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Reviews
God Wears My Underwear (2005)
Fiction and the role of Tibet in 20th century mythology
As one of the last unexplored frontiers and home to a rich supernatural tradition, Tibet has inspired much in modern literature and the popular imagination. As a child of the mid 20th century, I was raised on the stories of Sax Rohmer (Fu Manchu), Talbot Mundy (Jim Grim), and the quasi-realistic T. Lobsang Rampa. Newer fiction by Katherine Kurtz and others keeps the escapist flames alive.
While looking for material to use in school reports in 1960, my mother and I chanced upon issues of National Geographic from the 1920's that gave reality to these works of imagination.
The Western world stamped "unknown" on the map of Tibet. To Heinrich Himmler, Tibet was seen as the possible birthplace of the Aryan race. The Chinese looked at Tibet as one of "their nations" and the Tibetans rightfully feared a Chinese invasion. The British were careful to isolate Tibet from the outside world as much as possible to force Tibet to function as a barrier between India and the other powers in Asia. The Tibetan government (in the person of the 13th Dalai Lama, sent emissaries to Russia in an attempt to secure other allies. The German Expedition of 1939 was welcomed in Lhasa as a political option.
The Tibetan Buddhist traditions mix much of the old magical native religion with Buddhism. Magic, transcendence and the supernatural are key elements. The tradition of transference of power by the use of recognized incarnations captivates the imagination (never mind that it insures that those behind the scenes stay in power - the murder of the 13th Dalai Lama was an attempt to resist change).
Though the 13th Dalai Lama did not actually send someone to Germany in the 1930's, he might have - had he not been poisoned. Many Germans were fascinated by Tibet and it was even rumored that a group of Tibetan Lamas were found in the Fuhrer-bunker after Hitler's suicide.
As Tibetans have moved out into the world, the 14th Dalai Lama tells us that the time for recognized incarnations is largely past. In terms of the somewhat confused Theosophical body of literature that would translate to this being a time of great change, as it most certainly is.
Reincarnation memories are treacherous at best. Is there a past reality that confirms my feelings of deja-vu while running through the Tiergarten in Berlin at 5am? Is it possible to really know any specific past life connection, or is it more like visualizing a highway filled with souls progressing towards some unknowable future? (The Alice Bailey perspective).
How then can we find a more fertile ground for the creation of modern myth? Not all myths turn out well - many are precautionary tales. Karmic laws don't always create happy endings.
Like the tale of Camelot, the story of Eo/Lavinia (as witnessed by Otto) is one of the old order giving way to the new. As we are still in the midst of creating this legend, it is as yet unknown who the eventual hero will be.
Noord-Korea: Een dag uit het leven (2004)
Just plain propaganda
This is a propaganda film, a medium that deserves contempt.
Though I may admire the cinematography and picture quality in "Triumph of the Will", the subject matter is so despicable that I must call it an awful film. This film is little better. It too is devoted to the cult of the Leader, and it too blames outside governments for its own faults.
Just because this film was made by a European film company does not qualify it as a "Gesamtkunstwerk". In no way does it transcend the political agenda of the North Korean government. Even as the NK Army sucks the blood from the people, they mouth endless platitudes for their Leader and blame all the starvation and misery on the capitalist Americans. Blah, Blah, Blah...