The Buddha: The Story of Siddhartha

a very good introduction to Buddhism.especially for westerners.prepare to be profoundly moved.

The Buddha's story includes input from multiple people who clarify Buddhism quite well .The archetypal story is presented with beautiful illustrations and excellent interviews .Most westerners are ingrained with dogma & theology so many come trying to apply the same mindset to Buddhism which is dysfunctional .Siddhartha was really one of the early psychologists except instead of analyzing other people , he was analyzing how his own mind worked with respect to "why people suffer" and how can they "move beyond suffering" .There has been 2500 years of evolution since his time so there are many sects with differing takes but a fundamental awareness of the human issues related to suffering is an eternal thread .Some people may find themselves watching this many times over the years as a refresher since humans are still working on those issues .

I love this movie. This is my 2nd copy as my son watched and lost my original. Very inspirational and gives a nice history too. I highly recommend.

Prime Video used to have this movie free. Not anymore! I enjoyed it so much and would watch it every now and then. So I didn't want to buy it in Prime Video, so I bought the DVD.

I've been reading Buddhism for some years and it is a glorious philosophy.This is a good intro; listen carefully to what is said. You will have to see it several times to pick up the big picture.Some of the scenes are magnificent such as the end scene with Buddha under his famous tree. And severalThen I suggest you buy some books here by Steve Hagen; he is an incredible Buddhist Scholar who writes clearly.If you have grown up in America, with a classic Christian orientation, I recommend you head in this direction if you really want to find some truth and peace before you die.

I ordered this DVD as a Christian seeking to understand Buddhism. I think it is a very good overview of Buddhism and I learned a great deal about both Siddhartha and the philosophy he espoused.The video begins by retelling the life story of Siddhartha, later known as the Buddha. The video touches on his youth as a wealthy, noble "prince" - for lack of a better term - in a small Indian kingdom. The DVD emphasizes his privileged birth and early life and his encounters with "suffering" when he left his palace for short rides with an attendant.It will seem quite apparent to the viewer that Siddhartha was deeply touched by the suffering he encountered and that his search for answers was a sincere one in which he gave up his wealth and position to seek answers. The DVD retells the stories of Siddhartha as he attached himself to gurus, learning yoga and meditation techniques in order to find the answers he sought. He did not find the answer and continued in his search, adopting asceticism, punishing and starving his body to reject the material world. According to the DVD, Siddhartha realized that his asceticism had not led to the answers he sought.The video then gives his discovery of the "middle way" as he finds the enlightenment he had sought for years. The DVD gives a fairly good overview of Buddhist concepts such as the Four Noble Truths which lead into the concepts of the Noble Eightfold Path and the Four Immeasurables. The DVD attempts to simplify the rather abstract concepts of Buddhism though it does not always succeed - to this viewer at least.I felt the DVD did a good job of showing the viewer the basics of Siddhartha's journey and the religion he founded. I found it odd, though, that a PBS production essentially told the story without any kind of skepticism in regard to the stories of the Buddha or the tenets of the religion. There were certainly no "opposing points of view" that are offered in their videos about Jesus or Christianity.That aside, I did learn a great deal about Buddhism as well as how it came to be from the mind of one man in the time and place he lived in. I feel the time I spent watching this DVD was well spent. Four stars.

I being a Christian have always felt that Jesus and Buddha came to teach us the same message of who we are and how much power we have in our life to create our own moment in time. Love, forgiveness is the theme of both. I was hit how denying wealth, elitism, and all that goes with it leads one to the light.To see Buddha give it all up and discover through that middle path confirmed in me that money elitism, Conservatism as in Both stories of my heroes, Jesus and Siddartha were not the praise issues of their lives.

A very well done film. I prefer narration and artwork instead of having actors playing rolls. The animation segments blended well with the interviews and filming of the different pilgrimage sites. Glad I purchased this.

I really liked this film. I felt that it was written and directed well. If you are Buddhist or someone who's just looking to find out more about Buddhism then this film will provide you this much insight. I continue to watch it as it helps me to deal with life's challenges. It gives you a different perspective on your life problems.

A great documentary film. What a pity that it is not available in Region 2 format. It was on PBS channel a little while ago, but I missed part of it. I am able to play Region 1 discs so no problem with this issue. I wrote to PBS about this but they seemed unable to help.Try to see it if you possibly can!!

I loved this movie: a two hour long PBS presentation. The interviews with different people and well known personnalities about how they feel about the Buddha and his teachings. Interesting and informative. I recommend it.

This is a very informative film detailing the life and journey of the Buddha. For anyone who doesn't and who does know about the life of this seeker, then this is the movie for you. Very profound, very detailed, thought provoking and a blessing.

very well done. learn lots and the movie itself makes you feel peaceful. I recommend this movie to anyone interested in buddha. Took off one star just because the dvd case is really old and doesnt close. but thats not a big concern to me.