This Sierra Club John Muir Exhibit Review comes from volunteer webmaster and coordinator of the Sierra Club’s John Muir Education Team, Harold Wood, with design assistance from Sierra Club staff.
Sierra Club John Muir Exhibit Review
“The Unruly Mystic: John Muir” (2018) – Documentary. 1 hour 10 minutes.
This film focuses on the uniquely spiritual or mystical insights to be gained from of the remarkable life and writings of John Muir. John Muir was among the first to teach us that the gift of wild nature has unparalleled value for its spiritual nourishment, yet his message continues to be a primary inspiration today. Outstanding video photography of “nature’s temples” are intertwined with perceptive interviews from people who are inspired by nature’s beauty, and who were often inspired to encounter that beauty by John Muir.
The filmmaker combines his own special sense of connectedness with nature – – something that goes beyond mere “outdoor recreation” — with insights about Muir and the sacredness of nature from psychologists, authors, park rangers, and practitioners from varied spiritual traditions, as well as from everyday people. The film engagingly goes beyond just quoting Muir in the soundtrack (by a narrator with a Scottish accent), but provides the written words on screen to help the reader fully engage with Muir’s message. As followers of Muir attest, today we recognize the necessity of not just passively enjoying nature, but for actively working to protect nature’s treasures in order for everyone to experience them.
Browse this link for all things Muir. For the most recent features of that Sierra Club website, see the What’s New section.
The Unruly Mystic: A film series on those Who Woke Us Up produced by Crazy Wisdom Films, under Michael M. Conti Productions LLC, explores the wellness and spiritual connection to creativity, nature and science. These films are carefully curated around each subject theme, and produced to find the insightful stories of today’s modern mystics, to explore and engage the viewers with an experiential journey through the visual craft of film.
