The Boomer List
Deepak Chopra, M.D., on Shamanism in American Medicine
Sorry, this video is not currently available.
In this film outtake, the alternative medicine "guru" Deepak Chopra, M.D. (b.1947), describes his introduction to American medicine in 1970, during his first night as an intern at a New Jersey hospital. Chopra had worked as a doctor in India before immigrating to the United States, which faced a doctor shortage during the Vietnam War.
Chopra did not know the technical jargon used by American hospitals to addressed death, such as "expiration" and "pronounce dead," and confusion arose when a patient died and Chopra and the nurses did not understand each other's terminology.
When he was asked to "pronounce" a person dead, Chopra thought, "In America your soul is not allowed to leave your body until a medical deity — otherwise known as M.D. — says 'I release you.' They're like shamans. They wear white coats, stethoscopes, pronounce Latin mantras instead of aborigine mantras. Dance around cat scanners instead of fires. There's no difference from thousands of years ago."
American Masters: The Boomer List, premiering nationwide Tuesday, September 23, 9-10:30 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), tells the story of this influential generation through the lives of 19 iconic boomers—one born each year of the baby boom.
About the Master
VIEW MASTER COLLECTION
Author Tim O'Brien's Most Powerful Memory of the Vietnam War Has "Nothing to do with Bullets"
Quotes from the Boomer Generation
Clip | Film Outtake & Playlist: The Powerful Memory of Music
Quiz: Have You Met the Boomer Generation?
Portraits of 19 Iconic Baby Boomers
Timeline of a Generation
The Boomer List - Trailer
Phillip Johnson: A Self Portrait
Charles & Ray Eames: The Architect and the Painter
Alice Waters and Her Delicious Revolution
A Fierce Green Fire - Full Film
Inspiring Woman
American Masters is an award-winning signature PBS series created by The WNET Group and is made possible by all of you.
Major Support for American Masters provided by
© 2022 WNET. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.