The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)
Director: Robert Redford
At first glance, one can see that there is Hindu philosophy written all over it. Even the title Bagger Vance had an uncanny ring to the word 'Bhagavan', which means God in Sanskrit. It must be no coincidence that the storyline mirrors that of Mahabharata. If in the Battle of Kurukshetra, a nervous Arjuna had the jitters on the eve of the great battle, here a talented golfer, Rannulph Junuh (Matt Damon), who had seen better times before going to World War 1, has to fight his inner demons to regain composure to win a golf tournament and re-live his life as he was supposed to. Just like how Krishna, the Bhagavan's avatar, appears to put Arjuna on the right track, here 'Bagger Vance' (Will Smith) manifests from nowhere to put Junuh's life in order.
The gist of the story goes like this. Junuh was an up and coming golfer in the era before the Great War. The war made him a wreck, and he soon went to oblivion immersed in alcohol and petty gambling. Adele (Charlize Theron), the daughter of a wealthy owner of a golf course, tried to revive the greens as it was about to be repossessed. A golf tournament with significant prize money was organised. Junuh, as the local hero, was cajoled in taking part. A somewhat reluctant Junuh finally gave in. A mysterious man arrived at the scene to offer his caddie services. The rest of the story is not your typical sports drama but one of which infused with pearls of wisdom and symbolism of life. Even though Bagger Vance talked about golf swings, grip on the golf club and individual's authentic swing, the audience has no doubt that he was indeed talking about facts of life.
When Bagger preached about being in harmony with the swing of things, we are sure that he talked about attuning to the right frequency to sync with what we are doing. Like Ramanujam, who managed to receive so much knowledge about things that were not even thought of during his time by harmonising to the frequency that helped him secure mathematical formulas from his deity, Goddess Namagiri. A century later, scientists are still trying to understand his calculations as slowly, one by one, they are making sense. Imagine, Ramanujam had formulas for black holes even before scientists were talking about them.
Many Hindus would agree that the many representations of Gods and Goddesses as seen in India and wherever the Indian diaspora had migrated are mere conduits for its practitioners to invoke particular vibrations that resonate with specific intentions. For example, Goddess Saraswathi is revered when education is the frontline in worshippers. Nataraja, the Master ecstatic cosmic dancer, is naturally summoned to guide budding classical dancers. But, to the uninitiated, these murtis are mere figurines. They fail to recognise the wisdom behind the physicality. They cannot see the woods for the trees.
Bagger Vance describes golf as a game that cannot be won, only played. Is it not the same for life too? We think we have overcome fate. We have it all for stacked it all for infinity, for self, descendants and beyond. We accumulate material gains and power that last a lifetime many times over. We are sure we have won only to be smacked on the head to realisation. We do not win the game of life. We are just players on the stage set by the puppet master to be hoodwinked into falling prey to the illusionary nature of the time that we live in.
Director: Robert Redford
At first glance, one can see that there is Hindu philosophy written all over it. Even the title Bagger Vance had an uncanny ring to the word 'Bhagavan', which means God in Sanskrit. It must be no coincidence that the storyline mirrors that of Mahabharata. If in the Battle of Kurukshetra, a nervous Arjuna had the jitters on the eve of the great battle, here a talented golfer, Rannulph Junuh (Matt Damon), who had seen better times before going to World War 1, has to fight his inner demons to regain composure to win a golf tournament and re-live his life as he was supposed to. Just like how Krishna, the Bhagavan's avatar, appears to put Arjuna on the right track, here 'Bagger Vance' (Will Smith) manifests from nowhere to put Junuh's life in order.The gist of the story goes like this. Junuh was an up and coming golfer in the era before the Great War. The war made him a wreck, and he soon went to oblivion immersed in alcohol and petty gambling. Adele (Charlize Theron), the daughter of a wealthy owner of a golf course, tried to revive the greens as it was about to be repossessed. A golf tournament with significant prize money was organised. Junuh, as the local hero, was cajoled in taking part. A somewhat reluctant Junuh finally gave in. A mysterious man arrived at the scene to offer his caddie services. The rest of the story is not your typical sports drama but one of which infused with pearls of wisdom and symbolism of life. Even though Bagger Vance talked about golf swings, grip on the golf club and individual's authentic swing, the audience has no doubt that he was indeed talking about facts of life.
When Bagger preached about being in harmony with the swing of things, we are sure that he talked about attuning to the right frequency to sync with what we are doing. Like Ramanujam, who managed to receive so much knowledge about things that were not even thought of during his time by harmonising to the frequency that helped him secure mathematical formulas from his deity, Goddess Namagiri. A century later, scientists are still trying to understand his calculations as slowly, one by one, they are making sense. Imagine, Ramanujam had formulas for black holes even before scientists were talking about them.Many Hindus would agree that the many representations of Gods and Goddesses as seen in India and wherever the Indian diaspora had migrated are mere conduits for its practitioners to invoke particular vibrations that resonate with specific intentions. For example, Goddess Saraswathi is revered when education is the frontline in worshippers. Nataraja, the Master ecstatic cosmic dancer, is naturally summoned to guide budding classical dancers. But, to the uninitiated, these murtis are mere figurines. They fail to recognise the wisdom behind the physicality. They cannot see the woods for the trees.
Bagger Vance describes golf as a game that cannot be won, only played. Is it not the same for life too? We think we have overcome fate. We have it all for stacked it all for infinity, for self, descendants and beyond. We accumulate material gains and power that last a lifetime many times over. We are sure we have won only to be smacked on the head to realisation. We do not win the game of life. We are just players on the stage set by the puppet master to be hoodwinked into falling prey to the illusionary nature of the time that we live in.
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