add meaning to the sex lives of married couples of the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Sikh faiths. Topics include when intercourse is permissible and when it should be avoided, whether it is sinful for men and women to use contraception, what type of genital contact is allowable, whether marital sex for non-procreative pleasure is morally acceptable, and possible penalties for marital sex that is deemed sinful. Special attention is given to ways in which these religions are changing, or not changing, with the times. Contains mature themes and explicit language and imagery. Streaming video

Milind Soman made me gay. 2007. 1 videodisc (27 min.). A film that explores the memory-scape of four South Asian gay men living in Washington DC; one Hindu, one Muslim, one Christian and one Sikh to reveal how each negotiates his sexual desire with his cultural and religious background. Underneath the nostalgic explorations of life back home lie harsh realities of homophobia and racism in America, and an on-going struggle to find a place of belonging. DVD 3167

Roots of love. 2007. 1 videodisc (26 min.). Told through the stories of six different men ranging in age from fourteen to eighty-six, Roots of Love documents the changing significance of hair and the turban among Sikhs in India. We see younger Sikh men abandoning their hair and turban to follow the current fashion trends, while the older generation struggles to retain the visible symbols of their religious identity. The film is a timely and relevant exploration of the inherent conflict between tradition and modernity, between pragmatism and faith. The choice of cutting ones hair is one that not only concerns the individual and his family, but an entire community. DVD 8094

SikhNet Youth Online Film Festival 2006. 2007. 1 videodiscs (81 min.). The young filmmaker's competition for Sikh Youth is designed to encourage and inspire our youth to get involved in media and film and use their creativity to produce interesting and educational pieces designed to spread the spirit of Sikhi. DVD 4068

Two homes one heart: Sacramento Sikh women and their songs & dances. 1992. Streaming video (26 min). Sikh women who have emigrated to Sacramento, Calif. from India perform several traditional dances and songs and discuss their lives in their new country. Young Sikhs also perform dances, some of which blend traditional and Western styles and music. Streaming video

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