Throughout her career, Dr. Rita Langer has produced ethnographic documentaries that provide valuable insights into Buddhist rituals and practices. Her films focus on the lived experiences of Buddhist communities, capturing the intricate details of rituals that are often inaccessible to outsiders. By blending academic research with visual storytelling, these documentaries offer a unique perspective on how Buddhist beliefs are embodied in everyday practices, particularly in relation to death rituals, monastic life, and lay participation.
By highlighting the rich diversity of Buddhist practices across different contexts and allowing viewers to explore how rituals evolve and adapt in response to local customs, these works not only serve as an important resource for researchers and students of Buddhism, but also help bring these traditions to a wider audience.
A Celebration of Deities: The Dewol Maduwa in Sri Lanka (2024)
This short documentary, produced by Rita Langer, shows some highlights of a night long celebration of deities (dewol maduwa) in Bandaragama (Sri Lanka). Celebrations of dances and performances begin in the late afternoon, continue throughout the night and finish with the dance of the gara yakka and his blessing. The hostess and the organizer explain the narratives and meaning of this annual event. The language is Sinhala with English subtitles.
Bahirava puja: expelling demons (2022)
This documentary by Rita Langer follows Shanta, a ritual specialist (kapua) and his two assistants as they work through the night making elaborate decorations, preparing the offerings, chanting and finally expelling demons and other invisible beings. The first offerings go to god Shiva and the earth goddess Mahikanta who owns the ground. Mahikanta commands the ten Bahiravas, a class of minor deities, who in turn command the demons and other invisible beings and protect the land. This ritual is performed before the foundation stone for a new building is laid.
The language is Sinhala with English subtitles.
A Buddhist Cosmology in Food (2015)
Buddhists in Sri Lanka relate to the visible and invisible beings around them by way of food offerings. The recipients include buddhas, gods, animals, hungry ghosts and human beings. In Sri Lanka cooking is still largely the domain of women but the voices of those who prepare the food are rarely heard, their expertise as religious specialists seldom acknowledged. This series of six short documentaries reveals a cosmology that emerges from the kitchens and backyards of Sri Lanka. The project was in part funded by the Leverhulme Trust.
Rice Balls for the Crows (2015)
In everyone’s astrological chart there is a dangerous period of nineteen years when the planetary deity Senasuru (Saturn or Śani in India) rules. In Indian mythology his vehicle (vahana) is the crow and by feeding crows on Senasurada (Senasuru’s day) the worst of the bad luck can be averted. In India crows are also associated with ancestors and the rice balls are reminiscent of the Hindu offerings of pinda to the ancestors. The video is part of a set of documentaries which look at the cosmology that emerges from the kitchens of Sri Lanka. The project was in part funded by the Leverhulme Trust.
Three Fruit Trays for Pattini (2015)
Offerings to gods are often done in fulfilment of a vow. Pattini, the only goddess in the Sinhalese pantheon, is particularly popular with women. The goddess is venerated by Sinhalese Buddhists as Pattini and by Tamil Hindus as Kannaki. The video is part of a set of documentaries that looks at the cosmology that emerges from the kitchens of Sri Lanka.
Milk rice for Milk Mothers (2015)
The fulfilment of a vow made to Pattini can also take the form of an invitation to seven ‘milk mothers’ (kiri-amma), who are associated with the goddess. The mothers, chosen for their good reputation and standing in the community, are invited for a pre-dawn meal consisting of seven dishes rich in coconut milk. Preparations for the meal begins the previous evening and go on all night with family, friends and neighbours helping. The video is part of a set of documentaries that looks at the cosmology that emerges from the kitchens of Sri Lanka.
The Last Friend of the Corpse (2015)
Funeral rites provide a framework for dealing with death as an emotional and social rupture. The treatment and movement of the corpse, and the roles of various social groups and ritual specialists give important indications about how death is ‘processed’ by society. This film follows a Buddhist funeral in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand, and presents an ethnographic account of the ritual domain and the spaces of death such as crematoria. It portrays the visits of Buddhist monks to the house of the deceased, the rituals of separation between the living and the dead, the communal eating of the mourners and the final procession to the cremation ground. The film also depicts practical aspects of funerals and the everyday life of morticians who work in the crematoria. Interviews with these men give an insight into their unusual occupation and society’s perception of what they do. They discuss topics such as tattoos which protect them from the dangers associated with death, spirits and bones and thereby provide an unusual perspective on funeral culture and spaces of death.
A film by Patrice Ladwig, Vhatchai Suban and Maneekan Chainon
60 minutes. Thai with English subtitles. 2009 Black Monkey Studios, Chiang Mai
Caring for the Beyond (2013)
Ancestors and deceased relatives form an important part of religious life for Buddhists in Laos. The film focuses on two festivals Boun Khau Padap Din and Boun Khau Salak. During Boun Khau Padap Din food and offerings are provided by members of the lay community in order to feed spirits, ancestors and ghosts. During Boun Khau Salak food and offerings are placed into a basket. Lots are then drawn to see which monk will receive the food and transfer the merit to the deceased.
‘Caring for the Beyong’ is a documentary created by the University of Bristol Buddhist Death Rituals Project and funded by the AHRC.
The Spirits’ Happy Days (2013)
In the Fujian region of China there is a month dedicated to the deceased. During this ghost month Buddhist monasteries hold public recitation meetings in which the resulting merit is transferred to deceased relatives. The film provides an in depth analysis of the rituals involved.
‘The Spirits’ Happy Days’ is a documentary created by the University of Bristol Buddhist Death Rituals Project and funded by the AHRC.
Funeral in Luang Prabang (2013)
Theravada Buddhist lay practice is based on the generation of merit (good karma) through alms giving (dana), morality (sila) and contemplation (bhavana). Nowhere is this making, sharing and giving of merit more tangible than at a funeral. The funeral featured in the film was a simple funeral at a rural temple. It shows many many elements of Buddhist practice, including alms giving and ordination.
This short film was created by the University of Bristol Buddhist Death Rituals Project and funded by the AHRC.