Jeri Jacquin
Coming to theatres in time for the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday from directors Barbara Miller, Philip Delaquis, Theorem Media and Abramorama is the wonderful words about THE WISDOM OF HAPPINESS.
Tenzin Gyatso is known all over the world today as the 14th Dalai Lama and he comes to the screen to offer what he believes is happiness. He begins immediately with “we are all the same human being” and it sets the tone for everything one hears for the following one hour and thirty minutes. He speaks on fear, anger and hatred that are so prevalent in the world today. He wants to share about a peaceful life – now. It begins with the easiest thing we do, and that is breathing.
At 16, the Dalai Lama dealt with the military occupation by China in Tibet. By the time he turned 24, things were becoming more intense and he escaped to India. Thousands of Tibetans followed him as the people in his country continued to suffer. The world embraced him immediately.
He saw compassion in his mother who was a farmer. He started learning at a very early age and through it all was his mother’s compassion. Using nature as an example, the Dalai Lama spoke of how animals work together and live simple which brings them happiness. The same with children in that they don’t care about differences but as they grow the differences are learned. He admits that some of his father’s traits came about but he worked on himself to keep it out of his life.
Describing human beings as social animals, he explains that the negative feelings cause our inner emotional doors to close. Intelligence is a source of inner peace says the Dalai Lama. Loving science, he looks to investigate everything and ask questions such as “what is mind?” To change the mind of destructive emotions, he says we must have willpower. He is very clear in saying happiness is within ourselves but we get blocked by such things as money, desire and wanting more. Unhappiness is division and that brings war which has no victors.
Speaking of his own country, there have been over one million Tibetans have been killed since 1959. He speaks of male dominance being the most destructive thing of all. The Dalai Lama believes the women can make the world safer. He points out that important leaders are women and it is women who re-create the Lama with hopes of someday there might be a woman Dalai Lama.
He also speaks of the earth and how it is feeling what humanity has done as well and saying the world is so busy fighting itself, it doesn’t see that time to be in our world is sliding away fast. All of these things are based on emotion believing discourse is where all of this flows from and emphasizing that breathing can reconnect with inner peace. Meditation can bring compassion and by thinking of others your mind opens. He also smiles mentioning that it doesn’t matter how long it takes, just continue!
What does he want for his own country? That the Chinese government to allow Tibetans to keep their own culture without fear of hate or violence but with compassion. To do that, there needs to be calm dialogue, peaceful dialogue. The Dalai Lama believes every community should be based on compassion. In that is education; sing the brain to be constructive in the world. It begins with ourselves and then outward to others through positive emotions.
Abramorama is the preeminent global theatrical distributions and rights partner for many documentary and music films and is recognized for the consistent high quality of its work on award winning features. Over the course of 20 years, Abramorama has successfully distributed and marketed hundreds of films including Ron Howard’s Grammy Award Winning THE BEATLES: EIGHT DAYS A WEEK, Stanley Nelson’s MILES DAVIS: BIRTH OF THE COOL, as well as Academy Award Nominee and IDA Best Documentary Winner THE LOOK OF SILENCE. For more of what they have to offer please visit www.abramorama.com.
THE WISDOM OF HAPPINESS Film Festival Selections include Best Film at the 2025 Croatian International Film Festival, Official Selection at the 2024 Zurich Film Festival, Official Selection at the 2024 DOK.fest Munich, Official Selection at the 2024 Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, Official Selection at the 2024 Millennium Docs Against Gravity (Poland), and Official Selection at the 2024 Biografilm Festival (Italy).
Executive Producers include actor Richard Gere, Oren Moverman, Walo Kamm, Tashi Albertini-Kaiser, Monlam Maurer-Adotsang, Tobias Asch, Annette Werenfels and Ann-Marie Le Flanchec. Gere says of the film, “Watching how the Dalai Lama embodies love, generosity, and kindness allows viewers to pause, reflect, and reconnect with themselves in a way that feels real and achievable”.
I first learned of the Dalai Lama when I was 15 and was fascinated by his life. I read everything I could throughout the years about him, his life and how he saw the world. What I cam to feel was the calmness that he always seems to express, the way he walked among people from all walks of life, his ability to laugh with people oh goodness, a smile that just draws one in. Even before reviewing the film, I have listened to him speak about each of our parts in the world. What directors Miller and Delaquis have done is allow the Dalai Lama to bring the word of happiness again to people from all over the world.
Sharing his early life, how his family made an impression on him, the sadness of having to leave his beloved Tibet, his daily life now in India and his continual journey to spread the word on finding happiness. What is the most amazing thing about the Dalai Lama is his ability to speak with such eloquence, humor and – yes, compassion, that it is impossible not to take in every word. Perhaps he knocks gently on that door he knows many of us have closed, gives us a smile and invites us to remember all the things about life we may have forgotten.
He is quite aware that the world is a harsh place sometimes, he knows from experience that it would be easy to point fingers, scream and holler. Instead, he asks us to remain calm, find peace and then approach is all in such a way that we do good and not be part of the problem. The timing of the film coming to theatres is so important, especially right now since so many are suffering from TPF (Twisted Political Fatigue I’ve coined it). Listening to the Dalai Lama speak on what is possible is so uplifting and feels like a snap back into what is possible for a life that not only brings us joy but spreading it to others through the one word he repeats over and over – compassion.
In the end – life is compassion!
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