The campus Interfaith Coalition will host its Interfaith Day celebration that includes a film screening on Tuesday, Nov. 18.
A grand opening ceremony of the Tranquility Room will be held in Thompson Hall Room W103, at 3:30 p.m. A special screening of the film “Loving Karma” follows at 4 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public.
This is a film that will raise your spirits and confirm your belief in the power of love and compassion to change the world.” - Dr. Janeil Rey
"Loving Karma" is the long-awaited follow-up to the Emmy Award–winning documentary "Tashi and the Monk." Set in the remote Himalayan foothills of Arunachal Pradesh, India, the film retells the original story in a newly revised ‘directors cut’ and then expands on the journey of Tashi, a spirited young girl who was once one of the most troubled children at Jhamtse Gatsal Children’s Community.
Over the course of 12 years, “Loving Karma” traces Tashi’s path of becoming — shaped by love, loss and the radical compassion of her teacher, Lobsang Phuntsok, a former Buddhist monk turned community-builder.
What began as a story of a child at the edge of despair becomes a universal portrait of resilience and transformation, asking: How do we carry the karma of our past, and how can love and compassion help us transform it into something new?
At its heart, “Loving Karma” is more than a coming-of-age story. It is a window into a bold experiment in compassion-in-action. Jhamtse Gatsal (“Garden of Love and Compassion”) is where over 125 children are nurtured not just with food and shelter, but with belonging, education, unconditional love and the tools to heal generational trauma.
As Tashi’s story unfolds, so too does a larger truth: when we choose compassion, we not only change one life we plant seeds of healing that ripple across families, communities and the world.
The film, which runs approximately 1:45, will be followed by a discussion and question-and-answer period led by Sandy Crawford, a board member of Jhamtse International. The award-winning filmmakers, Johnny Burke and Andrew Hinton, will join the discussion via Zoom.
“This is a film that will raise your spirits and confirm your belief in the power of love and compassion to change the world,” said College of Education, Health Sciences, and Human Services Dean Janeil Rey.
The Interfaith Coalition event is supported by the School of Business; the College of Education, Health Sciences, and Human Services; and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Special thanks go to the SUNY Interfaith Grant for supporting the Interfaith Tranquility Room.
