Philosophical Influence Timeline: Alejandro Jodorowsky – The Holy Mountain

Firstly, for Sean — obviously, your father and The Beatles were significantly influenced by and influenced Holy Mountain and Jodorowsky. Do you think that such reference points made your experience and understanding of the film different from that of those who may have just stumbled upon it?

It’s hard to say. Elvis was a big influence on The Beatles but Elvis didn’t influence me at all. So honestly I don’t think Joderowski’s impact on me had much to do with The Beatles other than that was how I first heard about him.

Mystical Weapons is named after the film. How did that come about, and are there other ways in which the film has influenced your record or creative output?

I’m not sure if the film had any direct influence on the record since we settled on our band name after we had finished the record already. Before that we were called Consortium Musicum, but we kept getting mistaken for classical musicians. That was our true motivation in changing the name. I often look at art and images I like to inspire my brain to think of titles.

ALEJANDRO JORODOWSKY’S MYSTICAL WEAPONS; IMAGES FROM THE STYGIAN PORT

What aspects of the film do you think are most striking to you? Aesthetics, philosophy, humor, etc.? Are there particular scenes which have made a lasting impact?

The whole film is incredibly iconic. There are scenes that stick out, but then every time I watch it I see something new. I don’t really understand the philosophy behind it, but I do understand the aesthetic, and I love that. I’ve never quite understood what was going on although I’ve heard many theories. I love the scene w all the Jesuses. The scene with the flame table. The scene with the Mayan frogs; although it’s very disturbing to see them explode, it’s certainly unforgettable.

The film is obviously an amazing visual treat; your music is very visually-evocative as well. If the film influenced this particular album, did it change your visual interpretation of your music after the fact?

Honestly our visuals have for a long time been about Martha Colburn’s short films. She is Mystical Weapons’ visual media member… Having said that, I do think that this band is specifically about the visuals that we play to live. I’m not sure how that will evolve in the future since Martha is very busy, but we will always find some visual element to pair with the live performances.

Before creating Holy Mountain, Jodorowksy employed methods of spiritual exercise, including Zen training, the teachings of Gurdjieff, and hallucinogens. Are you at all influenced by esoteric knowledge, psychedelics, rituals, etc.?

I’ve certainly read my fair share of all of that stuff. I wrote a paper on peyote when I was in high school, and used to read a lot of Terence McKenna and Carlos Castanedas. I’m not an especially superstitious person though, and don’t really believe in divination. I prefer particle physics to metaphysics.

In Alejandro Jodorowsky’s autobiography, The Spiritual Journey of Alejandro Jodorowsky, he details a scene in “The Dope Show” music video where Manson pays homage to The Holy Mountain:

I had stumbled on an interview with the rock star Marilyn Manson. His whitened face, reddened lips, Goth style, and sincere statements followed no script or rules, and I found myself fascinated by him. I sensed genius and exclaimed to myself: “With actors like him, I’d find stories to film again!” I made inquiries in the music and film worlds as to how to get in touch with him. I was told it was impossible. He received tons of fan mail and thousands of please for professional meetings, but he never answered any. I gave up.

Two weeks later, I was awakened at three in the morning by a phone call.

“Mr. Jodorowsky? I’m Marilyn Manson.”

I could not believe my ears. At first I thought someone was playing a bad joke on me, but it was really him–I did not have to go the mountain; it had come to me! He had called me to tell me that my films, especially The Holy Mountain, had inspired him so much that had made a clip in which he paid homage to it by imitating the scene in which the thief wakes amid cardboard Christs modeled in his image. He had even been inspired by the title to write a script for a film called Holy Wood, and he wanted me to direct him in it. I told him to send me the script by express mail. Two days later, I read it–a monumental, scathing attack on Hollywood. I realized that he would need about twenty-five million dollars to realize it. It was clear to me that he had no hope of getting this money from Hollywood producers, because they would never accept the ferocity of such criticism of their world. When I told Manson this, he understood. Instead, he offered to work on one of my projects. He heard that I wanted to make The Child of El Topo. I told him that it would be an honor and a joy to direct him in the lead role–but a legal obstacle prevented me from doing this film.”

On his personal Facebook, which is maxed out on friends, Jodorowsky has posted an interview he conducted on Marilyn Manson in 2007, which is excerpted below:

How has Alejandro Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain influenced your creative output?

I think I saw Holy Mountain for the first time in about 1993 or 94 on a bootleg VHS, and at that time, I felt as though it were everything I had ever been looking for. It’s not just a film, but a container for a vast warehouse of esoteric teachings: alchemy, astrology, kabbalah, tantra, tarot, zen and ayahuasca are all in there. What’s particularly striking about The Holy Mountain is that symbols live and breathe with a numinous pulse. The film speaks symbols richly and profusely, but I think trying to break them down and “translate” the symbols into any kind of logical formation is a huge mistake. What does the movie “mean” is the same as asking what does the dance of life “mean” and that is entirely the objective of this very subjective work of art.

It’s more like a living painting that unfolds in time on the screen. A wildly pulsing and throbbing and dancing painting, spinning inside and out of the circle of life.

It was on the recommendation of John Lennon that El Topo came to be brought and distributed in the United States and internationally, via Apple, whicstributed records by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Allen Klein, president of the company, wrote Jodorowsky a check for one million dollars to make any film he wished — also on the recommendation of Lennon. This resulted in The Holy Mountain.

In his book, The Spiritual Journey of Alejandro Jodorowsky, he gives an experience related to Harrison:

When George Harrison learned this company, Apple, was going to produce my film The Holy Mountain on John Lennon’s recommendation, he asked to read the script. Then he expressed a desire to play the lead role, that of the thief. Dressed completely in white, he received me in his elegant suite at the Plaza Hotel in New York. He offered me some melon juice with cinnamon and congratulated me on the script. He said that he was prepared to play the role on condition that we cut one scene, which he read aloud: “At an octagonal sink, next to a veritable hippopotamus, the alchemist bathes the thief, turns him over on his back, his buttocks facing the camera, and rubs soap over his anus.”

With an amiable grin, he said, “It’s quite out of the question for me to expose my anus in public.”

I felt as if the sky had fallen in. In those days, for me, a film was not a commercial or merely a work of art. I wanted this film to be the record of a sacred experience capable of enlightening an audience. For this, I needed actors–but only those who were prepared to put aside their egos. If Harisson played the lead role, it was important that he provide an example of total humility, exposing himself with the innocence of a child. This shot lasted only ten seconds, but it was vital to the work. It was obvious that if George Harrison played the role, the film would be assured of worldwide success, making millions–but this success would weaken the film, catering to the squeamishness of a famous musician. What a difficult koan!

Abruptly, and in total defiance of my own rationality, I rejected Harrison and hired a modest, young Mexican comedian to play the role of the thief. It was a choice between self-honesty and money and fame.