CRAZYWISE actually began twenty years ago in Dharamsala, India when Phil interviewed a 30 year old monk (the Kuten) who acts as a medium to channel the protector spirit of Tibet known as the Nechung Oracle. Learning that the Kuten was identified for having this ‘gift’ by experiencing what we in our culture would call a psychotic episode made Phil stop and think about the power of cultural beliefs and ultimately led to the making of this film.
What is this power mediums like the Kuten have? The Dalai Lama has said that the information coming through the Kuten is valuable in helping make decisions of state. Is this something that could also benefit us in Western society?
Now that production on CRAZYWISE has been underway for a few years, Phil has come to see that the question is not just, “Could the spiritual practices of indigenous cultures benefit us in Western society? The question really is, “How could an improved spiritual connection benefit the mental health of Western society?
For the last few months we have been studying the Spiritist movement in Brazil where mediums are used in 50 Spiritist Psychiatric Hospitals to add spiritual support to the treatment options for individuals experiencing a psychological crisis. Spiritism is a particular form of Spiritualism that originated in France. We are interested in Brazil because as a modern first world nation it still maintains strong links to its own shamanic traditions and, in addition, has over 12,000 Spiritist centers. It’s especially interesting that Spiritism as a cultural movement is gaining in popularity especially within the more educated and well to do social classes attracted to opportunities for spiritual growth.
Brazil is just one of the countries we are planning to include in the film that take a more integrated, spiritual approach to treating mental illness. Are you familiar with the Spiritist movement? What are you thoughts about the role of spiritual support in the treatment of a psychological crisis?
