Best movies like Samadhi Part 1: Maya, the Illusion of the Self

Jonathan Jones, a professor of ancient languages, comes into possession of an ancient coin. He translates its inscription, which gives him three powers: to inflict pain, slow down time or kill. Soon, he's pursued by enemy spies who have learned about the magic coin.

Ram Dass is one of the most important cultural figures from the 1960s and 70s. A pyschedelic pioneer, author of Be Here Now, beloved spiritual teacher, and outspoken advocate for death-and-dying awareness, Ram Dass is now himself approaching the end of life. Since suffering a life-changing stroke twenty years ago, he has been living at his home on Maui and deepening his spiritual practice — which is centered on love and his idea of merging with his surroundings and all living things. Shot in a nuanced cinematic style, the film is an intimate summary of his life learning and awareness, and is ultimately a poetic meditation on life, death, and the soul’s journey home.

In this inspiring tale from the book of Genesis, young shepherd Jacob (Matthew Modine) falls in love with and wants to marry Rachel (Lara Flynn Boyle), the daughter of his Uncle Laban (Giancarlo Giannini). Lacking a dowry, Jacob toils seven years as his uncle's indentured servant to win Rachel's hand. But calculating Laban dupes him into another seven years of labor. Irene Papas portrays Jacob's iron-willed mother.

Jonathan is sick and tired of the boring life in his seagull clan. He rather experiments with new, always more daring flying techniques. Since he doesn't fit in, the elders expel him from the clan. So he sets out to discover the world beyond the horizon in a quest for wisdom.

The Tibetans refer to the Dalai Lama as 'Kundun', which means 'The Presence'. He was forced to escape from his native home, Tibet, when communist China invaded and enforced an oppressive regime upon the peaceful nation. The Dalai Lama escaped to India in 1959 and has been living in exile in Dharamsala ever since.

A dying professor leaves his great-nephew a collection of documents pertaining to the Cthulhu Cult. The nephew begins to learn why the study of the cult so fascinated his grandfather. Bit-by-bit he begins piecing together the dread implications of his grandfather's inquiries, and soon he takes on investigating the Cthulhu cult as a crusade of his own.

A chance encounter with a stranger changes the life of a college gymnast.

An inside look at a West Hollywood cult formed by a charismatic teacher in the 1980s that eventually imploded.

I AM is an utterly engaging and entertaining non-fiction film that poses two practical and provocative questions: what’s wrong with our world, and what can we do to make it better? The filmmaker behind the inquiry is Tom Shadyac, one of Hollywood’s leading comedy practitioners and the creative force behind such blockbusters as “Ace Ventura,” “Liar Liar,” “The Nutty Professor,” and “Bruce Almighty.” However, in I AM, Shadyac steps in front of the camera to recount what happened to him after a cycling accident left him incapacitated, possibly for good. Though he ultimately recovered, he emerged with a new sense of purpose, determined to share his own awakening to his prior life of excess and greed, and to investigate how he as an individual, and we as a race, could improve the way we live and walk in the world.

After the death of Lama Dorje, Tibetan Buddhist monks find three children — one American and two Nepalese — who may be the rebirth of their great teacher.

He was the 16-year-old Guru Maharaj Ji and, as the Millennium approached, he promised to levitate the Huston Astrodome. It was the early Seventies and anything was possible so thousands flocked to his gathering. Follow him from his mansion in New York to the limousines in Houston, listen to his followers and watch the spectacle unfold just as TVTV did in this Alfred I. du Pont award wining documentary.

Directly in the tradition of SEXUAL MEDITATION #1: Motel, this "sequel" does explore further possibilities of nudes in a room. - Canyon Cinema

Maya Deren’s shortest, two-minute A Study in Choreography for Camera seems like an exercise piece to capture a dancer’s movement on celluloid, which later on developed into her masterpieces such as Ritual in Transfigured Time and Meditation on Violence.

The story of G.I. Gurdjieff an Asian mystic who after a lifetimes study developed a form of meditation incorporating modern dance.

"Only a fool sticks his neck out for somebody else. Don't get in the habit of it." Outlaw gunslinger Sam Garrett offers that sage wisdom to fellow fugitive Tom Cameron, who's on the run from the "Bluebellies," Texas State Police officers who wield a brutal iron fist of enforcement in the early 1870s. But quick-draw, hard-bitten Garrett soon decides not to take his own advice after young Cameron heads home to surrender - and instead gets framed for a revenge murder by a jealous rival for the affections of his girl.

Four fallen robot gladiators are rescued from the scrap pile, turned into an elite group of mercenaries and sent on a mission to bring about a new age of enlightenment in a post-apocalyptic universe.

Zombies, demons, and a mad doctor await a bus-load of folks looking for a tour of Aztec ruins. Father O'Sullivan is a Catholic priest who has lost his faith in God and who cannot forget the nun with whom he once had an affair (and a son)

Challenged by a new student, tutor and theorist Galileo co-opts emerging telescope technology and discovers irrefutable proof of the heretical notion that the earth is not the center of the universe. But in a rigid society ruled by an uneasy alliance of aristocracy and clergy already undermined by the Plague and the Reformation, science is a threat and enlightenment is a luxury. Faced with either death at the hands of the Inquisition or recantation to a hypocritical but all-powerful Papacy, Galileo must choose between his own life and the restless scientific curiosity that he has spurned family, friends, and wealth to pursue.

In 1883, US Cavalry lieutenant Matthew Hazard, newly graduated from West Point, is assigned to isolated Fort Delivery on the Mexican border of Arizona, where he meets commanding officer Teddy Mainwarring's wife Kitty, whom he later rescues from an Indian attack.

There is one vibratory field that connects all things. It has been called Akasha, Logos, the primordial OM, the music of the spheres, the Higgs field, dark energy, and a thousand other names throughout history. The vibratory field is at the root of all true spiritual experience and scientific investigation. It is the same field of energy that saints, Buddhas, yogis, mystics, priests, shamans and seers, have observed by looking within themselves. Many of history's monumental thinkers, such a Pythagoras, Kepler, Leonardo DaVinci, Tesla, and Einstein, have come to the threshold of this great mystery. It is the common link between all religions, all sciences, and the link between our inner worlds and our outer worlds.

Once a symbol of '60s counterculture and psychedelic drug use, Ram Dass has since become a renowned speaker and author on the topics of aging, spirituality, and overcoming the mistakes of the past. This documentary chronicles his journey from his affiliations with LSD advocate Timothy Leary to his endeavor to continue remaking himself after his stroke in 1997.

In the last days of the life of Elvis Presley, he struggles to overcome the effects on his body and soul of prescription drug abuse and personal mistakes in his lifestyle. In flashback sequences similar to Dickens's "A Christmas Carol", Elvis is guided by a "Mysterious Man" to re-examine turning points in the life he has led. These reflections lead to recognition, realization, repentance, and ultimately ... redemption. -- based on true events

This documentary presents an awakening inspired by the life of the Benedictine monk Henri Le Saux. After living in a monastery in Brittany for 20 years, he left for South India with the objective of bringing the best of Christian monastic life with him. To achieve his goal, he believed it important to first open himself to the spiritual heart of India. In doing so he encountered Ramana Maharshi, one of the great sages of his time, at the foot of the sacred mountain Arunachala. The impact of this meeting on him was so powerful that Le Saux’s initial plan was turned upside down. In the presence of this mystical mountain, and its Sage, Le Saux began a spiritual adventure that would lead to his own rebirth.

Bones of the Buddha is a 2013 television documentary produced by Icon Films and commissioned by WNET/THIRTEEN and ARTE France for the National Geographic Channels. It concerns a controversial Buddhist reliquary from the Piprahwa Stupa in Uttar Pradesh, India. It was released in May, 2013, and was broadcast in July 2013 in the US on PBS as part of the Secrets of the Dead series.

Northern Europe. 13th century. Last pagan settlement near the Baltic Sea. The evil and cynical warrior crusader Max von Buxhoveden is trying to destroy the pagan beliefs of the people by spreading lies and fostering dissent. Old king of the last free pagan lands is on his deathbed and without an heir to take his place. Max wants to take over the throne and reign over old king’s tribe. Unexpectedly, with his dying breath the King passes on his ring to his nephew Namejs. The youngster, who grew up amongst pagan priests and studied ancient wisdoms, now has to defend his people. Will he be able to unravel the secret of the Ring and gain its power?

In this movie detour from the Brothers Garcia TV series, the Garcia family takes a trip to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula to learn more about their heritage. There, the kids get mixed up in a magical adventure that takes them directly to the historical roots of the Mayan culture when they encounter a living ancestor of theirs who must be reunited with his lady-love or else he'll be cursed to live as a shadow serpent forever.

A fascinating story of the truth behind the legend and history of St Patrick. This special will feature the world reknown voices of two of Ireland's incredible top actors: with narration by Liam Neeson and also Gabriel Byrne supplying the voice of Patrick. The story of the real St. Patrick is a fabulous mix of part adventure tale and part spiritual awakening. His radical ideas were suspect and he attracted the censure of the Church establishment in Roman Britain. Patrick refused to compromise this commitment and soon won the respect and love of the Irish and even the finally the reluctant support of his detractors. He started out as a slave an eventually became a liberator, who learned to forgive and ultimately love his enemies.

Confucius was one of history's most influential thinkers. He was a sage, philosopher and teacher who, with Socrates and Buddha, lived at an extraordinary time in the evolution of human civilization. This stunningly beautiful drama-documentary explores the life and times of Confucius, while reflecting on his influence on modern justice and morality. Today, Confucius is a window into China's rise.

"An Ensign to the Nations" was made by the LDS Church's Audiovisual Department, with Russ Holt as the producer. With so much attention paid to the early history of the church during its sesquicentennial year, Holt said the movie depicts church history from 1847 to 1997. It makes clear that the pioneer trek wasn't the end - but rather the beginning - of an epic story that continues to grow larger with each passing year.

Four interwoven meditations on the nature of time, memory, experience and the quest for spiritual enlightenment.

Dean Jones is Saint John in this intimate, inspiring one-man presentation of John in exile on Patmos. Full of humor, strong in spirit, and resolutely committed to Christ, John shares his account of the events that changed the course of human history---and challenges us with his last words before his death: "Little children, love one another."

An artist is plagued by nightmares of a love triangle and murder. A psychic says the dream figure is his brother, a "troubled soul" from an ancient past life. Nearly born as his twin but miscarried, this past life rival now breaks through in nightmares in attempt to repeat history.

A talented, but unbalanced girl named Foxfur is thrown into a philosophical adventure beyond time and space. Her first goal is to get her friend Khris to drive her to a book store where she's hoping to find some answers, and there she also meets two UFO theorists. She then hears about this thing called The Dead Zone, and she fears that the world she knows might very well be that zone.

If you're a younger gent, your exposure to grindhouse flicks may only be with a Quentin Tarantino film, which is fine--but grindhouse flicks really began in adult cinema and that's what's on display here! Don't let the name fool you. While the moniker might suggest coitus elevated to a transcendent level of Eastern-influenced sexual enlightenment where mind, body and soul come together as One in the act of lovemaking, you can be sure that Harem Hangups delivers a bunch of dudes in genie pants and turbans...but more than its fair share of mindless, clueless, soul-eroding screwing where any glimmer of magic has long since departed.

1 Giant Leap is a concept band and media project consisting of the two principal artists, Jamie Catto and Duncan Bridgeman. This is the film part of their first project. The result is a flowing, loose-knit tapestry of imagery, interviews, and diverse performances. Gathering material from 25 countries and dozens of famous and not-so-famous musicians, authors, celebrities, spiritualists, philosophers, and unique individuals from nearly every cultural background, this enveloping DVD is best enjoyed as a soothing audiovisual odyssey (select "loop mode" for continuous play!). Assembling this cornucopia by theme (Time, Inspiration, Sex, God, Death, etc.), Bridgeman and Catto function as co-composers with an astonishing array of collaborators, giving 1 Giant Leap its richly international (and some might say inter-spiritual) identity. The result is a far-reaching glimpse of our world through the eyes of those who improve it by their musical presence. --Jeff Shannon