Village Fall Festival, Pasadena (11/22)

Village Fall Market and Festival, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025 at 12:00 pm | Eventbrite

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WHAT HAPPENED?

Why gather? To build community.

A thousand or so people from the community and far afield gathered on the grounds of Muir High. The main stage moved to the lawn area to accommodate dancing and grooving to live music and DJ Common. The food trucks were barbequing and one maestro of the kitchen had special raw vegan offerings -- three kinds of savory pizza and plantain cinnamon rolls. The most attractive offerings among all the nonprofit stalls and kiosks was the Healing Village with yoga, breathwork, sound baths, reiki, massage, and energy healing under tents. Even visitors from Pacific Palisades enjoyed it. It was six hours of socializing and visiting a booth to go on camera to tell the tale of Altadena and the area before and after the Eaton Fire.

(Rhythms of The Village)

VILLAGE FALL FESTIVAL: The Fall Festival is back at Pasadena's Muir High School, where we’ll host the foothill community for day of healing, joy, and unity! Free. RSVP on EVENTBRITE.

• Village Fall Festival (free, Pasadena's Muir High School), Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, 12:00 PM | Meetup
• Village Fall Festival (FREE, Pasadena's Muir High), Sat, Nov 22, 2025, 12:00 PM | Meetup
• Village Fall Festival (FREE, Pasadena's Muir High), Sat, Nov 22, 2025, 12:00 PM | Meetup

Celebrating the vibrant, multicultural spirit of Altadena, let's DANCE together, EAT together, and SHOP together.

Join us for an afternoon of live music and drumming, food, art, and healing vibes as we celebrate commUnity at our traditional Village Fall Festival presented by Rhythms of the Village and LA Commons and Oh Happy Days Vegan Cafe.

• Village Fall Festival (Rhythms of The Village)
• PHOTO GALLERY from Village Spring Festival

Let's dance, eat, laugh, and sing together so our stories get heard! Explore a vibrant marketplace of art, handmade crafts, jewelry, clothing, and more with 50+ vendors, including Altadena artisans displaced by the Eaton Fire.

Live multicultural entertainment goes throughout the day on the big stage, including the Rhythms Family Band, led by the legendary Baba Onochie Chukwurah. There are also activities for children.

Healing individuals and community

Village Fall Market and Festival

Free healing workshops and sessions go on in the "Altadena Healing Village":

• yoga,
• Reiki,
• acupuncture,
• sound healing,
• massage therapy.

NEW Storytelling Booth: Altadena residents can share and record their stories. Delicious food from various cultures.

Vendors: Makers sell handcrafted or vintage items only: Apply here. Sponsorships are still available.

This magical festival and marketplace unites us. Many cultures coming together as ONE Tribe. There are children’s workshops and a magical line up of entertainment throughout the day. Tasty foods... 50+ makers of items handcrafted with love.

Some of these artisans were displaced from Altadena, crafters who create jewelry, art, wearables and more... Vendors apply here. It runs for six hours starting at noon, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

• Location: John Muir High School
• 1905 Lincoln Ave.
• Pasadena, CA 91103
• FREE: Nov. 22, 12:00 pm PST
• Village Fall Market & Festival
• Sat., Nov 22, 2025 at 12:00 pm

How to get there? Covered parking. Family friendly event. Why did the location change? Previous site behind the Rhythms of the Village store and Oh Happy Day Vegan Cafe came down during the Eaton Fire. Organized by Emeka Chukwurah. #arts #music #festival #multicultural #musicfestival #Altadena #familyfriendly #Pasadena

• Emeka Chukwurah, Baba Onochie Chukwurah (rhythmsofthevillage.com); Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Jen B., Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

Body found by Gobekli Tepe: Sayburc

(dakota of earth) Death Village found near Gobekli Tepe

FREE: Spring Festival Pasadena (5/24)

WHAT HAPPENED?

Flyer for the Village Spring Festival

It was a massive success with more than 2,000 guests. That means it will be back, and this may become its permanent location. It was formerly held biannually in Altadena behind Oh Happy Days Vegan Cafe and Rhythms of the Village by the secret pot shop that got raided. The Aztec Dancers dazzled as did the drum troop. There was a whole healing area with FREE massage, acupuncture, aromatherapy, reiki, yoga, an Aztec sound bath, and spiritual healing tents all in the service of healing the community. It is a very big campus, and the main stage was not the focus. There was a raw vegan chef (Henry Chukwurah of Lawndale at 310-628-8991) and various food trucks spread throughout, with lots of community service agencies and arts and crafts vendors. The dancing was all around the various music acts that followed a long jam by Onochie and Friends. This might be better as a multi-day event that goes deep into the evening like an Asian Night Market.

• Altadena Healing Hub: altadenahealinghub.janeapp.com
• 
  Winnie Chan Wang (heartcenter.la) did heart centered integrative wellness, which is available every Wednesday night at 7:00 pm (PT) in person and on Zoom. This is a FREE weekly gathering for healing, connection, and transformation. 2801 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107 (in the back, down Wenger Alley).

Event details

FREE: Village Spring Festival (Muir High School, Pasadena) HEALING | JOY | UNITY | LET'S DANCE, EAT, AND SHOP TOGETHER.

The annual Spring Festival is back at a new location to support the Altadena, Pasadena, Sierra Madre, Foothills, and San Gabriel Valley community for a day of healing, joy, and unity.

• VILLAGE SPRING FESTIVAL
• SATURDAY, MAY 24, 2025, 1:00-7:00 PM
• JOHN MUIR HIGH SCHOOL
• 1905 LINCOLN AVE., PASADENA

✨ 50+ unique vendors: Explore a vibrant marketplace full of art, handmade crafts, clothes by local Altadena artisans

✨ Healing workshops

✨ Discover the magic of Rhythms Family Band led by the legendary Baba Onochie Chukwurah. Experience the magic as music, storytelling, and drama as they unite in a captivating performance

✨ Food vendors and food trucks

✨ Live multicultural performances

✨ Download flyer

RSVP FREE:

• (Disclosure Project) FREE: Village Spring Festival (Muir High School, Pasadena), Sat, May 24, 2025, 1:00 PM | Meetup
• (PasaDharma) FREE: Village Spring Festival (Muir High School, Pasadena), Sat, May 24, 2025, 12:00 PM | Meetup
• (Nature Center) FREE: Village Spring Festival (Muir High School, Pasadena), Sat, May 24, 2025, 1:00 PM | Meetup
• VILLAGE MARKET & FESTIVAL — RHYTHMS OF THE VILLAGE

Moving to a 'Garden of Eden' EcoVillage

Go it alone as a single-family Robinson Crusoe situation or go communal with other likeminded individuals wishing to thrive in community? Both have their appeal, but which is more likely to be sustainable and prosper? It's cold in North America (Canada). How is it in the South?

The EcoVillage solution

Is this tree included? - I don't see why not.

Is it time to begin stepping into our vision? It's simple when we follow...the 4-steps to make our dream of living in a "Garden of Eden" style EcoVillage a reality!

This 2-hour virtual event is happening soon. The cost has already been covered for us. We can register for free. It's in 9 days, 19 hours, and a few minutes. Am I ready to live my off-grid dream life?

• On October 19, 2024 @ noon (Central)

Hey, there are still politics to deal with out here

Ever look out at the world and think, "There has to be a better way!" Ever feel like maybe we got dropped off on the wrong planet? Well, actually this is the right planet, but there's a better way. We were meant to live in community and in harmony.

If we resonate with this picture, then we need to stop and notice this. Yes, I'm ready to go off grid and live the dream life. Plus, we'll leave a legacy our great grandchildren can be proud of: offgriddreamlife.com/eventregistration

TERMS & CONDITIONS | PRIVACY POLICY | LEGAL All Rights Reserved 2023 © offgriddreamlife.com

Four years alone and off grid in the Canadian wilderness | Self-built garden, yurt, and prepping

(Off Grid w/ Jake & Nicolle) Ep. 159: In the next episode we welcome a new family member, and EVERYTHING changes again!

• VIDEO: 4 years alone off grid in Canadian wilderness

Go to UnderLuckyStars.com/JakeAn... to get a loved one a unique gift and star map. Use code JakeAndNicolle. Watch all videos ad-free with extra and bonus weekly behind-the-scenes videos for supporters: bit.ly/3kgyX3X. New website for KOMOREBI shirts, calendar, and more: komorebi.ca.

Become a sponsor and help this journey: jakenicole

• PayPal: nmarie8282@gmail.com

Many have been asking what for an address to send items to be featured in videos. Please use this address. (Must be sent with Canada Post):

• P.O. Box 1297 Port Hardy
• Port Hardy, BC V0N 2P0

Follow on social media: 😊 Nicolle's Instagram (nicolleoffgrid), YouTube (holisticnicole). Check out her private OnlyFans account. Pinterest: pinterest.ca/NicHolistic

Jake's: YouTube 2: veganathlete. YouTube 3: shaolincenter. Couple Instagram: komorebioffgrid

► MUSIC 1.  Josh Amarante: Dancing in the Dying Light (YouTube amarantemusic/Soundcloud  amarantemusic)

#alone #prepping #OffGrid #Yurt #freediving #Firewood #boat #Bushcraft

• Offgriddreamlife.com; Off Grid with Jake and Nicolle, Sept. 26, 2022; Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Jen B., Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Buddha's mother found in Thai jungle?

The Buddha’s mother, Queen Maya Gotami, in Buddhism (jendhamuni.com)

This bas relief found in Thai jungle may be Queen Maya holding sal tree branch

Thai: Buri Ram mushroom hunter makes enigmatic discovery (nationthailand.com)

Mysterious sculpture found in Thai jungle

The Buddha's biological mother Queen Maya

May 22, 2024: A search for mushrooms in a remote part of Thailand turned wondrous for a group of Theravada Buddhist villagers who stumbled upon a mysterious sculpture believed to be a depiction of the Buddha's mother, Queen Maya.

According to a local media report, the remarkable find occurred last week at the Dong Yai Wildlife Sanctuary in the province of Buriram, Thailand. It came to light by way of a social media post from Pramul Kongkratok, who was one of the mushroom hunters.

• Buddhism in Thailand (ancient Siam)
• The Buddha's birthday in Thailand
• Queen Maya (mother of the Buddha)
• The face looks like Cambodian (Khmer) art
• This location is next to Cambodia
• Like the frescoes of Sigiriya, Sri Lanka
• Mother's Day 2024 is at hand

The future Buddha had a rare birth, entering his mother's side and emerging standing up.

Close up of carving, possibly recent

"Went mushroom hunting and found this," he said of the strange sculpture (more of which can be seen here)/

"I've lived here for so long, but just learned we have this around here. It's a blessing."

Kongkratok's photos of the newly discovered and seemingly ancient artwork went viral on social media in Thailand (on the verge of the biggest holiday in Theravada Buddhism known as Vesak ("Buddhist X-mas") -- a day commemorating:

1. the birth of Prince Siddhartha,

   

   Khmer art of Angkor area

2. his great awakening, when he became "the Buddha,"
3. and his passing into final nirvana

• (all of which occurred on the same auspicious full moon day in the ancient Indian month of Vaiśākha).
• [The art of the Khmer (present-day Cambodian) people is very similar to the art of the jungles of the Americas, as are their stone temples and exquisite bas relief art all over the walls of Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Siem Reap, and new archeological sites constantly being discovered in the dense jungles of the massive former Buddhist-Hindu empire.]

 

Prince Siddhartha was raised by his adoptive aunt
Queen Pajapati Gotami, after Queen Maya passed.

This prompted the country's Royal Forest Department to dispatch experts to investigate the priceless archeological artifact.

Upon examining the sculpture, which is that of a woman with her arm stretched overhead [just as his mother, depicted as a salabhanjika, is seen in countless pieces of art in Indian as she gives birth to the future-Buddha, while standing, holding on to the branch of a sal tree].

Archeologist Chedha Tingsanchali was able to discern some clues as to the nature of the piece. Noting that the "eyebrows, lips, and other features" differed in their depiction from the artwork of the 6th to 11th century period known as Dvaravati, he posited that "the sculptor was someone who saw ancient art like ancient Indian art and imitated it.

That said, the age of the piece largely remains uncertain beyond it not being particularly ancient and how it wound up in the remote jungle is also a mystery.

Frescoes at Sigiriya (Lion's Rock), Sri Lanka

One potential creator for the sculpture, put forward by villagers in the area, is a Buddhist monk who lived in the general area decades ago.

As for who the piece is meant to depict, the prevailing theory at this time is that the woman is Buddha's mother Sri Maha Maya.

As one might imagine, experts in Thailand are keen to study the newfound artwork further in the hopes of developing definitive answers to the questions surrounding the discovery and ultimately determining what, if any, historical value it might have. More

• A breast-shaped hill
• Men call such hill "pap"
• Grand Teton means what?

Original story

The topless ladies ofSigiriya are also a mystery

(NationThailand.com, May 14, 2024) Thai mushroom hunters in Buri Ram (near the Thai border with Cambodia) may have come upon an engraving of great historical significance. But an art history professor says otherwise. Pramul Kongkratok, a villager who lives near Khao Krachiao Mountain in Buri Ram’s Non Din Daeng district, posted an image on social media recently, which quickly went viral. It showed an ancient engraving of a woman with an arm held above her head. The photo was captioned: “Went mushroom hunting and found this....” More

Maya statue found in the Americas, in the jungles

of Honduras, a marvel of Central America.

• Tim Binnall, Coast to Coast, Mysterious Sculpture Found in Thai Jungle, May 22, 2024; Dhr. Seven, Pfc. Sandoval, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Getty Museum: Greek, Maya, Moche (LA)

(Plan your visit: getty.edu)

FEATURED EXHIBITION Picture Worlds Greek, Maya, and Moche Pottery (Runs until July 29, 2024)

Art of the Americas and the Old World

GETTY VILLA, Malibu, Los Angeles: Plan a visit to see mighty deities, brave heroes, and fantastic beings adorn the terracotta vessels of the ancient Greeks in the Mediterranean, the Maya in Central America, and the Moche of northern Peru.

This exhibition juxtaposes these three distinct ceramic traditions and explores the ways in which painted pottery served as a dynamic means of storytelling and social engagement.

This exhibition is presented in English and Spanish. Esta exhibición se presenta en inglés y en español. More: getty.edu

• Explore the Exhibition Discover more about the dynamic picture worlds of the Greeks, Maya, and Moche.

Generous support provided by Jeffrey P. Cunard and the Getty Patron Program Additional support from Charles and Ellen Steinmetz in honor of Professor Christopher B. Donnan. SELECTED WORKS Plate with Hunters Shooting a Supernatural Bird, Maya, 600–900 CE. Terracotta. Museo Maya de Cancún, Secretaría de Cultura-Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia. Image: © D.R. Secretaría de Cultura-INAH- MEX. Ignacio Guevara Explore the Exhibition Discover more about the dynamic picture worlds of the Greeks, Maya, and Moche

• Getty.edu; Crystal Q., CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Let's enslave and kill the dolphins (video)

CC Liu, Crystal Q., Sheldon S. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The manmade dolphin massacre that fishermen annually launch in Japan

(60 Minutes Australia) Sept. 13, 2023: "Saving the Dolphins" (2009). Rewind to 2009 when the disturbing secrets of Taiji, an idyllic Japanese village facing the Pacific Ocean, were exposed by The Cove. Each September, a cove in Taiji turns into a literal bloodbath, a Dante’s Inferno for families of dolphins which are terrorized, separated, and killed by bloody handed fisherman "just doing their job," even if it's wrong livelihood. Thousands of dolphins are enslaved and sold to marine parks around the world to entertain humans. The rest are brutally slaughtered to be eaten by flesheating humans at aquariums and seafood restaurants.

Ric O’Barry (the man who made Flipper famous) is a one-man eco-warrior who’s made it his life’s mission to save the dolphins.

WATCH more of 60 Minutes Australia: https://www.60minutes.com.au LIKE 60 Minutes Australia on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/60Minutes9 FOLLOW 60 Minutes Australia on Twitter: https://twitter.com/60Mins FOLLOW 60 Minutes Australia on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/60minutes9 For over forty years, 60 Minutes have been telling Australians the world’s greatest stories. Tales that changed history, our nation and our lives. Reporters Liz Hayes, Tom Steinfort, Tara Brown, Nick McKenzie and Amelia Adams look past the headlines because there is always a bigger picture. Sundays are for 60 Minutes. #60MinutesAustralia Subscribe: 9Soci.al/chmP50wA97J. Full episodes: 9now.app.link/uNP4qBkmN6.

"THE SHAMAN" (poem)

Dhr. Seven (Village Poets of Sunland & Tujunga, May 27, 2018); Eds., Wisdom Quarterly

Salma Hayak as a Native American "medicine man," most of who were women (yourdiy.com)

Portrayal of the Native American Shaman – British Colonialism (artandcolonialmedicine.com)

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Sacred datura or moonflower

The shaman climbed the mountain, gathered sacred flowering herbs and berries along the way -- datura moonflowers, toloache, Brugmansia angel's-trumpets, Salvia apiana sage, kasiile, toyon, holly -- until delirium overwhelmed him with lurid and ecstatic visions of hell and heaven. Then he returned to the human world.

Word spread of him. People asked, "Is it true, as they say, you have seen hell?"

"I have."

"What's it like?"

Landfills burn like sulfurous pits

"It's hideous, ironic, horror beyond imagination," the shaman winced to recall, nearly blinded by his recollection: "There's food everywhere, but no one eats, and drink aplenty, but no one drinks. There are long wooden spoons with which to partake, but their bodies have only tiny appendages for arms, too short to bring such elongated spoons up to their shriveled lips. Parched slaver forms ashes in their mouths, and bodies waste away. Struggle as they might, everything goes to wrack and ruin. They bellow in agony."

The people shrank away, with growing acreage dedicated to burying their discarded surplus collapsing under smoldering heaps of trash.

"And heaven?" asked the hopeful. "Is it true, as they say, you have seen heaven?"

"I have."

"And what's it like?" they pleaded.

"Heaven," the shaman revealed, "is exactly the same."

"What," cried the people, "the same? Surely that is no heaven!"

Share like the Buddha shared: karma.

"There is one difference," the shaman went on to explain. "In heaven, there is an abundance of food and drink, long wooden spoons, and bodies with tiny appendages too short to bring these utensils up to their mouths. But the beings there, without hesitation, use the long spoons to feed one another. There is no want. No request goes unanswered, no desire unfulfilled. Acts of kindness overflow as do their wooden spoons. Spoon-fed and cared for, there are continuous cries of gratitude and rejoicing as beings fall over one another to be the first to give. There is food, and they eat. There is drink, and they drink, and they relish diversity and bounty. They care for one another, nourish one another, thank one another. The sweetness of their caresses, the gentleness of their words, the kindness of their eyes," the shaman wept to recall, "make the place so beautiful that I only wish I could have shown one world to the other."

"If beings knew, as I know, the results of sharing, they would not eat without having given.

Medicine Man performing his mysteries over a dying man, 1832, oil on canvas (George Catlin, Smithsonian American Art Museum, gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.161, public domain).

The original Buddhist wandering ascetics were shamans called shramanas.

Thich Nhat Hanh, my dad makes me suffer

Plum Village Online, Jan. 17, 2015; CC Liu, Crystal Quintero (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

I've had it with this fatso. I never want to be like him! He makes me suffer. (The Simpsons)

Topics: mindfulness, Plum Village, family, children, kids, father, difficulties, change, breaking contact, relationship, interbeing, change yourself, acceptance, samsara, divorce.

Q&A with Thich Nhat Hanh

"Thay" answers questions on June 21, 2014. Question: "My father makes me suffer a lot. Should I keep seeing him?" Answer: Transform the "father" within, and the external father will become much easier to know how to interact with.

COMMENTS

But, Thay, the poor innocent child is in danger.

Gino Asci: Did everyone there miss the fact that the child said, “It has come to be almost dangerous, and I don’t want to go anymore”? Who is this child’s guardian, and why is this child allowed to be anywhere near anyone who could harm him? The word "danger" spoken by anyone is a clear sign that there is something seriously wrong. Is this child okay today?

I'm glad I did the inner work.

Florabelle Raindrops: He said that he does not need to be around him, but love the father inside of himself. For he (the young man) is his father. If he is not mindful, this child may internalize the father's anger and become like him. When he can transform and find peace within himself, when he is older and ready, dealing with his father will be much easier because he will deal with him from a place of [acceptance and] strength, healing, and self love, not need, lack, and anger. He heard the child's desire for the father to change. So if the child wants the relationship to EVER change, the child has to do the work within himself -- not on his father. Listen to what Thay is saying. Let's stop trying to transform our fathers on the outside. Let them be. And let's be the person we need to be to be healthy within ourselves. Depend on a support system, spiritually and physically. Accept things as they are. Thay gave advice that will last this child's life, not just for this moment and situation. This boy is a child [Thay knows, who has been going to Plum Village for more than a year]. We watch a short video and can't assume we know the whole situation. These people have been around this particular child for some time. They know him and said they are here for him. More

Racist Japan? Japanese against Japanese

Evan Hadfield (Rare Earth, Aug. 15, 2017); CC Liu, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

How to destroy people: Make them "untouchable"

Hey, f*ck, this happened to me in the USA!

Japan's Burakumin ("village people") are a people within a people. For hundreds of years they experienced direct persecution that has kept them from being fully functional members of society.

Even though they were released from their low caste in the 1800's, the stigma attached to them remains to this day.

The one thing this look is missing that the maker wishes he'd added, is the historic discrimination against Koreans and how it is interwoven into the village folk (and modern-day Yakuza). It is worth looking into for anyone itching to learn and understand more.

• Instagram: instagram.com/rareearthseries
• Francesco: instagram.com/frapetitti

The music for this video was graciously provided by Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com. It is Creative Commons, and he is no doubt unaware it is being used and is great for letting it happen.

"Letting Go" with Thich Nhat Hanh (video)

Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly; Source of Light Monastery; plumvillage.org (donate)

Thay ("teacher")

To preserve some of Ven. Thich Nhat Hanh's previous lectures, some of his older lectures are being uploaded by Source of Light Monastery as they become available.

Here Thay, as he is affectionately known, discusses what he calls the most important practice in Buddhist meditation -- the practice of letting go or "throwing away."

Wrong ideas, misperceptions, and false notions (moha, delusion, ignorance) are at the root of our suffering: They are the ground of all afflictions whatsoever. Cravings and aversions never stand without the support of ignorance.

 

In order for us to touch happiness in the here and now, we need to throw away the strong ideas and subtle notions that prevent us from learning and growing. 

Mahayana Buddhism's Diamond Sutra suggests four notions that should be thrown away: self, human being, living being, and life span. The main portion of this talk is dedicated to elaborating on these notions as well as our attachment to views, pairs of extremes, as well as "rules and rituals" we expect can lead to enlightenment. 

• Free Buddhist eBooks: sourceoflightmonastery.com

Thich Nhat Hanh on Oprah's OWN