2 Die in Sweat Lodge

Awful news. Don't know too much about sweat lodges (only what i've seen on TV) and tbh have wondered why this sort of thing hasn't happened before. The organs seem to be under a lot of pressure if you sweat and dehydrate.

Crikey! The article said that people were suffering from burns, dehydration, respiratory arrest, kidney failure or elevated body temperature. And there were way too many people in a small space. Is this normal for a sweat lodge? The article suggested not - which makes me think it was badly run.

I have been curious about attending a sweat lodge and/or vision quest, but can understand why this might make people think twice. What a shame.

I read that 64 people were in the sweat lodge, that seems a huge number to me.

I have been in sweats with around 20, and think that is quite big enough.

With that number I dont see how the leader could keep an tabs on what was going on.

Water should always be available between rounds.

tigress

So sad what should have been a healing experience has turned into such loss.

It shocks me to read this news - IMHO far too many people in the sweat lodge. Reading that link it looks like they paid a lot of money $9OOO for a 5 day spiritual warrior retreat.

I have never personally been in a sweat lodge, but wanted to do so for some time. This would not put me off attending a sweat lodge ceremony I was so tempted to do this with a Peruvian Shaman glad to say there were no fatalities at his sweat lodges and you could always leave if it was too much.

Binah
x

Being a Native American Shaman myself i am amazed at some of the things i hear, this being one of them, i think the amount of money they were paying speaks volumes, its very tragic indeed and i personally never heard of a group that large in one lodge. Sadly this beautiful and extremely spiritual ceremony is seemingly a money making exercise.

I also came across a person in Sussex who was doing this and charging a £160 a time, they had absolutely no idea what they were doing and i had to step in and rescue one of them. Where there should be honour and integrity, there is greed and tragically lives have been lost in the process.

I think when I went there was about 8 people and the shaman was in regular communication with everyone. They had moments in the ceremony when the door was opened but I am sure if anyone had trouble they would have opened right away. When I go back to Canada I will probably do it again, its a great cleansing if done right. You feel as if you have almost been reborn.

in every sweatlodge I have attended there has been an option to leave at the ned of each round. I never had the sense that I would be prevented from leaving in the middle of a round, however, there are logisitics associated with getting out, even in the light, so clambering over legs in the dark would be a challenge.
I always enter the sweatlodge last or 2nd to last , that way I end up near the door flap

tigress

A third person just died, a 49 year old woman. Police are treating the whole thing as a homocide. The one I was at had people outside that cleared the doorway so people could leave, I wonder if these people were somehow absent?

sad news..., the only other deaths ive heard of in lodges was in australia where heavily mineralised water from a bore was used and all the participants where poisoned and 2 died i believe,
ive taken part in several lodges and they were all positive events and thats because the leaders are very experienced and know exactly what they where doing...sadly there are those about who dont...., that said if it was my time and i could choose a place to die peaceably it would be in a lodge.

i'd really like to know the details of what happenned in this tradgedy....

I read about it and apparently they did not use the natural materials as would traditionally be used- they used a plastic tarp and there was no ventilation so very dangerous and from the sounds of it nothing like a traditional Native ceremony...so sad and must have been so scarey for all there.

Here is a statement regarding the Sweat Lodge Ceremony, from the current Keeper of the, Sacred Medicine Pipe Bundle , Chief Arvol Looking Horse.

Here is a statement regarding the Sweat Lodge Ceremony, from the current Keeper of the, Sacred Medicine Pipe Bundle , Chief Arvol Looking Horse.

thx for that......now having read this and various other news articles on the incident it seems it was indeed an accident waiting to happen, i dont always agree with arvol but it seems in this case he's right on the button re. james ray ... particulary his dis-regard for vital sweatlodge protocols and overblown ego....

Here is James Ray's comments about what happened.