Friends are obsessed, Burning Man spirituality crap.

[mdmf007]

I can totally see BM as a spiritual outlet. Mecca for some, and hallowed ground for some as well.

The Church of Larry has grown quite a bit.

[plowman]

You can find anything you want at Burningman. Just like anywhere else,if you look hard enough! It can be Spiritual, Religious, Drug induced, Alchahol numbed,Sexually inspired, a Sexual experament, a Learning expierience, a new world for the open minded, a sinful bad place for the narrow minded.
For me, I love the ART, all I can see. I love the PEOPLE, all I can meet. I love the PARTIES, all I can endure. I even love going home exhausted knowing I had the time of my life! And every year is a new expieriance.
Negative people and bad attitudes are out there and I have to deal with them on a daily basis in the default world. But not at Burningman!!!!!!!
I don't look for that so I cant find it.
Remember, you can find anything you want, all you have to do is look.

[fciron]

[quote="mdmf007"]I can totally see BM as a spiritual outlet. [/quote]

I have not been hanging around here long enough. When I see 'BM' I think of my grandma (Did you tinkle?), not Burning Man. Which makes the above sentence AWESOME!

I am gonna go have a spiritual outlet right now.

[Ugly Dougly]

just fo fun -

[transgirl]

I get annoyed when people always have to interpret every single moving experience they have as spiritual.

I find Burning Man moving, but not spiritually.

That's cool and everything, if all those people really *believe* they are having a spiritual experience every time something about BM strikes them emotionally.

It's just tiresome. ANd I don't believe it.

I was fortunate enough to chill with neighbors all week who were so incredibly cool and just "normal" and nice. Not dressed special or anything. No pretention, just enjoying it. You wouldn't have even thought they'd be into something like BM if you judged them by looks. They've been burners off and on for 10 years and remarked how mean and fake a lot of people have gotten.

It's bound to happen.

[gyre]

It was people outside of burning man that told me I was describing a spiritual experience at points.
I make no judgement.

Come to burning man and we'll wear necklaces made of crap left when the man burned and make fun of anyone too serious!

[mdmf007]

Some friend you are - would you be happier if your friends were devoted catholics, or Muslim stopping what they are doing and praying several times a day? maybe they do find something spiritual about BM, and if they are doing it through sex, drugs, and music. maybe you should point out that anything in excess is never good.

just my 2 cents.

[Teo del Fuego]

I get annoyed when people always have to interpret every single moving experience they have as spiritual.

We'd get along fairly well, I think. Well said

[Ugly Dougly]

How are you defining spiritual?

[atomosk]

What I saw was a lot of drug use, plenty of sex (stories about sex), and pure hedonistic behaviors.... Look, I am saying to call it what it is, a place where mostly white trash kids party hard for one week...Too many preps and it has gotten too dangerous because of the crowds.
mensen

9 years ago at my first burn it was all baby boomers, and the very small minority who were under 30 were seemingly friends of boomers who had originally embraced the spirit of burning man. Now there's an influx of unrelated "white trash kids" who are there to do drugs. They have been increasing every year as the boomers are disappearing, and the only buffer between these generations are the mid-late 20 somethings that still participate in the original spirit of things rather than spectate while intoxicated.

I've seem an influx of drug and rave oriented white trash kids coincide directly to the decrease in truly spiritual moments and fun in general. It seems there's half the black rock population involved in burning man the other half involved with getting high and trying to get laid and mooching the atmosphere created by those willing to participate. It seems every year there are more and more of the latter type.

I have gone to a few other camping rave events in Nevada and California as a poor methadone for Burning Man this past year and have been nearly disgusted by how often these are drug orgies dominated by just out of high school juggalos and junkie scumbags who preach burning man style spirituality, which is nonexistent and purely to pretend their drug use serves a spiritual purpose in their life. And they all want to upgrade to burning man.

They are invading burning man and I don't think I want to go for a 10th year

[thirt33n]

....well that's nice.

I can still find what I love in Black Rock City.
It's more diluted from 28,000 to 50,000 but I still find it.

I don't even have to look very hard.

Thanks for letting me know that I won't have to look for you this year.

have fun at the labor day picnic.

[atomosk]

I don't really mean to sound so cynical and derisive about the younger crowd. I do find all the same moments I've enjoyed from the beginning out there, spiritual moments most definitely still there.

But it's a lot harder each year when I have to kick teenage drug dealers out of my camp and am solicited for pills and shrooms on the street.

[TomServo]

Fuck the spirituality, I found that in 1999. Now I just accept it and have a good time. AND try to keep my mouth shut when I get back to the real world. If you can look beyond all the stereotypes, that proudly display themselves out their, and find some meaning, thats all that matters..and is nobody elses business.

[julie_c]

OK, OK...gotta post on this!
Burning Man is a super-condensed version of life in general...because it is in a confined space, happens 1 week out the year...it's life X 100,000...
Year#1, you are wowed beyone belief, you are 1st in line on-line the next year to get tickets. You met some cool peeps, you had freedoms and let inhibitions down let you never did before.
Year#2...same thing.
Year#3...you branch out a little more, attempt to build a cool theme camp, maybe you suceed, maybe you dont.
Year#4..you notice you are seeing the same stuff you saw the previous years, you start thinking you coulda spent the same $$ on a nice cruise to Mexico
Year#5...you are asking yourself, WTF am I sitting around in all this dust for??? where did all these a-holes come from?
Year #6, you skip it...give it a rest for awhile.
Dont hate on me for my post...just the way I see it.

[Timezone LaFontaine]

Year#5...you are asking yourself, WTF am I sitting around in all this dust for??? where did all these a-holes come from?

That's cool, but it sounds like you were pretty dehydrated in year #5.

[julie_c]

nope, not dehydrated....with every other "theme" camp being an improtu bar set-up...it was hard to get dehydrated...

[Marscrumbs]

Spiritual conditioning for the Burning Man newbie masses!!

Doctrine one: Pick up your MOOP!

Doctrine two: If it didn't come out of your body, it don't belong in the potty.

[buttercups]

What a buzz kill....I find I am much happier when i stop analyzing what everyone else is doing and focus on my own experience. Less drama, more fun, more freedom, more love for my fellow burners just as they are.

Lighten the hell up and you'll feel a lot better.

[This Woman]

Iwould suggest to Atomask and others that are frustrated, to check out one of the regional burns. I haven't done this myself - I'm still not done with Burning Man yet - but its something I'd like to do eventually.

[moonrise]

Playanakedetcetcetc - I don't disagree with anything you say, including the fact that some people are too thin-skinned to accept criticism of BM. If we love BM, we should be able keep an open mind about the many views of both its philosophy and the way it manifests itself at the event. It is a creative expression, a party, a spiritual experience - but in different people these elements will manifest themselves in different proportions. Some (like Mensen's "friends") clearly go off the deep end in one direction at the expense of the other two. BM isn't a sacred cow and a sense of perspective and humor have to be maintained about it. Hammer away.

Well put Bin Noddin, BRC Hammer away!

I think this is a good thread to bump, hope others enjoy it also.

[Isotopia]

You must new new here.

Replying to a thread that's dormant for three years?

Are you A II Z's sock?

[moonrise]

You must new new here.

Replying to a thread that's dormant for three years?

Are you A II Z's sock?

No Isotopia, I'm not a sock nor would I ever bother with one, not my bag.
Yes I'm new, I think there are some great opinions in this thread.

No big deal, it seems interesting, the majority of the posts look positive.
I'm not trying to stir anything negative up, not at all.

For me, I've learned endless interesting things about myself that were dormant, all from going to the burn and reading online, all very good, all positve.

Difficult to explain, except to say I've been seriously disabled since 1999, and was finally able to go to BM in 2010, only because I recently had discovered a new euro device that healed my broken back well enough to actually, finally, go.

I brought the euro device with me to BM and shared it, it helped some of my other disabled camp mates, one guy was walking better after using it for days on end, (luckily we had power) it gently corrected his spinal injury. It's a new fda approved device, no drugs, ice or heat, just movement. I'm happy I brought it out there. Yup, I'm still in physical pain but it's been reduced, up to 40 to 50% by this new fda approved device. physical pain can lock a person's mind not just our body, not to mention constant worry and hassles with insurance etc.

There are pockets of disabled burners, I'm sure you know this, I'm in one of those pockets. Fortunately, I'll be back for BM 2011. I'm bringing the device and a handful of things I am able to manage and contribute, it's not as easy for vegs and gimps to attend BM. (that camp is gone I hear) We do exist and we can and do contirbute. I wish more disabled people were able to make it out there, sadly there's probably a finnacial barrier, including for myself.

I also know you're super smart Isotopia, I enjoy learning from the collective minds of burners like you. Combining online BM reading and actually going has been a great gift for me. I've met countless long lost quality friends and made many more from BM, I'm very glad for that. No offense, I liked the thread and bumped it for others.

Sorry for the long post, but there it is, all true, the truth is powerful.

Btw, I make insane, awesome flambes, the ~Volcano a mind blowing flaming cocktail, 5 to 15 foot tall flames, I'm working on my best routine incorporating a topless stilt walking gal, I'll probably do that for 2012, 2011 it'll be the 5 foot version. I pulled it off at BM 2010 several times, Token told me; burners like fire and cocktails, fyi Token everyone loved it.
The ~Volcano, delicious and gourmet, here's to ya Isotopia! Have one on me.

[Simon of the Playa]

my friend lucy writes this. I think you'll like her.

[graidawg]

you are quite right moonrise i thouroughly enjoyed reading this.

Edited because of my signature

[moonrise]

you are quite right moonrise i thouroughly enjoyed reading this.

Edited because of my signature

I think you are a burner, yea, some say you must join Burning Man 'on playa' to truly be a burner, okay, fine you are doing that at BM 2011, you'll love it!!

You're opinion does count, we are a collective of great minds. Burning Man miracles come from within, then we share them!

(imho, avoid trying to give "on playa" camping advice until you've experienced that part) I thoroughly enjoyed 'on playa' BM, I also enjoy BM online, eplaya is a favorite. Maybe tune up you're signature line Grai? Buck up, get tough!

Check out these googles item #25062 I think they'll be perfect for BM on playa (made for desert, wind, sun etc, they seem perfect) they are $13, my $15 'cool looking' googles didn't keep dust out so well. These are military, great for exploring in those mysterious dust devils and storms, heheheh.

http://www.uscav.com/productinfo.aspx?p ... &tabid=548

[BBadger]

I remember sharing my spiritual moments with friends at my camp, notably that I was spiritually humbled on the throne after holding my shit for about a day or two with indigestion. Maybe that's the kind of spiritual awakening people don't want to hear about.

[moonrise]

Here ya go BBadger, have a ~Volcano, I hear you like coffee (and playing practical jokes)

yea, I doubt your camp mates like hearing about that spritual crap, LOL

[theCryptofishist]

I remember sharing my spiritual moments with friends at my camp, notably that I was spiritually humbled on the throne after holding my shit for about a day or two with indigestion.

Oh how Martin Luther of you.

[Simon of the Playa]

I remember sharing my spiritual moments with friends at my camp, notably that I was spiritually humbled on the throne after holding my shit for about a day or two with indigestion.

Oh how Martin Luther of you.

hey it aint easy nailing 99 feces onto a JOTS door...

[Isotopia]

yea, I doubt your camp mates like hearing about that spritual crap, LOL

In the other Badger camp (the original one BTW) anything spiritual must include the letters (or the word) b-o-u-r-b-o-n.