Dorje Tsering Chenaktsang
2021Yartsa Rinpoche
Dorje Tsering Chenaktsang
Cordyceps sinensis (in Tibetan, Yartsa-gunbu) has been called “Tibet’s golden worm” and “The Viagra of the Himalayas.” When it was discovered 30 years ago as a natural remedy, it became a boon to Tibetan nomads. Today, some nomadic Tibetan communities bring in as much as 80% of their income collecting it. Yartsa Rinpoche follows Darlo, an elder in the Amdo region, who with his family forms a group of 30 that treks 800 kilometers to collect the “worm,” while exploring its larger implications.
Precious Caterpillar
Kokonor
Dorje Tsering Chenaktsang
For centuries, Tibetan nomads were the only inhabitants on the banks of the sacred Lake Kokonor—the Blue Lake—in Amdo (eastern Tibet). Starting in the 1990s, the area saw a dramatic rise in domestic tourism: It was not just the lake’s beauty that drew tourists but the Tibetan culture in general. This influx of tourists came at a cost: the locals now find themselves having to adapt to new roles in the tourism industry. This glimpse at the Kokonor community examines the transformation of the lives of the Tibetans who live there.
Kokonor
Tantric Yogi
Dorje Tsering Chenaktsang
This film focuses on an enormous ngakpa gathering in eastern Tibet that happens once every 60 years. Ngakpa is a Tibetan cultural and non-monastic spiritual tradition that was founded in the eighth century in which lay people can receive spiritual and cultural education. In following one group of ngakpa as they prepare for the trip from the filmmaker’s home village, Tantric Yogi offers an intimate glimpse into lives of the ngakpa, as well as the daily practice of this ancient tradition.
Tantric Yogi