Duende
Memoria 2023
Today is the first day of Fall in the Northern Hemisphere, and the seasons are visibly (and in other ways) shifting. From my own perspective, within my own Way, this marks the unofficial beginning of Memoria; a festival of harvest and remembrance before the onset of the winter months. That festival will “officially” begin when … Read moreMemoria 2023
Drop Tower Shugendō: a memento mori ritual
I suspect that, had the technology been available, the Shugenja of ancient Japan might well have devised an experience akin to the drop tower towards training themselves to die with grace. As a rider, you have a choice, in the liminal moments before the drop. The drop itself, of course, is happening whether you want … Read moreDrop Tower Shugendō: a memento mori ritual
VR Near-Death Simulation and Memento Mori Rituals (New York City, September 2023)
On the afternoon of September 17th, nine participants gathered in the Morbid Anatomy Library in Brooklyn, NYC to undertake an experiment in ritual space and time, guided by artists Bridget Carey, Tony Wolf and Virgil Wong. The main gates of Green-Wood Cemetery, just a few minutes’ walk from the Morbid Anatomy Library. Note the large … Read moreVR Near-Death Simulation and Memento Mori Rituals (New York City, September 2023)
“They Lost Loved Ones In 9/11. We Invited Them To Leave A Voicemail In Their Memory”
In the weeks leading up to the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, National Public Radio set up a vintage telephone booth across the river from the new World Trade Center and invited people to leave a voicemail for the people they’d lost that day.
The Elegy Project
Co-founded by Karen Elizabeth Bishop and David Sherman, The Elegy Project: The Project also includes a curriculum of courses on Modern Elegy, Ode and Elegy and Inventing Farewell: A Practicum on Elegy.
In Memoriam: Grandmaster Jung Nam Lee
Petals fell recently in memory of Grandmaster Jung Nam Lee, former trainer of American and South Vietnamese Special Forces commandos, the pioneer of Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido in New Zealand and my first martial arts instructor. He was 86 years of age. My favorite memory of Master Lee is a moment – probably in … Read moreIn Memoriam: Grandmaster Jung Nam Lee
A new shrine (?) on the riverwalk
Returning from a recent short vacation, I’ve discovered that the small vernacular shrine dedicated to “all Beings departed due to Covid-19” along our local river trail has been replaced by this new altar/work of land art.
The Sky Meadow Wind Phone
I’ve just returned from the first annual Sacred Harvest event at Sky Meadow, an idyllic 115-acre spiritual retreat in the mountainous Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. The Harvest was a wonderful three days of wholesome work, exploration and soul-talk, and provided me with the opportunity to fulfil my long-term ambition of creating and installing a wind … Read moreThe Sky Meadow Wind Phone
“How to plan a sustainable funeral”
In this article for the BBC, Becca Warner explores a variety of ecologically sustainable funeral options: “In the face of death, we seek consolation. And it’s been really interesting seeing how there’s been a conflict, in some cases, between what is sustainable and what people find consoling,” she says. Bags of bone ash and compost … Read more“How to plan a sustainable funeral”