The Awakening Fire: A Buddhist's Prayer

HD Premiere, NYC Premiere

Director Statement

This was our 2nd project about Shinnyo-en Buddhism. The first project completed in June 2006 was a mixed media project celebrating the centennial birthday of the founder of Shinnyo-en. Symbolic imagery shot on 35mm film was projected on a 40’ screen as a troop of professional dancers acted out a buddhist’s path to Nirvana. Titled Festival of Joy, the combination of projected imagery, live dance and original music all moving simultaneously on an arc from chaos to clarity/enlightenment was an extremely powerful presentation.

Getting to know the Shinnyo-en people - their beliefs and their way of life - was the inspiration to learn more about the history and growth of this form of Buddhism. Philanthropic in nature, with the unselfish lifestyles shed of excess, these people get to the core of the human existence. In this 2nd project we wanted to delve into the roots of Shinnyo-en. Using the “Saito Homa” ceremony for peace as a backdrop, we discovered this relatively new form of Budhhism has touched a major chord of interest with the general public. The theme of World Peace was an appropriate subject matter with the unsettled state of our world today. Shinnyo-en’s open invitation to the ceremony and the huge response it generated reveals the general public’s interest for a more peaceful world.

An optimistic conclusion asks the viewer a provocative question of what path they will take in their role for a more peaceful world.