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Underground > Temple >

Australian Sweat Lodge Fatality

trouble at bill

16:33 / 15.06.07

Dear all,

In the interests of esoteric health and safety, I am posting a link to this. It may or may not provoke some heated discussion, but whatever, do be careful out there.

16:44 / 15.06.07

"Not long after, I noticed a particular energy coming out of the lodge, it was quite strong in nature," he told police. "I noted two people were having an out-of-body experience."

...but didn't notice one was dying. Hmm. Shows the need for conventional medical training as well as shamanic healing I feel. "The campers attempted to revive them by banging drums, chanting, burying their feet in soil and massaging their hands" No first aider on site then? Or, in fact, anybody with an ounce of sense? Obviously it could be sensationalist reporting but if it took them over six hours to raise the alarm then those people need a good hard kicking.

trouble at bill

16:47 / 15.06.07

It looks absolutely dreadful doesn't it? I am not publicising this in Muggle circles as it just makes perfect ammunition for the 'oh look at what those stupid New Agers have done now' brigade.

Essential Dazzler

16:50 / 15.06.07

Muggle circles

Read the board much?

17:00 / 15.06.07

Actually, I think "look at what those stupid new agers have done now" pretty well sums it up. I don't know much (or really, anything), about what the spiritual experience of being in a seat lodge is like, but I do know that exposure to extreme heat can be dangerous. Spiritual exploration doesn't give you a pass on exercising some common sense.

And - you don't want to publish it in the "muggle" circles. What does that even mean? Only magical people can understand the true meaning of some idiot overheating in sweat lodge? Anyway, it was in the paper, right? I'd say the cat was out of the bag.

17:01 / 15.06.07

Dudes, Bilgamesh was being ironic.

17:03 / 15.06.07

I too won't be spreading the event around for people hostile to magical practice to quote.
"I'm going to a handfasting on Sunday"
"But the new age is bollocks! That guy died!"

(Also, 'read the board much?' Yes, yes he did.)

Essential Dazzler

17:03 / 15.06.07

Not really that obvious, but if you say so i apologise for my snippy post.

(I hadn't meant to post it, only typed it out of frustration, I was surprised when Haloquin commented on me posting in the Temple)

17:05 / 15.06.07

I think "look at what those stupid people have done now" pretty well sums it up.

(Username: The Epic of Bilgamesh
Status: Member
Registered: Feb 2003)

17:06 / 15.06.07

Sorry - I had no way of discerning that from the post. I have tried to read around enough here not to make an ass of myself, but obviously don't know the poster well enough to recognize the irony.

trouble at bill

17:20 / 15.06.07

Don't panic about lost irony folks, it is the internet after all. To be honest my major feeling atm is are we being too hard on these people? I mean, could any of us tell if someone was ill or even dead as opposed to meditating simply by looking at them? Especially in a steamy sauna type environment? And how awful must the ones who just banged their drums feel now? Perhaps we should show more understanding and empathy, and send them some astral huggles.

Essential Dazzler

17:21 / 15.06.07

huggles

Have you learned noth...

Oh, proceed.

17:55 / 15.06.07

I have first aid training as part of my Ordeal kit.
I think many people overlook many of these rituals were understood to have risks and so had built in access checks. By lifting them out of context of the culture a good number of rituals have lost their ties to the medical ramp up and attached care givers.

If most of us went to the public pool and saw someone not moving on the bottom we'd know it was an emergency, because we know what is supposed to be happening and what is not in that particular shared event.

Few people have been going to sweat lodges for their whole lives or know what is normal and what is abnormal. Spirit/soul/body crisis and norms included.

I've heard stories of people seizing at gatherings and the lack of experience in the people around them did not lend itself to skilled care. When in doubt assume it is an every day run of the mill health crisis. Better yet don't take part of group rituals where there is no clearly explained emergency procedure, as there should be in movie theaters and camping trips.

If you accidently ruin someone's communion with the Divine because you thought they might be dying from heatstroke they need to thank you and then set up an event with better wrangelers.

Very few people actually want a ritual death which results in literal death.

18:03 / 15.06.07

Better yet don't take part of group rituals where there is no clearly explained emergency procedure, as there should be in movie theaters and camping trips.

STRONG TRUTH! Also as Epic said, I have sympathy for the people who didn't realise what was happening and who must feel pretty guilty about it all.

(BTW when in doubt about a poster, click on their name, then at least you know how long they've been here being a a dick for... oh hi Bilgamesh! Didn't see you there! Of course I wasn't implying you've a long history of dick, old chap, you're simply paranoid!)

trouser the trouserian

18:45 / 15.06.07

I seem to recall a case in the UK a few years back - again involving a sweat lodge, with some poor bloke dropping dead whilst those around him mouthed new age platitudes.

If you're going to run events where people are going to get into potentially life-threatening situations - like sweat lodges, fire-walking etc., it does help to have first aid training and experienced assistants who are able to monitor participants without being intrusive.

It's safekeeping at a basic level.

18:52 / 15.06.07

One lesson drugs have taught me, it's valuable to have a person as 'ground control'.