The Falun Gong have morphed from a fringe religious group to a growing political force. They’re a familiar sight exercising and meditating in suburban parks around the world. A joint Foreign Correspondent-Background Briefing investigation delves into the opaque world of Falun Gong and its mysterious leader Master Li Hongzhi.

Logic is intellectual self-defense against such assaults on reason and also a method of quality control for checking the validity of your own views. But beyond these very practical benefits, informal logic—the kind we apply in daily life—is the gateway to an elegant and fascinating branch of philosophy known as formal logic, which is philosophy’s equivalent to calculus. Formal logic is a breathtakingly versatile tool. Much like a Swiss army...

From birth to death, in every country on the globe, for tens of thousands of years, the rhythm of human life has been accentuated by the practice of religious ritual. In this program adherents of three different faiths share their understanding of some common rites of passage: a rabbi explains the elements of a Jewish wedding, including some that date back to the book of Genesis; a minister discusses the role of Christian faith in making funerals...

In Kerala, which is situated in the southern tip of India, Hinduism is the principal belief system of the state's religiously diverse and historically broad-minded population. This program examines the multifaceted majority religion of India. Devotional ceremonies and observances of Hinduism and sacred Hindu literature, such as the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, are explored, as are some of the region's ornate temples. The Hindu emphasis on right living,...

Filmed in Allahabad, this captivating program captures the 2001 Maha Kumbh festival, a 43-day event that drew tens of millions of devotees to the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and mythic Saraswati Rivers to honor the creation story of Hinduism and to pray for release from the cycle of reincarnation. The program provides a kaleidoscopic view of the pageants, rituals, and ceremonies that make up the festival, as well as the sadhus and sadhvis, pandits,...

Residing to the north of India, the population of Kashmir is primarily Muslim. This program travels to the place known as "the Switzerland of the East" to study the beliefs and practices of Islam. Topics such as the Koran, the Pillars of Islam, the influence of Sharia, and traditional Muslim festivals and holy sites are addressed. Background on the arrival of Islam in Kashmir and its spread throughout India creates a historical context for the religion's...

Born in China of missionary parents, Huston Smith learned about Chinese language, culture, and religion while growing up near Shanghai. Smith explains how the intertwining of opposites is key to understanding the great religions of China-Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Smith shows that Eastern religions provide "an emphasis on direct experience and a method for attaining that. He introduces yoga, which he has been practicing for 50 years, as one...

Called a religion, a philosophy, and a science of mind, Buddhism is the way for hundreds of millions throughout the world. Who was the historical Prince Siddhartha, and where did he undergo the events that shaped his perceptions of the human condition? This remarkably accessible program dramatizes the life of the one who, beneath a tree at Bodh Gaya, transcended life's misfortunes and sufferings and became known, forevermore, as Buddha. Scholars,...

This program captures the increasingly political nature of Hinduism and its volatile relationship with Islam-India's leading minority religion. It argues that this volatility results from their past history, when large parts of India were dominated by the Muslim rulers, the Mughals. Today, many Hindus demand greater recognition of Hinduism in governmental affairs and oppose what they feel is the favoring of Muslims and other minorities. In other words,...

New religious movements are constantly coming into being. This program explores how and why new religious movements begin, with a particular focus on the Unification Church.