Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

A discussion on all aspects of Theravāda Buddhism
User avatar
Nibbida
Posts: 466
Joined: Sat May 02, 2009 3:44 am

Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Nibbida »

An interesting looking documentary:
Robert T. Edison was born and raised in Nottingham, England. When he was fourteen years old he began to practice Buddhism. At eighteen he became a monk and went to Thailand where, for a decade, he spent his time in monasteries. He became the first Buddhist monk in Iceland when he moved there in 1994 and founded a Buddhist sect. Five years later Robert decided to “disrobe” and get married. After sixteen years of celibacy Robert had to deal with being “normal” – getting employment, paying his bills and dealing with the needs of his partner. After four years in “the real world” Robert travelled back to Thailand to become a monk again. Act Normal was filmed from 1994 to 2006 and is a unique exploration of one man’s twelve-year search for some kind of love.
Trailers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQDsM_tO ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkDBFJEU ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Efr4HM6d ... re=related


Has anyone seen it?

[EDIT: Link to illegal download removed - Retro.]
User avatar
Jason
Posts: 595
Joined: Sun Jan 04, 2009 1:09 am
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Jason »

Nibbida wrote:An interesting looking documentary:
Robert T. Edison was born and raised in Nottingham, England. When he was fourteen years old he began to practice Buddhism. At eighteen he became a monk and went to Thailand where, for a decade, he spent his time in monasteries. He became the first Buddhist monk in Iceland when he moved there in 1994 and founded a Buddhist sect. Five years later Robert decided to “disrobe” and get married. After sixteen years of celibacy Robert had to deal with being “normal” – getting employment, paying his bills and dealing with the needs of his partner. After four years in “the real world” Robert travelled back to Thailand to become a monk again. Act Normal was filmed from 1994 to 2006 and is a unique exploration of one man’s twelve-year search for some kind of love.
Trailers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQDsM_tO ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkDBFJEU ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Efr4HM6d ... re=related


Has anyone seen it?
Yes. A friend of mine from Wat Buddhanusorn let me borrow it a few years back.

The film itself was begun when a monk (our very own Dhammanando) travelled from Thailand to Iceland, and was asked by the Buddhist community there to establish a temple. This particular individual had the distinction of being the only Buddhist monk to live and work in Iceland, and as such, caught the attention of director Olaf de Fleur and producer Ragnar Santos. The film was made over a ten year period, and it documents his journey through life—a journey that's at times humorous and lighthearted, and at others lonely and painful. I highly recommend it.
Last edited by retrofuturist on Tue Jan 25, 2011 11:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Quoted link to illegal download removed
"Sabbe dhamma nalam abhinivesaya" (AN 7.58).

leaves in the hand (Buddhist-related blog)
leaves in the forest (non-Buddhist related blog)
User avatar
andre9999
Posts: 465
Joined: Sat Oct 23, 2010 3:04 pm
Location: Milwaukee, WI, US
Contact:

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by andre9999 »

Of all the ways to encode a video, they make it a Flash file. That's highly incompatible with my Apple fanboyism.
User avatar
DNS
Site Admin
Posts: 17192
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 4:15 am
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, Estados Unidos de América
Contact:

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by DNS »

Yes, that is 'our' very own Bhante Dhammanando. That reminds me, I needed to update the 'Act Normal' Dhamma Wiki page from "is a regular participant" to "was a regular participant at Dhamma Wheel."

http://www.dhammawiki.com/index.php?title=Act_Normal" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

His bio:

http://www.dhammawiki.com/index.php?tit ... %2C_Bhante" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
User avatar
Alexei
Posts: 144
Joined: Sat Dec 19, 2009 1:51 pm
Location: Moscow, Russia

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Alexei »

Nibbida wrote:Has anyone seen it?
Yes, the film made a quite melancholic impression on me.

It may be interesting for those planning to ordain.
Strive
Posts: 50
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:12 am

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Strive »

Thanks for the video, I liked the film except for the naked sharks.
:anjali:
"Faith is here a man's best treasure;
Dhamma practised well brings happiness;
Truth is really the sweetest of tastes;
One living by wisdom they say lives best."--Bhikkhu Bodhi's Samyutta Nikaya, Sagathavagga verse 853
Euclid
Posts: 200
Joined: Wed Oct 21, 2009 2:33 am
Location: Wellington, New Zealand

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Euclid »

Wow, that's about Ven. Dhammanando? Small world!
User avatar
DNS
Site Admin
Posts: 17192
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 4:15 am
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, Estados Unidos de América
Contact:

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by DNS »

Strive wrote:I liked the film except for the naked sharks.
I wasn't aware sharks wore clothes. :tongue:

I assume 'sharks' has another meaning?

It was kind of sad when the marriage did not work out, but it was all for the gain of the Sangha, when he returned to being a bhikkhu.
User avatar
Modus.Ponens
Posts: 3853
Joined: Sat Jan 03, 2009 2:38 am
Location: Gallifrey

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Modus.Ponens »

Inspiring movie. Makes me rethink my option of being a lay man. It was great to know Ven. Dhammanando more closely, a person we only know through the posts he makes.
'This is peace, this is exquisite — the resolution of all fabrications; the relinquishment of all acquisitions; the ending of craving; dispassion; cessation; Unbinding.' - Jhana Sutta
Strive
Posts: 50
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:12 am

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Strive »

David N. Snyder wrote:
Strive wrote:I liked the film except for the naked sharks.
I wasn't aware sharks wore clothes. :tongue:

I assume 'sharks' has another meaning?

It was kind of sad when the marriage did not work out, but it was all for the gain of the Sangha, when he returned to being a bhikkhu.
I forgot what sutta it was in the samyutta Nikaya by Bhikkhu Bodhi but I think it was the one where buddha warns the monks of 5 things a householder should watch out for, then he tell the monks that just like the householder should watch out for those 5 things a bhikkhu should watch out for these 5 things, waves, whirlpools, sharks and demons. Sharks meaning women. Ever since then I refer to woman as sharks because I'm afraid of sharks :jumping:
"Faith is here a man's best treasure;
Dhamma practised well brings happiness;
Truth is really the sweetest of tastes;
One living by wisdom they say lives best."--Bhikkhu Bodhi's Samyutta Nikaya, Sagathavagga verse 853
alan
Posts: 3111
Joined: Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:14 am
Location: Miramar beach, Fl.

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by alan »

I don't get it. Why is this interesting?
He laughs a lot, which is kind of charming. But what is the overall point?
User avatar
retrofuturist
Posts: 27848
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 9:52 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Contact:

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by retrofuturist »

Greetings,

What I like about this documentary is that it shows how much more comfortable venerable Dhammanando is in robes, and it makes me happy that the Buddhist holy life is available to those who wish to pursue it.

Apparently there was a lot more footage, much of it 'deeper' than what you see in the doco, but most of that stuff lay on the editing room floor... I guess that just wasn't the story the director wanted to tell.

Metta,
Retro. :)
"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
User avatar
m0rl0ck
Posts: 1193
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2009 10:51 am

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by m0rl0ck »

Thanks for posting this. I found it inspiring. :)
“The truth knocks on the door and you say, "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so it goes away. Puzzling.” ― Robert M. Pirsig
User avatar
cooran
Posts: 8503
Joined: Tue Jan 06, 2009 11:32 pm
Location: Queensland, Australia

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by cooran »

I forgot what sutta it was in the samyutta Nikaya by Bhikkhu Bodhi but I think it was the one where buddha warns the monks of 5 things a householder should watch out for, then he tell the monks that just like the householder should watch out for those 5 things a bhikkhu should watch out for these 5 things, waves, whirlpools, sharks and demons. Sharks meaning women. Ever since then I refer to woman as sharks because I'm afraid of sharks :jumping:
Bhikkhu Bodhi mentions it when discussing various suttas. He says, 'This discourse was given at Catuma to the disciples of the Venerable Sariputta and the Venerable Maha Moggallana, who came with five hundred bhikkhus to see the Buddha. The five hundred bhikkhus made a lot of noise while settling down. The Buddha refused to see them at first, but later relented and taught them the dangers in the life of a bhikkhu. Just as there are dangers and hazards in a sea like stormy waves, crocodiles, whirlpools, and sharks, so also there are dangers against which the bhikkhu must be always on guard, namely, ill will against those who instruct them and guide them; dissatisfaction with training rules such as those concerning taking of meals or dealing with womenfolk; and pleasures of senses.''

The actual sutta (excerpt below) does not mention sharks, but rather refers to alligators. Catuma Sutta

..... Bhikkhus, what is the fear for alligators? . Bhikkhus, a certain son of a clansman out of faith goes forth from a household. He becomes a homeless thinking I'm overcome by birth, decay, death, grief, lament, unpleasantness, displeasure and distress. There are only a few who could declare the complete ending of this unpleasantness. He gone forth thus, putting on robes in the morning, taking bowl and robes goes the alms round, in the village or hamlet controlled in body and speech, mindfulness not established and mental faculties not protected. In the village he sees a woman not well covered and dressed. Seeing her in that manner, greed assails his mind and with a mind assailed by greed he gives up robes and becomes a layman. He gives up robes and becomes a layman out of fear for alligaters. Bhikkhus, fear for alligators is a synonymn for women.
http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pit ... ma-e1.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

with metta
Chris
---The trouble is that you think you have time---
---Worry is the Interest, paid in advance, on a debt you may never owe---
---It's not what happens to you in life that is important ~ it's what you do with it ---
User avatar
Nibbida
Posts: 466
Joined: Sat May 02, 2009 3:44 am

Re: Act Normal (documentary about a monk)

Post by Nibbida »

Whoops. I didn't realize that last link was an illegal download site. I only paid attention to the description of the film & the humorous pictures of the guys with exposed butt cracks sitting next to him. Sorry for the oversight.

I thought he looked awfully familiar. I didn't make the connection with Ven. Dhammanando.

Here's another clip (a legal one) of the making of the film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRhog7Y3Ivw

I haven't seen the film yet, but I like the fact that it shows him as a real person, with his own struggles, successes, choices, etc. From a layperson's point of view, it's too easy to see monastics as perfect Dhamma robots. Despite attainments in their practice and dedication to service, we're all real people. It's encouraging.

I remember reading something about Jack Kornfield about the difficulties he had adjusting back to the layperson's life.
Post Reply