Arnaud Desjardins

Arnaud Desjardins (June 18, 1925 in Paris – August 10, 2011 in Grenoble) was a French author. He was a producer at the Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française from 1952 to 1974, and was one of the first high-profile practitioners of Eastern religion in France. He worked on television documentaries about spiritual traditions not well known to many Europeans at the time, including Hinduism, Tibetan Buddhism, Zen, and Sufism from Afghanistan.

Life and work
Arnaud Desjardins was the son of Jacques Guérin-Desjardins. He was part of the George Gurdjieff group, his first contact with mysticism. Educated in a Protestant Christian environment, he was exposed to spiritual aspects of Christianity on a visit to a trappist Catholic monastery. He then became interested in yoga, and when asked to direct a film for French television, he chose to make a series of films on India, for which he gained attention for his first film, Ashrams.

He met a spiritual teacher, Swami Prajnanpad, whom he got to know after filming a number of mystics from various traditions. He became a practitioner of Adhyatma yoga, which is a branch of Advaita Vedanta.

Filmography
Hinduism:


 * Ashrams, 1959

Tibetan Buddhism: In this two-part documentary, Arnaud Desjardins documents the practices and rites of Tibetans, and meets the Dalai Lama and spiritual teachers of Tibetan Buddhism and Tantra.
 * Le Message des Tibétains: Le Bouddhisme (première partie), 1966
 * The Message of the Tibetans: First Part, Buddhism (VHS), Alize Diffusion (1994)
 * Le Message des Tibétains: Le Tantrisme (deuxième partie), 1966
 * The Message of the Tibetans: Second Part, Tantrism (VHS), Alize Diffusion (1994)
 * Himalaya, Terre de Sérénité: Le Lac des Yogis (première partie), 1968
 * Himalaya, Terre de Sérénité: Les Enfants de la Sagesse (deuxième partie), 1968

Zen Buddhism:


 * Zen: Ici et Maintenant (première partie), 1971
 * Zen: Partout et Toujours (deuxième partie), 1971

Soufism:


 * Soufis D'Afghanistan: Maître et Disciple (première partie), 1974
 * Soufis D'Afghanistan: Au Cœur des Confréries (deuxième partie), 1974