Transcending Experience @ BTV23
Poking the Veil
Beyond the Veil occurred on 10/27/2023 at the legendary Hamtramck local music venue, Small’s Bar. The venue hosts weekly Gothic and Industrial events and has long been a space where alternative communities meet, dance, and find acceptance. The owner, Mike Mouyianis, fed our community with delicious vegetarian and omnivore tacos and quesadillas, and the staff welcomed our community to their space with open arms.
The evening had three parts beginning with a panel lead by Board Member, Meg Raphoon with guest speakers, Moira Payne, Pat Camarena, Rose Barbary, and Kelly Resendez Bailey. The panel explored the ways that liminal times and spaces function in ritual practice in several traditions such as Dia de los Muertos, Samhain, witch traditions, alchemical traditions and many eclectic practices. The group shared insights on barriers between the living and the dead and how to approach loss, grief, growth, and healing as the year moves into the darker, quieter times.
Board Member Jack Mercer lead a powerful ritual involving calling on our dead to ais in bringing things to you or pushing them away. Participants could undergo the ritual sighted or unsighted (with the aid of other participants). Requests on dissolving paper were plunged into a hot cauldron to dissipate and go beyond the veils. The group performed a song verse 3 times in order to set intentions. Participants then plunged their hands into an ice-cold cauldron to draw forth a talisman to help hold close the work performed.
The night ended with dancing and conversation as DJ Pleasure Kitten spun music to help carry the mood of the evening. The event welcomed all ages and brought new people to our community from the Small’s Bar regulars to friends and family of participants. The goal was to be inclusive and to offer education and magic at such an important time of year.
Written By: Med Raphoon, MEC Board Member