Books and Movies Recently

So Yulia and I have been discussing the amazingly large number of spiritual book and movies that seem to be coming out recently. The Secret seems to be the big one along this line, but perhaps we didn’t notice them before. In any case, we certainly notice them now. I rather liked the secret, not necessarily because I agree with 100% of everything said in the book, but because I really like the message of positive thinking.

But for every one of the pretty good books out there, we have found more than a few real stinkers. I am trying to real Edward Tolle’s A New Earth, and it is really tough.  This guy is apparently a real popular writer of self-help and spiritual books, but I can’t imagine why. He just plain sucks. He starts off his book with these inane examples of the first flower to appear on Earth, using that as some symbolism for enlightened thought, but he does it in such a poorly thought out way that if you know anything about evolution and science, it is too grating to get his larger point. He keeps expressing how these flowers are springing whole from the ground as new flowers, until one is finally strong enough to survive, which of course makes no sense.

He then tries to tie all the world’s religions together as really meaning the same thing, and again writes it in such a ham-handed way that it distracts from his actual point. I’m not ready to give up yet, but it’s getting awfully tempting.

We did watch The Darjeeling Limited this evening, and that is a wonderful story along the same lines of enlightenment and discovery. It is another of a long lines of movies set in nndia that we have been renting recently. I am becoming addicted to Indian films and music, Mistress of Spices and Bride and Prejudice being two really good ones. But Darjeeling Limited is an American film set in India, but is great all the same. 

It is pretty simple for a story, funny, and just plain good. Three brothers travel across India to find their mother and grow closer together. Funny things and sad things happen. Lots of symbolism. Neat music.

You don’t always need complex images to make a simple point. Sometimes a couple of smiles will do. Some music from Joe Dassin doesn’t hurt either.