The Law of Conservation states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, so, what happens when we die?
Maybe it’s a rhetorical question, but one that persists in the human psyche and often demands more attention in the wake of death and grief. As we peel back the blocks that have been socially imposed on us in regards to death and grief, we find that we have very few resources for understanding the unrelenting curiosity we have about life after death. But it hasn’t always been this way. In many parts of the world, it isn’t this way. The dominant culture has convinced us of our separation from the dead. Chief Ninawa, Huni Quin, defines coloniality as “A biological, neurological, cognitive impairment that creates the illusion that you are separated from the tribe of the living and the dead.” What are we losing through this forced separation? What are we to gain by reconnecting to the Tribe of the Dead?
In this goodGrief circle, we will peer into the wisdom of those who believe that the energy of those who have passed is not destroyed, and live in a practice of acknowledging the ancestors that have moved beyond the Tribe of the Living. As always, there will be an opportunity for sharing and bringing the dead to life through remembrance and story. Participants will also be guided in ritual to connect with the Tribe of the Dead, tending to the Ancestral Grief we carry through generational loss and a perceived disconnection from those who have taken on new forms.
Although there are no pre-requirements for joining this goodGrief Circle, here are some recommended resources available which may serve to orient participants to the theme of this circle and guide our group.
That this session falls on the same calendar date as the beginning of Día de Los Muertos celebrated throughout México and Mesoamerica, Úndas in the Phillipines, and All Souls Day throughout the Western Roman Catholic world is no accident. It is a time when the veil between the dead and the living is known to be thin, and these holidays give us a precious opportunity to intentionally connect to the our Tribe of the Dead.
Our otherWise glossary entry for re-membering may help guide us in one simple way we can connect to the Tribe of the Dead.
This article which describes funeral rituals practiced by different cultures around the world to honor their dead may also serve as some inspiration for dissolving the separation between the dead and the living.
And last but not least, watch and listen to Andrea Gibson read her beautiful poem, Love Letter from the Afterlife.