Name: Death Sangha
Start: 2025-10-31T19:00:00-07:00
End: 2025-10-31T21:00:00-07:00
Location: The Berkeley Alembic

In Death Sangha we will play with the fantasies of both eternalism and nihilism, and experiment with the awakening that lies beyond both.
About this Event

At its core, all spirituality is about Death. The Buddha, Buddhism, and meditation practice have always been deeply concerned with Death, dying, and mortality. Every living thing has to face the reality of Death, and yet in modern meditation circles there is almost no confrontation with this ultimate question and primordial mystery. Instead there is denial, obfuscation, minimalizing, and—essentially—painting a smiley face on the whole subject. If that seems ridiculous to you, as well as something that misses the whole point, then Death Sangha is for you.

In Death Sangha we meet to honor the fact of Death, to face our own and others’ mortality in a clear, unsullied, fierce, humble, and gracious manner. In Death Sangha we will play with the fantasies of both eternalism and nihilism, and experiment with the awakening that lies beyond both. We will confront experiences such as Cosmic Horror, Cosmic Shame, and Total Meaninglessness. We will also engage with the mythological, occult, psychological, historical, and phenomenological aspects of this most important topic. And of course we will do plenty of meditation.

Death Sangha is not a spectacle for the curious, nor is it a soporific for the frightened. In Death Sangha, you will confront your deepest fears, your most difficult warts and shadows, and learn to meditate with the reality of your own imminent demise. It has often been said that until we truly accept Death, we cannot actually live. In Death Sangha, we will not meekly accept Death, but rather learn to passionately and exuberantly dance with this final and most intimate partner.

Interested in volunteering? Please fill out this form and we will get back to you by October 20th.

Details:

Cost: $45 suggested donation - no one turned away for lack of funds.

Important: Death Sangha begins at 7 pm sharp. Doors to Alembic open at 6:30 and will be locked at exactly 7pm.

Due to the intense nature of this practice, please do not come to Death Sangha unless you are feeling resourced and prepared. We will gladly issue you a refund if you choose not to attend.

Death Sangha is in person only.

This will be a 60 minute sit, maybe longer. The evening also entails group interaction, so come prepared to participate.

Alembic cofounder Michael W. Taft is a non-traditional meditation teacher, bestselling author, and podcaster. As a mindfulness coach, he specializes in secular, science-based mindfulness training in retreats, groups, corporate settings, and one-on-one sessions. Michael is the author of several books, including the bestselling The Mindful Geek, Nondualism: A Brief History of a Timeless Concept, and Ego (which he co-authored), as well as the editor of such books as Hardwiring Happiness by Rick Hanson and The Science of Enlightenment by Shinzen Young.

He has often taught meditation at Google, worked on curriculum development for SIYLI, and is currently core faculty at Wisdom Labs, in San Francisco. Michael is also a featured teacher on the Simple Habit app, and an official advisor to the Therapeutic Neuroscience Lab. He was previously editor-in-chief of Being Human, and was the long-time editorial director of Sounds True.

From Zen temples in Japan to yogi caves in India, Michael has been meditating for over thirty five years and has extensive experience in both Buddhist Vipassana and Hindu Tantric practice. Michael is a senior facilitator in Shinzen Young’s Unified Mindfulness system, and is a teacher of meditation groups around the Bay Area. He currently lives in Oakland, California, and is founding editor of the iconoclastic mindfulness meditation blog and podcast Deconstructing Yourself.