Samsara, an Indian film, takes place 15,000 feet above sea level in the Himalayan region of Ladakh, where Chinese and Indian troops clashed in 1962. The word “Samsara” means “reincarnation.” Tashi (played by Shawn Ku) begins in the role of a Lama (a Buddhist monk). He has fallen into a trance in a remote monastery, left alone for three years, three days, and three days, and is almost entirely frostbitten. After his fellow monks rescue him, he resumes a happy life as a monk, promoted in rank because of the long test, until one day the beauty of a village woman captivates him and he has a wet dream. In time, the couple marries, and her former suitor contains his anger maturely. They have a delightful son, so he enjoys the role of father. Having decided to live among the common people, Tashi becomes a productive worker and trader of wheat, the principal cash crop of the community. When Ladakh’s principal buyer of wheat arrives at harvest time, Tashi exposes the trader for having unbalanced scales. The trader leaves, so Tashi and companions go to Ladakh’s open market to sell the wheat. Next year, Tashi’s continuing opposition to the trader brings hardship to the village. Meanwhile, an attractive Indian woman who lives in the village seduces Tashi, so his wife rejects him. Sobbing uncontrollably, Tashi realizes that the temptations of life cancel out the joys, so he decides to return to the purity and simplicity of the life as a Buddhist monk, and his fellow monks greet him warmly. Clearly, Samsara is a variation on the story of the life of the Buddha as well as of any child who becomes an adult in a world that is bound to be filled with disappointments. The Indian film Siddharta (1972), based on the Herman Hesse novel, is truer to the life of the Buddha, but Samsara, a story made into a film several times before, updates the story to a somewhat more modern time. For many filmviewers, the best part of Samsara may be the ethnography of the region, brought to the screen by outstanding cinematography. A subtext of the film is that Chinese culture is not present in Ladakh, thus justifying India’s claim of sovereignty. MH