What is Burning Man? The answer seems straight forward but it’s not, as a matter of fact it took me some time to wrap my head around what makes Burning Man such a powerful and magical experience. I’m still struggling, but I gave it a shot.
It all started in 1986 on Baker Beach, San Francisco as a bonfire ritual on the summer solstice and evolved to become one of the most important cultural events worldwide.
Last year was my second time at Burning Man. The first year was incredible but somewhat overwhelming, so much to discover, understand and experience. So I decided to go back a second time. My first Burning Man got me intrigued, the second one got me addicted, and here’s why:
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
Many people refer to Burning Man as a festival. Well, it’s not. It’s a cultural movement, a community, a temporary city made by people that share a common vision. Burning Man organization doesn’t provide anything but the Man, the Temple and some of the infrastructure. Everything else is built and created from scratch by the Burning Man community. Everyone is welcome and everyone can and has to participate, in a way or another. It is amazing what people can accomplish together when animated by a common goal. The sense of community is what strikes me most, everything at burning man evolves around it. People are genuine, helpful, willing to share their knowledge, drinks, food, art, for free. A smile, a thank you, a brief conversation are more than enough payment. I was truly touched by the immense generosity. In a world ruled by money and consumerism, it is liberating to experience that for a whole week. I realized that money, or the lack of it, shapes a community and changes social codes.
I was biking in the deep playa one hot morning, wandering between the art structures and decided to go all the way to the “end” of the playa, not expecting to find anything or see anyone. I was mistaken: I discovered two things, a beautiful art structure and more importantly, a beautiful soul. A man with an ice crushing machine, making "slushies" for whoever had the same crazy idea to bike all the way to the end of the playa…and there was a line! It was 11am, excruciatingly hot, and I had no water left. It was like a mirage. This man, standing in the sun, in the middle of the desert, crushing ice to provide refreshments. I felt lucky and grateful but somewhat ashamed of the selfishness of modern society.
RITUAL, ART AND PARTY ALL IN ONE
Everything in Burning man has to do with Ritual. Burning the Man, burning the temple, Tutu Tuesday, virgin burners rolling in the playa dust at the entrance, getting a playa name... it’s all about ritual, and in 2017 it was about Radical Ritual. But again, isn’t Burning Man a radical event? This year’s theme was simply everywhere.
As I mentioned above, Burning Man is not a festival. Thus, the show is not provided, participants provide the show. And it truly is the most amazing partying experience I have ever had. The music is incredible, the lights are mesmerizing, they reshape the playa into another universe. It’s almost unreal.
Fire plays an important role as well, fire performers, art installations that throw fire, setting the man and other objects on fire. Fire is a central element. It conveys beauty, danger and mystery, at the image of playa nights.
Art is also everywhere, Burning Man is an open sky art gallery. Incredible art cars, beautiful costumes, amazing performances, workshops and seminars. Where else would you find a giant gramophone playing forgotten tracks from the late 1900’s, a Led Tenere tree or the Spartan race rope obstacle (with the bell at the top!). You can’t be but amazed at the level of ingenuity and creativity.
People invest time and money building temporary objects in the middle of desert with the goal of sharing beauty (or their perception of it) with the world. At first I was chocked, amazed, surprised, and then I realized, everything is possible, anyone can achieve anything, there are no limits. “Everything you need is inside you”.
ALIGNMENT WITH TRUE SELF
Total freedom and radical self-expression change perception of the world, which explains why many people describe Burning Man as a transformative / life changing experience. What would you do if you could do whatever you wanted, be whoever you wanted? It’s tricky and confusing. When you’ve spent all your life in an environment full of rules, guidelines, specific sets of behaviors and you’re offered such freedom, you realize that it’s difficult to let go. Freedom in modern society is an illusion, social codes dictate our behavior. Freedom in Burning Man is thus disturbing, at least it felt this way to me. It pushed me to take a break and think about my life in the “default” world. It also pushed me to become aware of my limits and realize that the environment we grow and live in shapes us, and sometimes limits us. Being at Burning Man triggers dormant desires and dreams, and this is exactly when the "transformative" experience happens. It’s when you let go and allow yourself to simply dream, play and be real. You basically connect with your true self, your inner child. Then magic happens.
IN THE MOOD FOR A CHALLENGE?
Burning Man is one of the most magical places on earth but it can also be one of the most challenging. Black Rock desert or the Playa (a flat alkaline dry lake bed) is a hostile environment. Temperatures can reach 110ºF (43ºC) during the day and plummet to the forties or even thirties (5º to 0ºC) at night. Dust is everywhere and gets everywhere, dust storms are frequent and can be pretty violent (we almost lost our shade structure during a storm). Burning Man takes camping to a whole new level, survival level. Camping conditions vary from a camp to another and can be pretty tough (even with an RV). It is essential to be organized and bring enough food and water for the week. The whole experience is hard, challenging and exhausting, but part of the fun. Playa life flirts with your limits and pushes you to go beyond them, learn about yourself and your capacity to adapt. Adaptation is key, without it, the experience can be ruined.
I almost loved living in such basic environment for the duration of the event, it made me realize that I don’t need much to survive and pushed me to be more creative.
The Playa is complex. It can be challenging, for sure, but it’s also a beautiful natural environment and it’s important to preserve it by “Leaving no trace”. Moop (Matter Out Of Place or garbage) is not acceptable. Everyone is responsible for their own garbage and must make sure to leave nothing when gone, and it shouldn’t only apply in Burning Man. Leaving no trace should be the responsibility of everyone, everywhere.
WAITING FOR MISO SOUP WHILE DRINKING SAKE
All in all, I would say that Burning Man is whatever you make it. It’s not a typical vacation, or a place, there's no typical day or typical activity. At Burning Man, life simply happens, like when you are sitting at a Japanese bar at 2am, waiting for a Miso soup, and having the most epic conversation with complete strangers. Burning Man is a personal experience and it’s difficult to describe. It touched me, and more importantly, made me realize that there is still some hope in the humankind, after all…
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