Now the Temple is something truly special. Some would say Magical. Certainly Spiritual. The Sacred Heart of Black Rock City, the Temple first appeared at Burning Man in 2000 when it was built by San Francisco artist David Best as a Memorial for a close friend who had died. Burning Man started funding the Temple the following year and it has since turned into an incredible expression of grief and celebration of life. Thousands of people now write on it every year. If you have lost somebody or feel the need to let go of something in your life, you can write on the Temple and on the very last day of Burning Man, the Temple is burnt.
http://blog.burningman.com/spirituality/the-temples/
This picture was taken last year before the Temple was burnt. I was grateful for the opportunity to experience the Temple for myself and also write my own message to my brother Pete, who has passed from this life.
The Burning Of The Temple was an incredibly powerful experience. In many ways it was more powerful than the Burning Of The Man. Where the Saturday night Burning Of The Man is the highlight of the party element of Burning Man, the Burning Of the Temple (on Sunday night) is a far more solemn and substantial ceremony, rooted in loss and rebirth. Filled with stillness and sadness and release, the crowd was mostly silent as they watched the Temple burn. It was a truly unique experience and I feel enriched for having been part of it.
I thought I'd post this second picture here so that if you want, you can see some of the messages that people leave on this amazing structure.
Today, in recognition of the Burning Of The Temple and the official end of Burning Man, I am listening to Death Take Your Fiddle by Spiritualized:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vSsuAZiw5k
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