Enlighten Up! : What is Yoga?

[seek10]

yesterday, I saw this movie. I thought plot is very interesting. This is the first time I saw a movie that touched so many baskin robbins style yoga practices and the hero's skeptical and honest questioning makes the movie interesting. Interviews with the big names in yoga like B.K.S. Iyengar, Pattabhi Jois, Norman Allen makes the movie a plus too, though his questioning is simple." what is yoga, is it internal or external physical exercise, does it give enlightenment." He encounters some ridiculous type yoga practices like "laughter yoga" and some sexed up type yoga's too ("Yoga for Regular Guy" by diamond dallas page) .

_http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/enlighten_up/
Kate Churchill is a filmmaker and a dedicated yoga practitioner who insists that yoga can transform anyone. She decides to prove it. Her plan: select a subject, immerse him in yoga and follow him until he finds a yoga practice that transforms him. Her subject: Nick Rosen a skeptical, 29 year-old journalist living in New York City.

Intrigued by the opportunity to peek behind the curtain of a 5.7 billion dollar "spiritual" industry, Nick signs on to investigate yoga for 6 months. Before he can say OM, he finds himself twisted up like a pretzel, surrounded by celebrity yogis, true believers, kooks, entrepreneurs and a gentle teacher from Brazil who leads his class with his feet behind his head.

The more Nick investigates yoga the more contradictions he discovers, leading him to question whether yoga is anything more than a workout. As Nick searches for concrete facts and discards the lofty spiritual theories of his yoga teachers, he strays further from Kate’s original plan. The two find themselves lost in Northern India, embroiled in a struggle between Kate’s expectations and Nick’s overt rejection of "spirituality."

They circle the globe talking to mystics, gurus, mad men and saints searching for the true meaning of yoga. Ultimately, both Nick and Kate end up in places they never could have imagined. They don’t find the answers to their questions, they find much more.

Starring: Starring: B.K.S. Iyengar, Pattabhi Jois, Norman Allen, Sharon Gannon, David Life, Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa, Dharma Mittra, Cyndi Lee, Alan Finger, Rodney Yee, Beryl Bender Birch, Shyamdas

Though it doesn't dwell much into esoteric side of it, i didn't felt bored of the movie.

 

[Zee Ley]

Well, I watched the movie. Seek10 thank you for the link. The thing I don't understand, why is Nick sore about Norman?

 

[gdpetti]

Though it doesn't dwell much into esoteric side of it, i didn't felt bored of the movie.

:/ Hmmm, not exactly 2 thumbs up? A lot of experiences fit into that category... 'I didn't feel bored by it'... ;) Usually that means more would have been nice.