Baraka

"Baraka," an ancient Sufi word, means "breath" or "essence of life from which the evolutionary process unfolds." The film Baraka is a tantalizing tour through six continents and 24 countries that depicts the rhythms of man and nature and ways in which they live in harmony and violent discord.

A glorious tone poem, Baraka cuts from solitary monks to crowded streets, from great temples and soaring landscapes to the dumps of Calcutta. Director Ron Fricke uses the two senses to which film appeals (sight and sound) to suggest that which is extra-sensory. The way in which he does so is masterful, and the cumulative effect is moving, sobering and profoundly spiritual.

Completed:

1993

Running Time:

96 minutes

Director:

Ron Fricke

Producer:

Mark Magidson

Editor:

Ron Fricke, Mark Magidson and David Aubrey

Music:

Michael Stearns, Dead Can Dance, David Hykes/The Harmonic Choir, Somet Satoh, Anugama & Sebastiano, Kohachiro Miyata, Inkuyo, L. Subramaniam, Monks of the Dip Tse Chok Ling Monastery, Rustavi Choir, Ciro Hurtado, Brother

Theatrical Release Nationwide, International Critics' Award, Montreal World Film Festival

"Dazzling! An awesome cinematic world tour."
- The New York Times

"Extraordinary, non-narrative film that enables us to see with our eyes and feel with our flesh that the healing of the self and the healing of the planet are inextricably linked."
- Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Health

"Nothing in this epic visual poem is less than extraordinary."
- Hal Hinson, Washington Post

"Smashingly edited, superbly scored - speaks volumes about the planet without uttering a single word."
- Suzan Ayscough, Variety

"The internal logic of the editing silently connects and critiques contemporary relationships between man and nature, pre- and post-industrial society, and the presence of the sacred in all corners of the globe."
- Pamela D. Winfield, PhD, Meredith College, Raleigh, NC

Price: $19.98

If you would like to explore films with similar themes, please click on Multifaith or Spirituality.