Holistic Health and Me

Sweat Lodges and their Newly Acquired ‘Bad Name’

It’s been months since the tragic deaths in a Sedona sweat lodge last October but recently, the event was brought back into the limelight as the leader of the Spiritual Warrior retreat, James Arthur Ray, was arrested on charges of manslaughter earlier this month.

I cannot even begin to imagine the devastating loss that must still be felt by the families of the three people who lost their lives. My heart goes out to them. When I first heard the news in October, it immediately raised some fears for my own family, as my parents have been attending sweat lodges for years. In fact, I have experienced a sweat lodge myself and the stories that have been coming out in the months since the tragedy truly make me cringe. It seems one awful event has given this authentic spiritual practice  an unjust ‘bad name.’

For those unfamiliar with the tragic story, it can be summed up more or less like this – during a retreat, led by spiritual guru James Arthur Ray, a sweat lodge went horribly wrong when around 50 people were inside a 415-square-foot lodge for a two-hour ceremony. What was meant to be a spiritual experience led to the deaths of 3 people.

Participants paid between $9,000 and $10,000 for this retreat- my first thought is, ‘how can a spiritual encounter ever be bought?’ Plain and simple it should never be sold in the first place- and here began the first problem in a string of unfortunate events…

Why exactly did these people die? Many believe the sweat lodge was too crowded and reportedly during the two hours of the lodge, people were vomiting and passing out and yet were encouraged not to leave. This goes completely against my own experience in sweat lodge, as well as a common regard for health and safety, and the fact that this even took place is infuriating to me.

The tradition of sweat lodge for spiritual enlightenment began long ago as a Native American ritual. The stones were heated in a fire pit and represented the spiritual ‘fathers.’  The tribe would make a small lodge where these stones would be placed in the center and prayers and song would go up to the Spirits. It was an experience of suffering –but within reason, many felt more connected spiritually- however their lives were rarely, if ever, in danger.

This being said, my parents belong to a group of very close friends who practice the traditions of the Lakota tribe. In fact, they have been invited out to different retreats and other events on the reservations that are typically only open to Native Americans. They have been trained in the authentic ways that a sweat lodge should be run and from what I can gather, the Spiritual Warrior lodge didn’t measure up.

In my experience, it was extremely hot (of course) but I was never made to feel trapped. The heat is something that you endure as long as you can, and while there is meant to be some suffering to bring you closer to ‘the Fathers’ or ‘Spirit’ you can leave at any point. There were parts where the heat was uncomfortable enough that I curled up on the floor of the lodge and dug down into the cooler dirt for my own comfort but this was part of the whole experience and not once did I feel like I was in danger.

There are several doors – or rounds- in which air is let into the lodge before beginning a new round of prayer. During this time it is not uncommon to step out and cool off for a minute if necessary.

No one is pressuring you to stay in.

When surfing the web for even something as basic as the sweat lodge photo I posted, the first things that came up were ‘sweat lodge death,’ ‘sweat lodge guru’ and ‘sweat lodge Sedona.’

It appears to have taken one negligent  leader, nearly 50 trusting people and 3 horribly unnecessary deaths to give this ancient tradition the most horrible stigma.

I have seen the amazing benefits in my parents and all they get out of taking part in sweat lodges. From my own experience in the lodge, I learned a lot – I came to many realizations, truly personal things that I will keep with me forever, and I hope that others will be able to have similar experiences.

I want to encourage you, if you have ever been interested in trying a sweat lodge,  to still try it – just do some research on your own about how they should be run and always listen to your body and its limitations.

~Emily M

Tags: Holistic Health, Spirituality, Transformational