end-of-life rituals – End of Life University

Learn about the benefits of creating intentional rituals for the big and small moments of life and death.

My guest Megan Sheldon is a cultural mythologist, humanist celebrant, and end-of-life doula in North Vancouver, BC. She is the co-founder of Be Ceremonial, the world’s first guided ritual and ceremony app. Megan will discuss her work creating ceremonies for people around the world, focusing on what she calls the ‘seemingly invisible moments of change’ in life and in death. She offers online workshops, virtual courses, and seasonal retreats and you can learn more at her website:

beceremonial.com

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This episode includes:

Why rituals are important as we navigate life and loss
How rituals are a forgotten part of our lives that come naturally to us
Ceremonies and rituals ultimately involve storytelling
What inspired Megan and her husband to create the Be Ceremonial app
How the app works and who might benefit from using it
Daily rituals can help us build our own creativity
The components of a meaningful ceremony, including a ritual for being present
Examples of simple rituals
Rituals for care providers for supporting self and others
How rituals help us embody the emotions we feel during challenging times

Links mentioned in this episode:

Mountains of Courage Conference – March 29
NEW Gift Guides for Caregivers, People Receiving Care, and People Who are Grieving
Get my two newest books!! Stories from the Dark Night and The Tao of Death
Get EOLU Podcast Merch here
Conversations on Death with ChatGPT – Audiobook here; Print Book here
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If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, and to everyone who has bought me a coffee or donated on Paypal! Your contributions make all the difference and ensure this podcast stays ad-free.

Learn about fascinating end-of-life rituals from cultures around the world.

My guest Gary Wederspahn is a board member of the Final Exit Network and the author of a book and many articles on cross-cultural communications and relations. He has served as a Peace Corps Director in Guatemala, Costa Rica and Ecuador and has traveled in over 20 countries. He shares his passion for studying end-of-life rituals and traditions wherever he has traveled, including slides from many different countries. Learn more at these websites:

www.finalexitnetwork.org

www.thegooddeathsocietyblog.net

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

What is appreciative inquiry and how it facilitates conversations
Why studying end-of-life traditions introduces you to the values and deep culture of societies
How end-of-life care has been outsourced here in the U.S. to our detriment
Mayan traditions around death in Guatemala during Dia de los Muertos
Three-part community cremation rituals in Bali
The “thin veil” between the living and the dead that is perceived in many cultures
How “continuing bonds” with ancestors help strengthen the family
The use of cremated ashes to make burial beads in Korea
How Vietnamese funeral processions resemble funeral parades in New Orleans
Ceremonial kites flown in Guatemala city to honor their ancestors during Dia de los Muertos
Zoroastrian custom of leaving corpses in “Towers of Silence” for vultures to consume
Ifugao people in high country of Philippines keep bodies of their ancestors in rafters of the house and bring them out during special events
“Bone collecting” ritual after cremation in Japan
Igorot hanging coffins in the Philippines
Tibetan sky burial also depends on vultures; Sioux burial platforms similarly rely on ravens to consume the body
How Gary’s exposure to the rituals of other countries has informed his own decisions for the end of life

Links mentioned in this episode:

Register for Q&A with Becky Aud-Jennison

Leave me a message by email: kwyattmd@comcast.net, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram
Support your local bookstore by buying my books on Bookshop and Indiebound: 7 Lessons for Living from the Dying and The Journey from Ego to Soul
Subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Google, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Stitcher Radio
Check out the Series I’ve recorded in the past here
Join the team at Patreon.com/eolu and get access to the EOLU mug: “Mind if we talk about death?” (only Patrons can purchase it). PLUS get our new bonuses: the monthly EOL News Update, movie reviews from 2 Doctors and a Movie, and automatic access to A Year of Reading Dangerously!

Buy me a coffee

Donate on Paypal

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my newest patron Erinn Gregory! Your contributions make all the difference.