Martial arts, morality, and philosophy in Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

The film, documentaries and the last docudrama are exceptional production pieces by notable directors and producers. Crouching tiger-hidden dragon defies the usual mantra of strength only attributed to men. Jen effectively acts as person having higher morals. The martial arts performance was exceptional, an unusual feature in Hollywood. Islam, the empire of faith is another documentary made on the rise of Islamic empire and the life of Prophet Mohammad having a great impact on establishment of religion. 'Gandhi' also remains an unquestioned production classic that eloquently portrays Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the unquestioned leader of India. The film sheds light on Hinduism as a religion and its faith and dogmas. Lastly, Kundan is a docudrama based on life of Dalai Lama. 'Kundan' might not have justified the stature of Buddhism in history of mankind but the piece of production remains an earnest effort on part of Martin Scorcese to present valuable production on Buddhist religion.

1- Crouching Tiger-Hidden Dragon

The film 'crouching tiger-hidden dragon' is based in the region of Qianlong emperor and displays Chinese Wu Xia that means Chinese marital arts (Chan, 2004). Wu Xia is common in other Asian countries as well such as Han, which means Korea.Based on Wudang fighting style, the most grossing foreign film in the U.S., the end of the film is perceived to be tragedy where the heroine Jen embraces immortal death just to be together with Lo, the desert bandit. However, it was only a partial tragedy as both Lo and Jen were to reunite in Gobi Desert, the largest Asian desert in Northeastern part of China (Chan, 2004).

The characteristics of superhero in this film are those that represent chivalry (Driver & Ray, 2004) referring to courage and bravery of women and thus challenge patriarchic norms in society. Irrespective of gender, the hero/superhero has to be brave. Mu Bai, the acclaimed Wudand warrior whose master was killed by Jade Fox takes revenge at the just before the end of the film by displaying although he had left fighting by handing over his sword to his friend Sir Te who lived in Peking, that was the official name of Beijing in the era that film was based on (Peking.org, n.d.).

The new thing about China in the new millennium is that the country despite advancing in technology and world economy is still rooted from the base to ideologies such as Taoism, which means the path of eternal principle of living life (Chan, 2004). This symbolism was portrayed by Jen as she despite having power and sword art chose a life that was based on principle. This philosophy is also adhered and propagated by Confucianism, a philosophical framework of spending life based on morality and ethics.

From China's point-of-view, the highlights of Beijing Olympics were that Wushu was added as a martial arts game in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. There was plenty of acclaim for the Chinese martial arts and its induction as a proper game in the Olympics. It was China's fantasy, which means a lifelong desire to be recognized, came true in Beijing Olympics.

2- Islam: Empire of Faith-Summary of Religion and basic tenets

Islam is based on five basic pillars and all of its teachings, based on the Holy book of Muslims Quran and lifelong teachings and hadith that means traditions of Prophet Mohammad (Esposito, 1998). The basic belief around which the five pillars as well as the whole foundation of religion are based is twofold. Firstly, God is only one and it is God that needs to be worshipped. Mohammad is the last prophet of God and after Him there is will be no prophet descended on Earth. The five pillars are:

1- Shadah that means declaring that God is one and absolute and does not share lordship with any other.

2- Prayer (Salat) of five times each day is obligatory on each practicing Muslim.

3- Charity (Zakat) is also an obligation to be paid to the poor and to be collected from those people who qualify financially for imposition of Zakat on them.

4- Fasting (Som) is the keeping of fast in the holy month of Ramazan.

5- Pilgrimage (Hajj) to the holy land of Meccais the fifth pillar of Islam.

Holy dates and sacred practices in Islam: There are many holy occasions celebrated in Islamic calendar, a lunar calendar that starts from 622 AD, the year that Prophet Mohammad migrated to Medina from Mecca also known as the year of Hijrat (Bowker & Bowker, 1997).

Important dates in Islamic calendar are as follows:

• Ramadan: Ramadan is the ninth lunar month of Islamic calendar. It is also included in the five pillars of Islam.

• Eid al-fitr: Eid-ul-Fitr is celebrated as a gift from God after 29 or 30 fasts in the month of Ramadan. It is celebrated for three consecutive days falling after the month of Ramadan (Bowker & Bowker, 1997).

• Mawlid al-Nabi: This is the 12th date of the month of Rabia-ul-Awwal. This is the third month of Islamic calendar. It is not obligatory as in case of Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha.

• Muharram: This is the first sacred month of Islamic calendar in which Grandson, Imam Husain, of Prophet Mohammad was martyred in Iraq. This month is very sacred for Muslims as they observe it with grief. The 9th and 10th of Muharram are specifically mourned by Shia sect of Muslims, a sect that believes that it was Ali, the son in law of Prophet Mohammad who were to be Caliph after Abu Bakar, the first Caliph of Islam and who was made Imam, known as prayer leader while Prophet Mohammad was ill during his last days.Sunnis also mourn the Moharram but they are the followers of tradition and have significant difference in terms of jurisprudence as compared to Shias (Glasse & Smith, 2003).

• Eid al-Adha: The celebration is second in the year after Eid-ul-fitr and is celebrated in the month of Dhul Hijjah after the performance of Hajj, the holy pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

Sacred places in IslamMasjid al Haram, Mecca: In the heart of Masjid (Mosque) al Haram is the most holy place of Muslims; the Kabaadefined as the direction towards which Muslims face towards while praying five times a day. Kabaa was built by Abraham.

Masjid Nabwi, Medina: The mosque is second most sacred place in Islam. It also includes the mausoleum of Prophet Mohammad.

Reaction to the documentary

The direction, screenplay, and presentation of the documentary were beautiful and compelling. The commentary by Kingsley was captivating due to his appeal of voice and pitch. The documentary succinctly summarizes the rise and birth of world's second largest religion at the hands of Prophet Mohammad. However, the documentary is more about the Islamic Empire or what one can call the rise of Muslim rulers. Except the rise and up to the part of Prophet Mohammad's death the documentary is good but after that it misses key links such as the role of Mystical traditions and Sufisknown as the Islamic saints in Islamic history as they have converted more non-Muslims to Islam than any other formal Islamic theologians. One aspect that might be missing to some viewers is that theological differences were not elaborately discussed. There is also little explanation about Sharia, the code of legal conduct according to Quran.

Wedding and Death practices

Vivah is referred for wedding in the Hindu religion. Ganeshthe good deity is specifically asked for the blessings in Hindu marriage. There are several rituals to be followed before atypical marriage takes place in the Mandap, a colored and decorated stage for the bride and groom where marriage is held by saying rituals.

Death is also an occurrence in the religion that is important. The male presence in form of sons to perform the last rites of deceased is important. The dead body is cremated by the Hindus and aches are submerged in water.

Sacred places

Somnath Mandar: The temple of Somnath is one of the most sacred temples of Hindu belief. Situated in Indian State of Gujarat, it is the sacred shrine of Lord Shiva.Badrinath: Located in the Chamoli district of state of Uttarakhand in India, it is one of the most important pilgrims where holy temple of Badrinath is located.

Reaction to the documentary

The documentary was directed aptly by depicting the lifelong story of Mohandas Gandhi. It was a masterpiece in terms of direction and acting by the cast. Ben Kingsley's again made a masterpiece. The chronological picturing of the film does not foes well as it could have been more non-chronological; however it's a movie worth watching to increase the knowledge about Indian subcontinent's political knowledge of yesteryears.

4- KundunBasic faith and tenets: Buddhism

The fundamental aspect of Buddhism is that it is based on teachings and writings of Siddhartha Gautama famously known as Buddha. Buddha, the supreme leader and teacher of Buddhists lived in the Indian subcontinent and travelled far and wide to explore and teach the true meanings of humanity. Peace, love, kindness, and wisdom through reflection in to one's own self are the main teaching of Buddha cherished by the Buddhists. The major religious concepts of Buddhism include Samsara that means the 'cycle of life and death' in which one transforms from lower to higher plane of life. Karma is another noble aspect of Buddhism that means the willful action and thought of mind. Nirvana refers to the state of body and mind where an individual attains perfection and liberates one's self from worldly desires. It is the awakening of the self. The awakened beings are classified into three main types. Dukkhais the inherent feeling of human beings regarding anxiety and suffering. It can only be overcome by process.

Sammasambuddha: The individual who attains the enlightenment himself and then teaches it to others. Savakabuddhais the pupil of Sammasambuddha and directly receives teachings from him. The main branches of Buddhism are Theravada that is the school of thought held is the elders of the Buddhist religion. On the other hand there is Mahayana (Murti, 2006) that propagates the vehicle of self-enlistment for each individual. Theravadais the dominant sect of Buddhists found in Sri Lanka and South East Asia (Conze, 2004).

Main holidays and sacred places

Lumbini: Is the birth place of Gautama Buddha. The place is situated in Himalayas, Nepal.

Maya Devi Temple: Also situated in the same town of Lumbini, the temple is sacred place for the Buddhists. Vesak: Celebrated on the first full moon of the month May, it is the birthday of Buddha.

Reactions to the movie

Being praised as the 14th incarnation of the great Buddha, Dalai Lama has been depicted by changing the actors in four different phases. Somewhat less strong in content than the previous documentaries, the film hardly appeals to be a worthy effort done to the Buddhist religion. In fact the subject should have been beyond Dalai Lama.