Archive for August, 2008
Boom Festival
If you want to get a hit of what the Boom phenomenon is all about check out their website www.boomfestival.org. The main reason I found myself at the Boom festival was because I was invited to give a presentation at the Eco Centre, for which Cynthia and I got free tickets. However, I was more than a little curious about this countercultural explosion called Boom, and sure enough this was a “gathering of the tribes” that truly blew my mind!
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It wasn’t the relentless, mechanistic thud of the 22 hour a day trance beats that did it though (give me Jimi Hendrix anyday!), it was the unbridled creativity and beauty of so many of the places, spaces and people that graced the undulating hills along the lake, each with its own ambience and village vibe.
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All around were amazing low impact structures made of straw bale, cob, and bamboo. Geodesic domes, tipis, and awnings of all shapes and sizes emblazoned with wild, colourful designs cast their exuberance against bright blue skies. In amongst these were delightful permaculture gardens replete with corn stalks, pumpkins and cabbages, herb spirals, ponds, sculptures and chill-out spaces that all blended to create a magical atmosphere of intimacy and harmony.
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Folks of all ages and nationalities gathered in animated groups in various locales for a smorgasbord of workshops…chanting, meditation, kundalini yoga, white tantra, aura reading, fire walking etc. There was a theatre staging dramatic expression of all kinds around the clock. In a large psychedelic tent called the Liminal Village there was a packed schedule of lectures on subjects ranging from Applied Psychonautics to Biodiversity to Experiential Astrology to Global Peace Strategies…and also the Paradigms Film Festival which featured some intriguing movies I wish I had had time to catch. Inbetween their meanderings between dancefloor, workshop, movie and beach, throngs of happy Boomers chomped and supped upon delicious the fresh food, juices and chai that were available in abundance everywhere.
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Others slept off the previous nights partying in clumps in the shady gardens or studiously rolled their next joint. While the festival was clearly awash in a sea of drugs, the effect in this otherworldly Boom set and setting seemed to be one of opening people up into greater connectivity and shared consciousness. Many one day they will realise that they don´t need the drugs.
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While I wasn’t drawn to joining the throng amongst the mind numbing electronic thud of the various dance floors, I was intrigued by an “original” trance dance ritual, which a friend had enthused about, that was to be propelled by real instruments over in a quiet locale called the Healing Area.
A group of about 30 of us gathered in a circular sawdust dance space surrounded by drummers and percussionists of very description. After some deep breathing exercises and a brief spell of silence in which we focused our attention on the intent behind our dance, we blindfolded ourselves with bandannas. This was the key element of the ritual, taking away our dominant sense to facilitate an inner journey.
For two timeless hours I and we all danced wildly to the most incredible surging percussion music I have ever heard! I was soon swept into a state of ecstatic abandon as my body danced itself spontaneously within a vast still space of overarching nothingness. The music shifted into many different rhythms and modes so that it never became one monotonous beat. Amazingly, although we were all close together on the dance floor, we did not collide. Sometimes there would be the touch of a hand or an arm, or a light brush as we gently came together, but never a harsh bump or an elbow. While all immersed in our own solitary dance in darkness, there was also a mysterious synergy that must have moved through the group as a whole. At the end we all lay belly down in shamanistic fashion, I felt profoundly relaxed and one with the great Mother!
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I have no idea whether it was directly related to the dancing but at some point during the next afternoon as Cynthia and I sat by the glittering lake next to our tent, I was overwhelmed by a wave of ineffable peace, emptiness and bliss. I was so immersed in meditation my mind could barely function and also I couldn’t really get emotionally in touch with any desire whatsoever to give my talk! I mean when one is dissolved in that knowledge of the utter perfection of everything as it is there isn´t really any desire to do anything! I wasn’t quite sure whether I could pull it off, but as the time came closer and we set off to walk around the lake to the Eco Centre, I was just interested to see what would happen.
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We arrived early enough to see the presentation before mine by an enthusiastic Spanish woman on “Spiritual Activism”. As it turned out it was the perfect lead in to my presentation on “Evolutionary Spirituality”. With trance music streaming through the open door of the straw bale dome like building, and numerous people milling around, some of whom were intently rolling joints, I thought getting anybody’s attention was going to be a challenge! Luckily I had the idea to begin by showing a 15 minute DVD called “the Awakening Universe”. This captivating film that powerfully brings the threads of cosmology, ecology and spirituality together in a vast evolutionary context, soon had everybody riveted.
As soon as it ended I jumped upon a straw bale and began speaking (or rather almost shouting to be heard above the trance) about the sequence of Big Bangs from Energy, to Matter, to Life, to Mind, that were part of our emergence as consciousness becoming conscious of itself. My passion flowed, and I have little memory of what I spoke about for the next hour. I don’t know how we did it but we even fell into a 5 minute spell of deep meditation together despite the cacophony of sounds that surrounded us.
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At some point it spontaneously morphed into dialogue as some people could no longer contain their excitement and a thrilling collective inquiry was in full swing by the time I had to end. So about 7 of us decamped to another batch of bales in the dome and continued to share our deepest experience of what it meant to be alive in these tipping point times.
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By the time Cynthia and I emerged from this whirlwind of crackling consciousness to our amazement many hours had passed and it was gone 1am. What struck me most as we munched on a delicious falafel beneath the blazing August full moon was that the thing that these few people appreciated the most was the opportunity, the opening, to speak about the questions, experiences and longings closest to their heart with others that really wanted to listen. Here we are, I reflected, in the midst of one of the hippest harmonic convergences on the planet, and yet how rare it was for people to discover a context together in which they could deeply explore the profound experience they may already be having, and in so doing merge in a living field of unity beyond the habitual modes of relationship and drug induced highs.
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So as I left Boom, mind blown in wonder, it felt good to have given something and I also felt grateful for now much I had learned from being here for a few days amidst the wild elegance and artistry of the gardens and buildings. And also it was inspiring to feel the care of everybody and the organizers in making it such a showcase for coming together in a harmonious and ecologically sound way. For sure Life was surging forth in all manner of new creative directions here and I hope to be a part of it again next time.
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Pete
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The Yurt is Up!
The first structure is completed at Quinta da Mizarela!
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We ordered a beautiful Mongolian yurt from Sophie and Andy at Pure Portugal. It was built in Mongolia, shipped to the UK and then on to Portugal, eventually arriving at the top our track about a month and a half ago.
So you are probably wondering why did it take us a month and a half to set up a yurt! Ahhhhh because setting it up is only part of the picture!
First we had to get all the bits down the track. There were 9 different bundles and some of them weighed a ton!
Then we had to build a huge deck for the yurt to sit on. We hired Reg, the yurt deck specialist in this area that came recommended to us by Sophie and Andy. He told us what wood to order and we did. To make a long story short the wood took a very long time to arrive. In the end we aren´t quite sure how it all happened but somehow someone showed up with a truckload of planks and poles.
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Over the next 10 days the deck continued to materialize. I remember one day looking down on it and I thought, ´what were we thinking building a deck this high, we must be crazy´ Thank goodness it was too late to turn back so I just hoped for the best.
Our volunteer Andrea spent hours painting the wood so the insects wouldn’t eat it before we had a chance to use it. She had some help from me, Pete, her boyfriend Al, and another friend Ana but Andrea was the driving force in getting this completed. Thank you Andrea!
Painting the wood was one thing but then we had to move it all down the terraces to the deck below. This is no small task and again we were lucky to have friends help us.
Reg worked tirelessly, sometimes in extreme heat to get the deck completed. The wood came in all different widths and lengths. It was quite a job for him to make this all fit which he did. I think he used about 10,000 nails and screws!
Once Reg finished the deck we moved in with a highly specialized team of 7 yurt assemblers. 6 of the 7 had actually never done this before but we were full of enthusiasm and optimism so in our eyes we were highly specialized. Our friends Danny and Anna from Ibiza from just happened to call a few days ago and tell us they were in the area and asked if they could come and see us. Danny had put up the exact same yurt in Ibiza so the timing of their visit couldn’t have been better. Danny was elected the yurt assembly leader and it made it a lot easier to have his experience at the helm.
Our other team members included Pete, Andrea (volunteer and master painter mentioned above), Paul and Nathan (friends who organize and lead meditation retreats and are trying to buy a quinta close to us and will soon be putting up their own yurt!) and me.
To start things off we formed a human circle about where we thought the yurt would sit. We decided this probably wasn’t exact enough so we followed it up with a tape measure and pencil markings.
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In 3 short hours we had the base completed.
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We probably could have gotten it done a bit quicker but we had to stop for the Mongolian Blues Band to play a few tunes. We had Pete on guitar, Paul on bass, Danny on drums, Nathan as the roadie, Andrea and Ana were the groupies and I was the official band photographer.
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We took a short break and with only an hour left to work we sprung into action and the roof emerged!
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Just when we hit our stride we had to stop as we were all headed off to the Friday night meditation group.
Danny and Ana had to leave the next morning but the remainder of the team was ready to go bright and early (OK maybe not so early, more like around noon) the next day.
Just as Danny, our fearless leader had said, the hardest part (the lattice framework) was already done. The Yurt has 4 layers of sides and top. The inside layer is white cotton, the next is a very thick felt for insulation, then on top of that is a really think canvas and then a beautiful white and blue top cover.
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We had a great time figuring out how all the bits fit on and then getting them to cover the whole yurt. In a couple of hours we had a beautiful yurt fully assembled, sitting majestically on its base overlooking the gorgeous mountains that surround the quinta. It looks amazing!
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With our work completed we were off for a dip in the waterfall below the quinta.
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This project was so much fun and working with everyone was a complete joy. If Pete and I had to put this together by ourselves I know it would have taken us at least 10 times longer. Thank you everyone!
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Today is Saturday, on Tuesday Pete and I will be moving into the yurt. It will be the first time in over 60 years that someone will be living at Quinta da Mizarela! We are hoping our house will be finished soon.
Stay tuned for the a post on the progress of our house and also of Jacqueline´s house and yoga/meditation/meeting room By the end of the year we should have 3 finished buildings sitting above the yurt!
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Cheers,
Cynthia
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