Memento Mori: An Evening Meditation Event

What is Memento Mori? 

In Latin, memento mori means “remember that you will die”. In Sanskrit, maranasati means “mindfulness of death”.  Both have been used for hundreds of years to name the powerful role of contemplating mortality in spiritual liberation in both the East and West. 

The Event 

This special evening invites us to join the long tradition of death contemplation while also honoring more modern celebrations with death at their center: Halloween and Día de los Muertos. Nicoya will offer an hour-long guided meditation inspired by Atisha’s Nine Contemplations on Death (and Roshi Joan Halifax’s commentaries on them), then we’ll celebrate our vitality with social time including food and drink. It will be an evening of contrasts: dark and light, solitary and social, death and life. 

What to bring 

Death-themed costumes are encouraged but not required. Meditators will be encouraged to rest in Savasana, or corpse pose, during the meditation so factor that into your costume, and please bring a yoga mat, blanket, and anything else that would allow you to lie comfortably on the floor for about an hour. Chairs will also be available for those who prefer to sit. 

Warning 

We will be diving into a deep contemplation of death. This can bring up deep psychological material: please do not attend unless you are feeling psychologically hearty and hale and fully resourced.  

Location 

This will be hosted in a home in Shawnee, KS. Full details provided upon registration.