Western culture often relates to grief as something heavy, sad, perhaps even scary to feel. Many of us learned not to grieve, or to rush our grieving, or to keep it private. When we do not grieve, we may experience anger, numbness, isolation, depression… sometimes physical pain in our bodies. Yet our bodies are designed to heal, to liquify our grief so it may flow out of bodies.
Come join this intro to grief ritual where we tremble open & not closed. Grief ritual supports us to become more clear, more loving, more resourced, more connected to life & to each other. As we find ourselves in political, economic, & environmental crises, grief rituals are more important than ever.
My teacher, Sobonfu Somé, brought grief ritual to the West from Burkina Faso in West Africa. She came from the Dagara people who had a proverb, “if you want to protect yourself from the enemy, teach the enemy how to grieve.” Since she became an ancestor, I have felt called to create a film honoring her legacy & carrying forth her gift. I have had the honor of guiding 20+ grief rituals across Turtle Island (colonially known as the U.S.) inspired by Sobonfu.
She taught me that grief is not just an emotion, it’s a way to “invite life back into our body & into our spirit.” I had never seen a large group of people not only willing to name our pain, but willing to be with it and to let it transform us. Sobonfu gave me a sense of the power of our hearts when we come together as a village.
Our time together includes:
- Dance to open our hearts & ground our bodies
- Call in elements for resource
- Watch the intro to the new Grief Eros Film!
- Community conversation about the film
- Dance to ground & move sacred rage
- Distill what you are grieving
- Release grief through the body with community & spiritual support
- Grounding integration
- Harvests
- Gratitude to the elements & Sobonfu
10% of proceeds will be donated to Sobonfu’s village in reciprocity.
If you have physical injuries or limitations you are welcome to modify the movement to support your body.
If you have questions around registration please email Carter at clipnick93@aol.com.
Event photo of Z Griss by Life Escobar during Z's solo show, Waters of the Soul.
About the facilitator:
Z (aka Zahava Griss, they/them) is the founder of Embody More Love, a spiritual kinky dance community for personal & cultural liberation. Since 1999, Z has guided dance rituals to decolonize, heal, build intimacy, & make love out of what is not yet love. Z guides a 3 month immersion called Play with Power & Gender through Dance, dedicated to attachment & trauma informed kink. Z also created a Grief & Eros Film honoring the legacy of grief ritualist Sobonfu Somé. Learn more at www.EmbodyMoreLove.com.
You are encouraged to watch this council honoring Sobonfu before we gather:
