Bouddhisme, la loi du silence (2022)

Sexual abuses, mental manipulation and embezzlement: Tibetan Buddhism is shaken by serious scandals. An in-depth account that lifts the veil on the nonspiritual underbelly of a religion venerated in Europe. His name is Ricardo Mendes and, as a young man, he lived through hell in a Buddhist community in Castellane, far from the ideal of wisdom advocated by its founder, Robert Spatz. Now in search of justice and having constituted himself as a civil party in a lawsuit, Ricardo tells how the Belgian lama incited his disciples to abandon their offspring to him, leaving the field free. Physical abuse, deprivation of food and freedom or rape of girls were the daily lot of unprotected children. However, these abuses are not an exception: since Tibetan Buddhism became a fashionable phenomenon in the 1960s, especially in Europe, sexual and financial scandals have multiplied, while its masters in exile have prospered. An international icon, the Dalai Lama himself has long covered up the secret activities of those who serve the expansion of his religion: with an economy based on charity, it must avoid too flashy affairs... The lama Sogyal Rinpoche, at the head of an empire after the publication of his best-seller The Tibetan Book of Life and Death, ends up being denounced by many victims for his immoderate taste of luxury, his violent authoritarianism and his sexual abuses. He thus symbolizes what the Dalai Lama calls "ethical problems"... In the back rooms of monasteries "People take charisma for a spiritual quality." Thanks to its revelations and the quality of its contributors, this edifying documentary helps to unravel the "flowery" Western view of exotic Tibetan Buddhism. It reminds us that this religion requires total devotion from the student, who must certify to his master that he will keep the initiations to which he must submit secret: an ideal ground for covering abuses of all kinds with a veil of silence. The research carried out by journalist Élodie Emery and documentary filmmaker Wandrille Lanos refines the perception of this spirituality which is adorned with so many virtues, including poverty. For Buddhism, a veritable multinational company, is expanding with its head offices, its derivative products (including meditation), its subsidiaries (Buddhist centers for the wealthy), its communication strategies and agencies specialized in crisis management. With numerous testimonies, including researchers and abused followers who tell the story behind the scenes, this detailed account lifts the veil on the impostures of Buddhism, so popular in the West for its quest for inner peace.