Fact Gathering Thread on the Arizona Sweat Lodge Deaths

Thought we might want to start gathering facts here and try to figure out what the hell went wrong....

OMG, what the heck?

"(NECN/ABC) - The retreat at the Arizona resort promised to "change your life." But something went terribly wrong.

Sixty-four people were inside a sweat lodge, sitting in sweltering, sauna-like temperatures for a spiritual cleansing ceremony. But participants began to get sick and 911 was called.

In the end, 21 people needed medical treatment and a Wisconsin man, and a woman from New York died.

Motivational guru James Arthur Ray had rented the facility. Followers paid up to $9,000 to attend the "Spiritual Warrior" retreat.

Ray has used the site for events since 2003 and was in the lodge with his students when the problem began.

Part of the investigation into the incident will determine if criminal charges should be filed.

"We have a long way to go until we can say if there are any criminal violations," Sheriff Steve Waug said.

The sweat lodge is part of the Angel Valley Spiritual Retreat Center run by Michael and Amayra Hamilton. It bills itself as a "natural environment" for self-discovery and health.

ABC's Clayton Sandell reports."

PRESCOTT, Ariz. – A 38-year-old New York woman who died after sitting in a sauna-like sweat lodge at a scenic Arizona resort was an avid surfer and hiker who was "in top shape," took self-improvement seriously and had a passion for art, a family spokesman said.

Kirby Brown of Westtown, N.Y., had no pre-existing health conditions that would have kept her from participating in an otherwise safe activity, said cousin and family spokesman Tom McFeeley. That two people died and 19 others became ill indicates that "something went horribly wrong."

"Our only thought is shock, sadness and surprise," McFeeley said. "There will be plenty of time to react to the truth of what happened here, but we believe it is pointless to be angry or to place blame or to make assumptions before we understand what occurred here."

Brown was one of two people who died Thursday evening after being overcome in a crudely built sweat lodge during a spiritual cleansing ceremony at the Angel Valley Retreat Center. Authorities on Saturday identified the other victim as 40-year-old James Shore of Milwaukee.

A man who answered the door at Shore's address in Wisconsin said he had no immediate comment.

Nineteen other people were taken to hospitals, suffering from burns, dehydration, respiratory arrest, kidney failure or elevated body temperature. Most were soon released, but one remained in critical condition Saturday.

Autopsies on Brown and Shore were conducted Friday, but the results weren't disclosed pending additional tests.

Authorities haven't determined what caused the deaths and illnesses but ruled out carbon monoxide poisoning.

Yavapai County Sheriff Steve Waugh said Saturday his detectives were focusing on self-help expert and author James Arthur Ray and his staff as they try to determine if criminal negligence played a role. Waugh said Ray refused to speak with authorities and has since left the state. No charges have been filed.

"We will continue this investigation down every road that is possible to find out if there is culpability on anybody relative to the deaths of these individuals," Waugh said.

He said it could be three to four weeks before they knew if criminal charges would be filed.

Ray's recent postings on his Twitter account said he was "shocked and saddened" by the tragedy.

"My deep heartfelt condolences to family and friends of those who lost their lives," he wrote. "I am spending the weekend in prayer and meditation for all involved in this difficult time; and I ask you to join me in doing the same.

Ray's company, James Ray International, is based in Carlsbad, Calif. His publicist, Howard Bragman, declined to comment Friday and didn't return a call Saturday from The Associated Press.

The Angel Valley Retreat Center is owned by Michael and Amayra Hamilton, who have declined to comment.

Ray rented the resort to hold a five-day "Spiritual Warrior" retreat that promised to "absolutely change your life." Ray has held similar retreats at the resort in the past. Participants, whose ages ranged from 30 to the 60s, paid between $9,000 and $10,000 to attend this year's event.

Between 55 and 65 people were crowded into the 415-square-foot sweat lodge during a two-hour period that consisted of eight 15-minute rounds and various spiritual exercises led by Ray, Waugh said. After each round, the flap to the crudely constructed structure was raised to allow more heated rocks to be brought inside.

Authorities said participants were highly encouraged but not forced to remain in the sweat lodge for the entire two hours.

The participants had fasted for 36 hours as part of a personal and spiritual quest in the wilderness, then ate a breakfast buffet Thursday morning. After various seminars, they entered the sweat lodge lightly dressed at 3 p.m.

Two hours later, a woman dialed 911 to say that two people, whom Waugh identified as Brown and Shore, did not have a pulse and weren't breathing.

A nurse hired by Ray was directing rescue efforts including CPR when emergency crews arrived, Waugh said. Shore and Brown were pronounced dead when they arrived at a hospital.

Sheriff's Lt. David Rhodes said authorities are looking into whether there was a lag time between the first signs of medical distress and the emergency call.

McFeeley said Brown had attended similar retreats, although he wasn't certain whether any were hosted by Ray. He said Brown, who grew up in Brooklyn and Westtown, saw the outing as a chance to continue on a positive path in life.

Brown, a graduate of the State University of New York at Genesco, had two sisters who recently got married, two new nephews and a focus on "making the world more beautiful for someone, not only with her art but with her heart," McFeeley said. Although the family is saddened by her death, he said Brown created a roadmap by which others should live.

"She was the least selfish, kindest person I knew," he said.

___

Associated Press Writer Dinesh Ramde in Milwaukee contributed to this report.

I think they broke their fast incorrectly, and then stressed their bodies further within the sweat lodge. I'm not a doctor, but I play one in my own home. You have to be very careful with fasting, and if you fast for 3 days, you have to break the fast correctly. There is a certain way you should introduce food back into your body, and breakfast foods don't really factor into that equation. Entering a sweat lodge just stresses the physical body more than it is capable of handling after a fast. This is just my opinion, hon, but I think that is what happened.


Very, very sad....

And a portion of another article, and I just have to ask, why the heck was this guy Twittering during this "spiritual retreat"? Seriously? And his tweet is very strange, considering the circumstances. Be careful out there, people....


"Authorities haven't determined the cause of the deaths and illnesses; tests for carbon monoxide and other contaminants were negative.
Among those sickened during a two-hour session were a middle-aged man and a woman who were unconscious, according to a 911 call, and a third person who was found not breathing.

"It's not something you'd normally see at one of the resorts there, and it's unfortunate regardless of the cause," Yavapai County sheriff's spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn said.
Investigators were working to determine whether criminal actions might have been a factor in the incident, D'Evelyn said.
The Angel Valley Retreat Center sits on 70 acres nestled in a scrub forest just outside Sedona, a resort town 115 miles north of Phoenix that draws many in the New Age spiritual movement.
Self-help expert and author James Arthur Ray rented the facility as part of his "Spiritual Warrior" retreat that began Oct. 3 and that promised to "absolutely change your life."

Ray spokesman Howard Bragman confirmed that his client was holding an event at the retreat, as he has done in the past. Authorities said Ray was inside the sweat lodge Thursday evening and was interviewed at the scene.
"We express our deepest condolences to those who lost friends and family, but we pray for a speedy recovery for those who took ill," Bragman said. "At this point there are more questions than answers, so it would not be appropriate to comment further."
Sweat lodges, like that held on the final day of the Angel Valley retreat, are commonly used by American Indian tribes to cleanse the body and prepare for hunts, ceremonies and other events. The structure used Thursday was crudely built and covered with tarps and blankets.
Stones are heated up outside a lodge, brought inside and placed in a pail-sized hole. The door is closed, and water is poured on the stones, producing heat aimed at releasing toxins in the body.
The ritual in sweat lodges is helpful in restoring balance and changing people's attitudes and self-image, said Joseph Bruchac, author of "The Native American Sweat Lodge: History and Legends."
People have died in sweat lodges in the past. They were either sick tribal elders who voluntarily stayed until they died or people who had heart conditions and were in poor health.
"The sweat lodge needs to be respected," Bruchac said. "When you imitate someone's tradition and you don't know what you are doing, there's a danger of doing something very wrong."
Ray's retreat schedule had few details about what participants could expect, other than thrice-daily meals and group gatherings that started at 7 a.m. and ended 16 hours later.
The details came in a lengthy release of liability that acknowledges participants may suffer "physical, emotional, financial or other injuries" while hiking or swimming, or during a multi-day personal and spiritual quest in the wilderness without food or water or the sweat lodge.
Some participants told detectives they paid up to $9,000 for the event. Ray's company, James Ray International, is based in Carlsbad, Calif.
Ray's posting on his Twitter account hours before the deaths said: "Still in Spiritual Warrior ... for anything new to live something first must die. What needs to die in you so that new life can emerge?"
The posting and two others were deleted Friday afternoon.
A woman who answered the phone at the Angel Valley resort Friday said its founders, Michael and Amayra Hamilton, would have no comment. A call to the Hamiltons' home went unanswered.
The Angel Valley Spiritual Retreat Center, built on former ranch property in the high-desert and red-rock country of northern Arizona, bills itself as a natural environment for self discovery and healing through a holistic approach aimed at balancing the mind, emotions, body and spirit.
The property includes American Indian structures such as teepees, guest houses and outdoor labyrinths made of stones."

Associated Press Writer Jacques Billeaud also contributed to this report.

OK, I've changed my mind....I read another article that said they kept bringing in new rocks for the fire as the heat cooled..... I think some of those rocks may have had a toxic mold on them which caused everyone in the sweat lodge to be sick, and the 2 to die. That is my best guess....

I am less freaked out by the retreatant leader claiming we must die (to the self) etc...as this is a very common thing heard in spiritual circles....and I am more concerned with the greed and spiritualistic materialism that may be involved....selling a five day reterat for 9500 dollars and then cramming 64 people into a lodge that traditionally holds only 8-12....the Universe may have frowned upon all of this.

One report, however, does say that one of the men who died, Hawker was his name, did make a lot of statements about "this is a good day to die" etc and that he may hjave placed something on the stones that was toxic....in Ceremony it is typical to throw various herbs and grasses on the stones....did he place soemthing toxic, and on purpose? I dunno. Melissa is right...be careful out there... and try to know hwo is in your Lodge.

All speculation, of course.

Police are looking into witness reports that Hawker sprinkled something on the hot rocks that gave a strong metallic odor. The two survivors could not be reached for comment.

The other participants didn't know much about Hawker, McDonald said. While they had invited friends and family to join them at the ranch, Hawker was alone.

Hawker's friends described him as a spiritual person who had been looking forward to the vision quest.

"He was happier than anyone I've ever known," longtime friend Ken Mitchell said of the recently unemployed electrical engineer.

Mitchell said Hawker was not new to the sweat lodge ritual. "He's done it before, and it was very intense, and he enjoyed it," he said. "It was a cleansing thing."

Last Thursday, before the sweat lodge session, the questers sponsored a "giveaway dinner," in which they honored their supporters with small gifts. Babcock gave each of her friends a cake of soap she had made by hand.

McDonald said Hawker gave the organizers crystals that struck sparks when he banged them together. He promised his fellow questers that he had a gift for them, too.

"He said, 'I can't give it to you now, but I'll give it to you on the other side when we know ourselves and each other better,' " McDonald said.

Then, McDonald said, Hawker raised his fist to his chest and said, "It's a good day to die."

It struck many as bizarre, McDonald said, but many similar things were being said that night, including McDonald's words to Babcock, just before she entered the lodge.

"I said, 'Die well, Kris.' And she said, 'That seems very apropos.' " McDonald said. "It was a beautiful moment."

I've never heard of this James Ray person. I think the price paid by the participants to go is exorbitant. Spiritual retreats are usually kinda costly but, like this one include room and food. From the sound of this I don't think I would ever want to go to one of his. Start and 7:00 am and go for 16 hours? no thanks. It sounds like that guy Hawkes may have committed suicide and took the girl with him by accident. Strange situation. I'll stick to my steam room. Nice to hear from you again Jhodi.

Yes, MID, more and more I am finding my ritual and retreat held right within my own heart. Less need for special people or special places.

I am guessing this James Ray guy's career has just ended.

his and possibly the place where it was held. it doesn't sound like a well made sweat lodge, more like something just thrown together.

I should have titles this thread Fiction Gathering as all my facts are wrong....I didn;t realize when I googled sweat lodge deaths that this also happened in 2002 and the Hawker guy was from THAT incident.

I won't quit my day job in lieu of Journalism any time soon...

lol, jhodi...

Did you and MID see a picture of their so-called sweat lodge? It was a giant circus tent looking thing. Not good. I didn't realize the Hawkins guy had a history, I didn't research it very much....too busy trying to get my homework done, keeping up with the kidlets, the household, and maintaining another website on the Caylee Anthony case.

This semester has been a real monster in terms of work required....

BUT, back to the topic at hand, what the heck could he have put on those rocks to make people sick? And why? Why why why....

You MAINTAIN a website on the C.A. case??? really???

Yeah, a big one...lol...did you not know that? I thought I told you...

Over 1,000 members....it was really more of an accident than intentional, but it has grown exponentially....it's one of the go-to places for the case........we have inside sources....lol, wink wink....

Oh, and let me just mention that I haven't "maintained" it all that well, lately....lol...I kind of figured they could all handle it on their own, which they do quite well. I only step in when there is big trouble on the board, which surprisingly, isn't all that often anymore....Only now and then do I have to step in and make peace anymore, but it's all good.

My own experience with a sweat lodge was that the rocks were heated outside the lodge. the lodge was a series of willow branches that were weaved together and covered over with natural skins. The dirt in the lodge was hallowed out to for seats and it held approximately 15 people. The fire was tendereduch for hours prior to the sweat and once it started the rocks were brought into the center of the lodge and placed in a pit. Water was poured over the hot rocks and on occasion certain herbs where added for achromatic effect, such as sweet grass and sage, My own experiance was the prelude to a yuipe cerimonie. But a sweat is a sweat

Robbie, check your email....

And yes, a sweat is a sweat, but this wasn't a ceremonial sweat, as depicted in the brochures and hype, this guy had tarps for heaven's sake, actual TARPS for his "sweat lodge." And he was charging 10K a pop. OK, maybe it isn't the head guy's fault that some crazy participant felt it necessary to die and take others with him, but the Ray dude, as a Spiritual Leader, (I would think) should've been and COULD'VE been a little more AWARE? Yes? Of course, we all miss the mark sometimes when it comes to discernment, but evidently, Mr. Ray wasn't all that concerned with spiritual enlightenment, as evidenced by his tarps masquerading as a sweat lodge. I'm just shaking my head at this whole fiasco. It's really very sad....

I think I made that up about the guy doing a murder suicide thing....

I wondered where you got the name Hawkins, or Hawker....lol...only 2 died and those weren't their names.....

Of course, I get things all mixed up with the CA case, because there IS a Mark Hawkins involved in that case....lol...Casey Anthony is a classic study of narcissism....among other things....

I got it from reading your posts

and if this hawkins dude was out to commit suicide I doupt others would have been aware. kinda like slipping a micky into a drink.

All it woul;d have taken ism the right chemical compound to do the trick

On Oct. 8, 55 people seeking spiritual enlightenment were crammed into a makeshift sweat lodge in Sedona, Ariz., under the guidance of James Arthur Ray, a nationally renowned self-help guru. Witnesses claim Ray intimidated and coerced participants to remain in the steamy sweat lodge for two hours. Twenty-one people were rushed to hospitals. Three died. Word of the tragedy sent shockwaves to Oklahoma — the home of many sacred sweat lodge ceremonies.

WATONGA OKLAHOMA— Eugene Blackbear, leaning on a wooden walking cane, takes a seat not far from the family’s sacred sweat lodge on a small acreage south of Watonga. His son-in-law, Malcolm Whitebird, stokes the flames of a bonfire built around a pyramid of stones.

Once the stones turn a glowing red they will be placed inside the lodge, where Blackbear’s grandsons have draped a heavy canvas over a dome-like frame made of tree branches. The stones will then be sprinkled with water, and the sweat will begin.

Blackbear, 79, is in his element.

The Cheyenne medicine man is encircled by family, friends and the traditional ways of his grandfather’s grandfathers. Life is good. Yet on this day, his heart is heavy over the Arizona tragedy.

"I pray for the families of those victims,” said Blackbear, speaking above a howling wind. "What happened there is not right. I don’t like it at all. Whoever conducted that sweat obviously didn’t know what they were doing. You don’t charge money for a sweat. That is something holy. You don’t mess with those types of things.

"There was a reason this happened. We just don’t know the reason yet.”

James Arthur Ray, who built a financial empire from his motivational books and lectures, charged clients $9,000 to attend a five-day "Spiritual Warrior” retreat. The package included a "vision quest” in which participants reportedly fasted in the Arizona desert for 36 straight hours, followed by a two-hour sweat lodge ceremony loosely based on ancient American Indian practices.

On Thursday, Ray announced on his Web site that he has postponed all future events to "dedicate all my physical and emotional energies to helping bring some sort of closure to this matter.”

A criminal investigation is pending.

Blackbear fears the fallout might have major ramifications if people don’t understand how – or why – real Indian sweat lodge ceremonies are conducted. Sweats are performed in various forms by different tribes nationwide, including the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Comanche and Sioux.

"This is part of our religion,” Blackbear said. "We don’t want someone coming in here and making new laws, restricting our sweat lodge. You don’t have to burn someone out in a sweat, or keep them from leaving. That’s not right. A sweat is about prayer and healing.”

Whitebird said Indians who charge for sweat lodge ceremonies are generally regarded as "sellouts.” Non-Indians who do the same: "Frauds.”

Sedona Blackbear, Eugene’s daughter-in-law, is compassionate and blunt.

"It’s offensive to us,” she said. "It’s offensive that they didn’t know how to use it and it hurt those poor people. We just need to pray for those families.”

Sedona and her husband, Ralph, have hosted sweat lodge ceremonies for years on their rural property. A deeply worn footpath between the bonfire pit and the sweat lodge bear witness to their spiritual dedication, as well their hospitality and commitment to the traditional ways of their people.

In the Cheyenne tribe, the sweat lodge – like the annual Sundance and Sacred Arrows ceremonies – were brought by a legendary holy man known as Sweet Medicine. Cheyenne legend states that Sweet Medicine lived to 445 years of age, and traveled the sacred Black Hills of South Dakota before his death.

There, Sweet Medicine is led to the most sacred site in Bear Butte – a tipi-like mountain that rises from the prairie. Somewhere on Bear Butte, Sweet Medicine entered a secret cave where great spirits awaited his arrival. They entrusted in him the spiritual and social foundation for the Cheyenne, including how to run a sweat lodge ceremony.

Today, Bear Butte is the destination for countless vision quests. The elder Blackbear himself has engaged in 16 such journeys and has participated in four Sundances dating to 1948. Before that, he watched his elders and carefully observed their ways.

"As a child, they used to put me in charge of opening and shutting the sweat lodge doors,” Blackbear said. "We had one on the east and one on the west in those days. If a buffalo skull had been placed in front of the lodge, I knew that meant powerful medicine.

"Today, we will do what we call a ‘Young Man’s Sweat.’ But every sweat should be done with a special purpose – a homecoming; or if someone is leaving; or if someone is sick.”
Con't

The sweat’
Inside the lodge, 11 people sit in a circle around a pit filled with glowing red rocks. They quietly await the arrival of the elder Blackbear, who enters the lodge with his walking cane and escorted by his children and grandchildren. His seat is one of honor as medicine man and family elder, and one not easily obtained.


From Blackbear’s hand dangles a leather pouch filled with shavings of cedar and sweet grass – sacred ingredients that will be sprinkled atop the scalding stones throughout the four 15-minute sessions. Blackbear calls for the entryway to be closed and the stones to be sprinkled with water from one of the metal buckets inside the lodge.

Hot steam quickly fills the lodge, pasting one’s body almost instantly with a layer or moisture.

One by one the participants offer thanks for the many blessings in their lives and prayers for those near and far. Traditional Cheyenne prayer songs soon emanate from the lodge, lending the ceremony a rhythmic beauty.

Blackbear, whom his family affectionately refers to as "Old Man,” prays in his Cheyenne language – one of relatively few in the tribe who can still speak it fluently.

Afterward, the group celebrates in typical Cheyenne fashion with a feast of Indian fry bread, brisket, stew and love.

"My time here is almost through,” Blackbear said. "I know my time to die is near. I’m not afraid of dying. I’m afraid of what I will leave behind – my family. I’m just glad they have followed in all the traditional ways I have taught them; the ancient ways of our people.

"In that, I am happy. For this is our way of life.”

Read more: http://newsok.com/some-fear-sweat-lodge-tragedys-effect/article/3413940#ixzz0VhN20OTn