‘Courage of Doukhobors’ on TV

Part 1

‘Courage of the Doukhobors’ on TV

Show time 22.5 minutes spread over 3 shows. Narrated
in English with subtitles in 9 languages, including Russian.

Press release – August 15, 2007. By Koozma J. Tarasoff, Ottawa, Canada
tarasoff@spirit-wrestlers.com Also: k.kristova@sympatico.ca

A three-part television series on the ‘Courage of the Doukhobors’ was broadcast on Supreme Master Television (SMTV) July 7, 14 and 21, 2007 in three half-hour programs. It was broadcast as Streaming Television on a new international channel Hotbird Satellite 6 (with headquarters in California) that opened in September 2006. The new station streams good news programs across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

The inspiration for SMTV came from a Vietnam lady called Ching Hai, who once worked for the Red Cross in Europe, was a professional jewelry and dress designer before going to Tibet and achieving the status of a Master Buddhist teacher. According to SMTV, ‘positive programming will bring a new dimension in your life’.

Doukhobor historian Koozma J. Tarasoff first became aware of the station when a ‘volunteer’ called him and arranged for an interview at his home on July 7. Interviewer Vic Norian, a retired Ottawa teacher, told Koozma that he prepared for the interview by reading his book Spirit Wrestlers: Doukhobor Pioneers’ Strategies for Living (2002).

‘I was especially fascinated’, said Norian, ‘by the chapter on “Wisdom of the Ages” which closely resembled the spirit of Buddhism. Especially, I was impressed by the universality of Doukhoborism to all peoples and the environment. Their spirituality resonated the important truths in all religions.’

Part 1 was a short introduction, while Parts 2 and 3 were largely based on Koozma’s interviews at his Ottawa home. The California station edited the interview and included some other data as well. In all programs, Koozma’s photos from his books were liberally used. As well, some other photos appeared.

The interview probed the following questions: What is the origin of the Doukhobors? Why did 7,500 of them migrate to Canada in 1899? Who was Lev N. Tolstoy and what was his role in the migration? What constitutes the spiritual beliefs of the Doukhobors? What is the significance of the symbolism of bread, salt and water? Are all Doukhobors vegetarian? How would you summarize the wisdom of the ages presented in your book? In what ways do the Doukhobors live in harmony with Mother Earth? And how active is this group today?

According to Koozma Tarasoff, ‘Each program began with a revolving advertisement on vegetarianism and vegetarian restaurants around the world. All were subtitled in seven languages including Russian. The programs are available 24 hours via Hotbird Satellite 6 and on-line TV live at www.suprememastertv.com. The new technology is fast and fascinating. The hosts had difficulty in pronouncing the word ‘Doukhobor’ and "Tarasoff", but otherwise the program went well. The images were generally very effective. However, there was one error at the end when an aerial view of the Doukhobor Heritage Village in Verigin, Saskatchewan was shown, but the reference was to the Doukhobors in Grand Forks, British Columbia. I did not have any creative control in how the program was presented other then the fact that I was interviewed on digital film for 70 minutes by an interviewer and two professional cameramen.’ The total show time is 22.5 minutes spread over 3 shows.

Click below to download the 3 programs of "Our Nobel Lineage" featuring "The Courage of the Doukhobors". The video will display in Windows Media Player if it is installed on your computer. If you do not have WMP installed, your browser will prompt you to download and install the player. To skip commercials and go directly to the Doukhobor segment, you can slide the timeline bar to the time shown below. For example, the first segment appears at the 9 minute mark and ends at 13 minutes and 20 seconds, a total of 4 minutes and 20 seconds long.