"John Bush has a unique and inspired vision of the art of documentary film
MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS BOSTON
INTO THE HEART OF INDIA
is an immersive journey to ancient sites; a cultural portrait
offering an experience of openness and interconnection.
BODHGAYA
Experience a vast landscape with luminous paths, the inspired
diversity of spiritual India from a western seeker’s point of view.
NANDA DEVI HIMALAYAS (25,643 ft)
Landscape and Scope
Traveling over 2,500 miles—from the snows of the Himalayas to the temple-dotted
shores of India’s southern tip—INTO THE HEART OF INDIA offers a rare view of the
country’s sacred geography. The series becomes a cinematic pilgrimage, honoring
the beauty of India’s spiritual diversity. What unfolds is a radiant tapestry
of landscape, tradition, and the human heart.
Origins and Relevance
INTO THE HEART OF INDIA brings ancient wisdom into the rhythm
of modern life, offering a journey that moves both inward and across
sacred land. Yoga, meditation, and mindfulness—now embraced around
the world—arose in India as paths not of escape, but of return. They lead
one into presence, into stillness, into the quiet unfolding of the heart.
This cinematic journey brings one to their source—to the forests, rivers,
and temples where breath became prayer, movement became offering,
and silence became knowing.
JOHN BUSH AMARNATH KASHMIR 1971
The Seeker
In 1969, John Bush—an anti-war artist—left behind a restless America
in search of something deeper than resistance: peace. Drawn to India,
he found a world alive with spiritual depth and open-hearted welcome.
For two years, he immersed himself in hatha yoga, bhakti devotion, and
mindfulness meditation. Alongside other Western seekers, he lived and
traveled through India’s revered pilgrimage centers under the direct
guidance of Neemkaroli Baba, later known through Be Here Now.
Filmmaker Returns
Now, more than five decades later, John Bush returns—not only as a pilgrim,
but as a respected filmmaker—still deeply connected to the sacred pulse of
India. With a small Indian film team and a spirit of gratitude he sets out on
pilgrimage once again . The result is INTO THE HEART OF INDIA: a cinematic
offering shaped by lived experience, cultural respect, and the quiet hope that
these timeless places touch something vital in the viewer.
“As large as the universe is, so large is the space within the heart.
Both heaven and earth are contained within it, both fire and air,
sun and moon, lightning and stars.”
THE CHANDOGYA UPANISHAD
RADHA & krishna
“When a person responds to the joys and sorrows of
others as If they were their own, they have attained
the highest state of spiritual union.”
The Bhagavad Gita
John Bush - Director’s Statement
Every human being is born a pilgrim in this world
on their own spiritual journey through life.
INTO THE HEART OF INDIA is a cultural portrait of India’s
ancient pilgrimage tradition fully alive in the contemporary
world. Thousands of years of pilgrims traversing India’s
sacred geography has created a profound wholeness
that still endures.
The series seeks to discover truths in India’s diverse spiritual
heritage affirming a deeper sense of unity between all human
beings. While I am not a member of any religion, I am grateful
for the ways these traditions have nourished my spiritual life,
and wish to share through film their timely relevance for
current generations. (continued below)
THE RIVER GANGES
Director’s statement continued -
Within Indian thought is the paradox of nirvana and samsara -
divinity and delusion existing both in the world and within
every human being. Practices to refine one’s own sacred nature
and connection evolved over millennia in India, including the
essential experience of pilgrimage.
Traveling through a vast spiritual landscape with a small Indian
team, an assistant director & cinematographer, for over a year
in total, was a revelatory time for each of us. These revered
locations yielded up the power of unforgettable images
and unseen realms.
The intimacy of devotion seen in pilgrims’ faces reflects one
of the series major themes, bringing together the mortal and
eternal, the human and being. What we see on screen may
reflect ways viewers see themselves. After all, one reason
for going on pilgrimage is to remind us that we are
already on one - together.
