Vajra Sky Over Tibet

Filmed in Central Tibet, Vajra Sky is a cinematic pilgrimage offering a direct experience of some of the most revered temples, monasteries, and festivals still surviving.

John Bush. 2006. 89 min.
Digibeta

Part of the Journey into Buddhism Trilogy

"I wish this film every success."—The Dalai Lama

"Beautifully shot inside Tibet's most sacred sites ... the peaceful principles of the faith infuse every frame."—Variety

Vajra is the thunderbolt of awakening that cuts through delusion. It is the indestructible power of truth at the heart of Vajrayana Buddhism in Tibet. Filmed in Central Tibet, Vajra Sky is a cinematic pilgrimage offering a direct experience of some of the most revered temples, monasteries, and festivals still surviving. The vastness of snow mountains, rushing rivers, and turquoise lakes leads the journey westward to the holy sites of Shigatse and Gyantse. Returning to Lhasa, the luminous faces of pilgrims in front of the legendary Jokhang Temple glow in the flicker of butter lamp offerings. The empty windows and doors of the traditional homes of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, the Potala and Norbulinka, signal his painful absence. Yet the exuberant blossoms of the Summer Palace hold the promise of natural cycles of return. During the colorful Drepung Monastery festival, a giant scroll painting of the Buddha covers a mountain as spiritually famished Chinese join with the multitude of Tibetan pilgrims.

The film will be introduced by the director.

Presented in conjunction with the exhibition Pilgrimage and Buddhist Art