
Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online · Guided Death Meditation with Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo
In Eastern esoteric spiritual traditions, life is ultimately seen as an occasion to practice and prepare one for death. This weekly group meditation—led by Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo—is aimed towards helping reduce fear of death and preparing participants for end of life while also cultivating a community of like-minded people with whom to share this collective experience.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Talk · Music From Elsewhere: A Lecture and Performance by Doug Skinner
Tonight, join Doug Skinner as he discusses—and plays!—music attributed to fairies, trolls, banshees, angels, aliens, spirits, time slips, dreams, the afterlife, and other unusual sources, as discussed in his new book Music From Elsewhere (Strange Attractor Press, 2024). He will also focus on reports that include actual music, and present possible explanations.

Online Talk · Ariadne in Threads: Heartbreak, Lament, and the Arrival of True Love with Devon Deimler, PhD
When Theseus enters the labyrinth to slay the Minotaur, Ariadne provides the thread that leads him back to daylight. For this, Theseus promises to marry smitten Ariadne and whisk her away to Athens. But midway through their journey, Ariadne is abandoned while slumbering on the beach. Waking to the sight of Theseus’ sails in the distance shocks and rends Ariadne into an outpouring of lament, a scene captured painstakingly across literature, art, and music. And yet, this lament is ultimately a song attracting the heart of Dionysos. Unlikely as it may seem for the god of uninhibited sexuality and transgression of norms, the marriage of Dionysos and Ariadne is the sole loyal union on Olympos. Then again, there is no one version of any myth. In this illustrated talk, we will look deeply at the devastation of heartbreak and the ecstatic arrival of true love as mythically entwined.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Online Talk · Demons and Dybbuks: Magic and the Occult in the Jewish World with Author Peter Bebergal
While the Bible contains clear prohibitions against the use of divination, witchcraft, and other forms of occult practices, the actual lived experience (and literature) of Judaism is replete with demons, witches, magic spells, and of course, golems. In this talk, Peter Bebergal will present a lively overview of Jewish magic and the supernatural from Biblical, Talmudic, and Midrashic sources, magical grimoires, and folktales to uncover a treasure trove of legends and stories, from the summoning of demons to build mighty temples to the folk magic of ordinary people.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Online Talk · The Golem and How He Came to Be, with Alchemist Brian Cotnoir
A golem is a man of clay brought to life through the power of the written word. Of all the legends and stories of golems, perhaps the most famous is the story of Rabbi Loew and the Golem of Prague. Rabbi Loew—or so the story tells us—in Prague, during the reign of Rudolph II in the 16th century, used secret practices from the Kabbalah to bring a clay man to life to defend against anti-Semitic attacks. This story has resonated for generations and has been retold many times. What truths are there in this story, how did this Golem come to be? This talk will look into the mystical practices of Judaism that are at the heart of the legends, and how the story evolved through the 20th century. And perhaps, as well, see what we can learn from these tales in this time of robotics, drones, and artificial intelligence.

Free Online Member Event · Ghosts, Anomalous Experiences and Mysterious Encounters Open Mic
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Danse Macabre and above levels; eligible members will receive a Zoom invitation in their Patreon inbox. Become a member HERE.
On this special evening, we invite our Supporter-level (and above) members to grab a drink and share their own (or listen to others’) mysterious encounters—be they ghost stories, uncanny synchronicities, or unusual happenings—with other members of the Morbid Anatomy community around the world.

Free Online Event · Death Cafe with Death Midwife Lisa Cox
At Death Cafe people gather to "eat cake, drink tea and discuss death." For this free online event, join death midwife Lisa Cox on Zoom with a snack and beverage in hand, along with questions or stories and a thoughtful ear. There is no agenda, except as arises among those in attendance. Death Cafe is a worldwide non-profit movement to allow non-judgmental space for people to talk about death, online or in person.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Free Online Member Event · Sunday Night Movie James M. Cain’s “Mildred Pierce” (1945)
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Join us for a viewing of Mildred Pierce (1945), a classic film noir based on a novel by James M. Cain and starring Joan Crawford, who won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance. James M. Cain wrote many popular and shocking books that were adapted into successful film noirs, and Albert Camus cited his work as an inspiration for his Stranger. After the screening, we will have a chance to discuss the film and share our responses.

Free Online Event · Final Shuffle: An Exploration of Death and Dying Preferences using The Death Deck with Lisa Pahl, Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Co-Creator of The Death Deck
Join Lisa Pahl, co-creator of The Death Deck, for a lively night of conversation and game play. Lisa will share her experience working in hospice and answer questions on how The Death Deck can help open meaningful dialogue. We’ll play some rounds of The Death Deck, a lively game that helps players acknowledge and even embrace their mortality through interactive game play and humor. Whether you're curious to learn more about yourself or want to initiate “the conversation” with a loved one, The Death Deck gets people talking about what matters most in life...and death.

Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Free Online Member Event · Morbid Anatomy Book Club: Frederic Morton’s “A Nervous Splendor: Vienna 1888–1889”
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon Members at Danse Macabre ($10/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will get an invitation in their Patreon inbox. Become a member here.
Join Morbid Anatomy Founder and Creative Director Joanna Ebenstein to discuss one of her favorite books: A Nervous Splendor: Vienna 1888-1889, a cultural history focusing on two years in the life of Vienna, a city “given over to the dramaturgy of death.” The book—by Austrian Jewish writer Frederic Morton—traces the lives Gustav Klimt, Sigmund Freud, Arthur Schnitzler and others as they respond to the mood and movement of their city. The story moves to the drumbeat of ornate suicides reported on with relish by the local papers, culminating in the mysterious death of Vienna’s beloved Prince Rudolph . The book ends with an intimation of more deaths yet to come with the introduction of a baby named Adolf, born just after the prince’s body is interred in his family’s imperial crypt.

Free Online Talk · To The Hilt: A Sword Swallower’s History of Sword Swallowing with Historian Marc Hartzman and Sword Swallower Dan Meyer
What makes a person want to learn to swallow a sword? And how is it possible? In this lecture (and live demonstration!), world-renowned sword swallower Dan Meyer and sideshow historian Marc Hartzman will discuss the mysterious and dangerous art of sword swallowing (yes, it’s entirely real!), the anatomy of it, and the remarkable history of sword swallowers from the early 1800s to the late 1900s.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Online Talk · The Stone Tape Theory and the Sonic Uncanny with Author Leila Taylor
The recorded voice is inherently spectral, the disembodied trace of a person detached from time and space and the evidence of the departed are usually auditory. So how do you capture the voices of the dead, how do you make permanent and physical something that is by nature incorporeal? What do ghosts sound like? From a haunted electronics lab in a 1972 BBC made for tv movie to the Gold Room at The Overlook Hotel; from a 19th century theory of “place memory” to Discovery channel ghost hunters, this talk, by Leila Taylor—author of Sick Houses: Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread—explores the spectral sonic and our desire to document the voices of the dead.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Free Online Member Event · Sunday Night Movie The Golem: How He Came into the World (1920)
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Join us for a viewing of the classic German Expressionist silent film The Golem: How He Came into the World, called by some the first horror movie. Directed by Paul Wegener and Carl Boese and based on Gustav Meyrink's The Golem (1915), it tells the story of Prague’s famous Rabbi Loew—relative of our founder and host Joanna Ebenstein—and his adventures creating a golem: an artificial man crafted of mud and animated with the word of God. After the screening, we will have a chance to discuss the film and share our responses.

Free Online Talk · Burial Vaults: The History of Body Snatching in America, with author and Funeral Director Todd Harra
Since Dr. William Shippen had his carriage fired upon in 1762 in response to his newly opened dissecting room in Philadelphia, Americans have had a rocky relationship with the medical profession. Medical students desperately needed anatomical material to learn, but the religious dogma of the day held that one's body must be whole to be resurrected on Judgement Day. Colonial Americans weren't willing to give their bodies over as scalpel fodder. Many medical men turned to body snatchers, who emptied city graveyards by the light of the moon for a buck. There were violent clashes and outrageous scandals over the years as states tried to legislate the problem away. In desperation, citizens turned to savage measures (hidden weapons!) to protect their cherished dead. Tonight, learn how this complicated historical moment birthed the burial vault, and why it continues to endure.

Free Online Talk · Unbelievable: Investigations into Ghosts, Poltergeists, Telepathy, and Other Unseen Phenomena, from the Duke Parapsychology Laboratory with Author Stacy Horn
The scientific community has always been disdainful of accounts of the paranormal, but there was a moment when science discovered a kaleidoscope of invisible forces, waves, and particles underneath a now thinner veil of reality. In this brief window of opportunity, Duke University opened the Parapsychology Laboratory. In his time, J. B. Rhine, its founder, was the Einstein of the paranormal, who wished to scientifically demonstrate that life and all the feelings that go with it survive death. When Stacy Horn visited North Carolina to research the lab's work, she knew that no one has definitely proven that there is life after death, but Rhine and his colleagues conducted lots of experiments over the years. What if one of them worked? What she discovered, among many other things, is that one of them did. This talk will tell the story of this fascinating lab, its experiments and its findings.

Free Online Member Event · Collection Show and Tell, Cocktail Party, and Meet-and-Greet
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon Members at the $10/above levels. Eligible members will get an invitation in their Patreon inbox. Become a member here.
We hope you’ll join us for a Morbid Anatomy Show and Tell cocktail party! Get a rare peek at the private collections of Founder and Creative Director Joanna Ebenstein and Executive Director Megan Fitzpatrick. We also invite you to share an object or artifact of your own, while meeting and enjoying a virtual cocktail with others in the Morbid Anatomy Community.

Online Talk · The Watseka Wonder: The True Story of a Possessed Girl with Author Asti Hustvedt, PhD
In 1877, in the quiet town of Watseka, Illinois, a teenage girl with the wonderfully witchy name Lurancy Vennum became the center of international fascination when she became possessed by the spirit of another girl who had died in an insane asylum twelve years earlier. Dubbed the “Watseka Wonder,” her case mesmerized the public and drew intense scrutiny from doctors, philosophers, clergymen, journalists, psychical researchers, and the merely curious. Fierce debate raged over the true nature of her possession: Was she an unwitting medium channeling the dead? A cunning fraud orchestrating an elaborate hoax? A sufferer of hysteria? A victim of demonic forces? Or, as the Dalai Lama of the day speculated, a highly unorthodox case of reincarnation? This illustrated talk will delve into a once-famous but now largely forgotten supernatural mystery.

Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.

Online Event · How to Think Like a Mythologist: A One Day Workshop with Alicia King Anderson, Ph.D.
Have you ever wondered how to think in the language of myth, archetype, and symbol? Or how mythologists, psychoanalysts, folklorists, and storytellers make those intuitive leaps and connections? In this one-day course, we’ll dig into the theories, thought exercises, and resources used by modern mythologists and storytellers, all of which prioritize the right-brained, intuitive, and irrational ways of processing information. These techniques are aimed at getting one out of the critical mind and into active dialogue with your unconscious, and possibly the transpersonal or collective unconscious as well. If you’re interested in “gnosis” in its various forms, then this workshop will provide you with a fantastic toolkit. You will leave the workshop with a host of amplification tactics, dream interpretation techniques, tricks for identifying and working with archetypes, as well as rich list of resources for further study.

Online Talk · Memento Oblivisci (Remember to Forget): Stoicism, Zombie Idea and the Egotism of Performing Your Own Death with Author Richard Faulk
Implicit in memento mori—the injunction to remember that we all must die—is an acknowledgment that our default is to forget. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Just as people who refuse to die become undead monsters that feed on the living, zombie concepts, whose verbal husks endure even after their animating insights have flamed out, curdle into platitudes that smother genuine thought. We see that cycle play out in early Imperial Rome, when Stoic philosophers like Seneca advocated “rehearsing your death” as a means of cultivating independence and moral courage. Within a generation, that austere precept had metastasized into a cultural vibe, a pre-Goth gothicism that delighted in funereal imagery. In a masterful takedown—the Cena Trimalchionis (Dinner at Trimalchio’s)—the satirist Petronius reveals how this fixation on dying had itself become a denial of death. This illustrated talk will explore this fascinating and largely forgotten historical moment.

In-Person Event · Memento Mori Weekend in New York City
Save the date for an exciting weekend of memento mori-themed symposia, screenings, performances, classes, activations and spectacles in celebration of our founder and creative director Joanna Ebenstein’s new book Memento Mori: The Art of Cultivating Death to Live a Better Life! Partners include ARAS (The Archive for Research in Archetypal Symbolism), The Morbid Anatomy Library and The Green-Wood Cemetery.

Online Talk · Remember You Must Die, Might As Well Talk About It, with Professor of Communication Jillian A. Tullis, PhD
Yapper? Gift of gab? Talk a blue streak? Ever clear a room or change the vibe with an obscure death fact? Do you like to talk, even about topics like dying and death and wonder why no one else around you are so squeamish? Maybe talking about dying or death, even briefly, makes your heart race or your stomach churn. This talk will focus on talk about dying and death and explain some of the reasons for our strong reactions to the end of life. In addition to exploring theories, this session will also offer some practical tips for making THE talk easier.

Online Talk · Musings on Dead Birds, with Liz Andres, Resident Mythologist
Vibrant in life, poignant in death, imagery of dead birds has long been popular in western art. Associated with the soul, and beautiful in their own right, encountering dead birds may evoke a range of emotional responses. This richly-illustrated talk will explore the imagery and symbolism of dead birds through the lenses of art history, myth, and depth psychology, and invite listeners to reflect on these delicate embodiments of spirit.

Online Talk · "A Smile that Makes Forever:” A Memento Mori of Teeth with Devon Deimler, PhD
With each gnash, smile, or showing of teeth, the human skeleton peeks through. This illustrated talk plays with the poetics and phenomenology of teeth via their appearances in science, art, myth, dental objects, dreams, pop culture, and cinema. We will consider the psychological range, cultural conditionings, and aesthetic practices surrounding teeth, from the multileveled demand for teeth whitening, to mores against open-mouthed beaming, to archetypes of sardonic revenge and full-blown Cheshire grins. We will contemplate the setting of teeth in the same mouth-world that speaks and digests, and how the lips (with the eyes and other agents) shape a wide variety of existential messages and moods. All along, we will entertain toothsome smiles as biting, ready-made memento mori and flashes of n/evermore in the everyday. Smile!

Morbid Anatomy Spring Benefit: The Animalia Edition
Join us for a very special evening at a private estate filled with exotic taxidermied—and live!—animals in upstate New York! Natural history enthusiast and author Josh Powe will welcome us into his private taxidermy collection, believed to be the largest of its kind in the United States, and filled with thousands of antique specimens including extinct and unusual animals, Victorian anthropomorphic dioramas and pets, and "freak" domestic animals. The night will culminate with a decadent Roman-inspired feast centered on exotic game (with vegetarian options for the less carnivorous) along with plentiful libation and entertainment, followed by a rousing game of “zoo-lette” (taxidermy roulette) where you will have a chance to go home with pieces from our host’s collection. A lucky few will stay for an after-party sleepover, followed by a champagne brunch and a tour of an unnamed “mystery collection” the following day.
All proceeds support Morbid Anatomy’s mission and our transition to a 501(c)(3) non-profit institution, and tickets and donations over $1,000 are tax deductible.

Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.

Online Talk · Online Talk · The Dark Gift: Aphrodite, Persephone, and the Beauty Conferred by Death with Mythologist Maryam Sayyad, PhD
Aphrodite’s beauty is a central player in the genesis of the cosmos. But what makes her beautiful? According to one myth, what makes Aphrodite beautiful is death. The Classical world recognized an inextricable link between love and death, a bond mythologized in encounters—both competitive and collaborative—between the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite, and Persephone, the Queen of the Dead. When these goddesses compete, the result is tragedy. But when they collaborate—as in the initiatory tale of Eros and Psyche—they usher in apotheosis, immortality, and eternal union. In this story, Persephone gifts Aphrodite a dark cosmetic that enhances her beauty. This lecture explores the meaning of this mysterious beauty aid, tracing it back to the mytho-philosophy of beauty in the Classical world and the symbolism of the pentagram, then tracing it inward to the beauty conferred by death in lived experience.

In Person Event · Memento Mori & Beyond in Lily Dale, New York
Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein and Tiffany Hopkins are friends who have been teaching popular classes at the intersection of death, art, and culture for an organization called Morbid Anatomy over the past few years. Each has developed her class into a full-length book. Joanna’s Memento Mori: The Art of Contemplating Death to Live a Better Life and Tiffany’s Beyond: A Living Person’s Guide To Talking To The Dead each offer a look into bringing creativity and the dead into your life. In this workshop, you will get a chance to learn about how memento mori—or actively remembering you will die—and mediumship, or talking to the dead, can fuel creativity, healing and joy.

Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.

Free Online Talk · Stage 4 Cancer and My Night Sea Journey To Wellness with Myth & Religion Scholar Amy Slonaker, JD, PhD
Tonight’s speaker was given two years to live in 2017 after a Stage 4, metastatic cancer diagnosis from her doctors at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Her story of ongoing healing from cancer was retold in Joanna Ebenstein's book Memento Mori, where it provided an example of how confrontation with death can lead to a better life. In this illustrated talk, Slonaker will explain how her doctoral study of mythology and archetypes—along with her deep engagement with Jungian analysis—allowed her to heal long-term wounds at the soul-level which allowed her body to fight back against cancer. She will also demonstrate how archetypal narratives—especially that of the "The Night Sea Journey"—can provide us with pathway for understanding and metabolizing serious illness, and show how a variety of world myths demonstrate how a serious confrontation with death can be the beginning of a better life.

Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.


Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.

Online · Reiki for Relaxation, Release, and Community: A Monthly Practice with Reiki Master and Psychotherapist Mikella Millen
Reiki—a practice originating from Japan and developed by Mikao Usui in the 1920s—is most often translated as universal energy, or life-force energy. It can be understood as that essential quality that makes something alive, the difference between animate and inanimate. When this vital energy is amplified, it creates the conditions for healing and nourishment to occur. This online monthly group will provide a space for the therapeutic application of Reiki for relaxation, release, and community; relaxation exercises and therapeutic sound (such as Tibetan bowls and chimes) will also be utilized. Reiki can have restorative effects on the nervous system and allow for increased creativity, insights, emotional release, light trance states. It can also be beneficial to those who are grieving or wish to prepare for “a good death,” by inviting a deeper relationship to energy beyond the physical body.

Free Online Talk · Come to Me! Phantom Lovers, Erotic Ghosts and Other Sensual Specters with Cultural Historian Jason Lahman
Tales of mortals seduced by ghosts or other shadowy spirits reflect the allure of forbidden love and the terrible grip of the past. From the "woman in white" of English folklore, who lures travelers to their doom, to the Greek eidolons made of cloud sent to seduce humans, from Japanese yūrei who return from death to enchant or avenge to the nightmare-riding succubus that ravished sleeping monks in the Middle Ages, the phantom lover symbolizes irresistible desire and existential threat, manifesting in altered states of consciousness and as the result of pathological grief or stifled passions. This talk will explore these spectral figures, and lead us to reflect on timeless anxieties about connection, memory, and the fragile line between the real and the unreal, the mental and the material.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online · Guided Death Meditation with Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo
In Eastern esoteric spiritual traditions, life is ultimately seen as an occasion to practice and prepare one for death. This weekly group meditation—led by Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo—is aimed towards helping reduce fear of death and preparing participants for end of life while also cultivating a community of like-minded people with whom to share this collective experience.

Free In-Person Event · Minding our Mortality Game Night
Join us for an evening of death-themed card and board games to get folks talking—and laughing! Whether you’re a competitive gamer or enjoy playing just for fun, this promises to be a lively gathering for connections and conversations. Co-hosted by Here to Honor and Death Doula Lauren Seeley.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Talk · Witches & Their Poisons: A History of Flying Ointment, with Author and Occultist Melissa Madara
Join author and occultist Melissa Madara for a look at the history and folklore of flying ointment, the e most feared and revered of magical concoctions in the folklore of medieval witchcraft. Made from a litany of transgressive ingredients—poisons, psychedelics, animal parts and human remains—this substance was believed to grant humans the power of supernatural flight, with which they could speak to spirits, wander unseen, and travel forth by night to meet the Devil.

Free In-Person Event · Silent Book Club Of Death Brooklyn & The Death Deck Night At Morbid Anatomy
Join Lauren Seeley—death care worker and death literacy advocate, as well as the facilitator for the Silent Book Club Of Death Brooklyn—at Brooklyn’s Morbid Anatomy Library for a night in which we read silently about death/grief/mortality followed by a game of The Death Deck. Following, there will be an open discussion and reflection where guests will have the opportunity to share their findings and feelings about mortality. Refreshments will be included.

Free Online Talk · Rewriting the Psyche and Eros Story for Modern Lovers, with Alicia King Anderson, Ph.D.
The Ancient Greek word “Mythos” refers to stories shared via an oral tradition. Like folklore, the value of mythos, or what we now call mythology, is that it can be changed, updated, and made relevant to current events, current ways of thinking, and the needs of the living moment. As we consider Valentine’s Day in the midst of women leaving dating apps in droves, the 4B movement in Korea, and the rise of loneliness among men, it seems like a great time to revisit the story of Psyche and Eros. In this lecture, we will explore the text of Psyche and Eros, and its position within Apuleius’s novel, The Golden Ass. The emotional truth of the story, and its continued usefulness in the modern world will be brought to light, and then we will discuss how we might reimagine the story in new ways.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online · Guided Death Meditation with Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo
In Eastern esoteric spiritual traditions, life is ultimately seen as an occasion to practice and prepare one for death. This weekly group meditation—led by Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo—is aimed towards helping reduce fear of death and preparing participants for end of life while also cultivating a community of like-minded people with whom to share this collective experience.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free In-Person Event · Brooklyn Book Launch for Leila Taylor's Sick Houses: Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread
Join us for the launch of Leila Taylor’s new book, Sick Houses Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread! From family homes in Amityville to Gothic mansions in Los Angeles and the Unabomber’s cabin, houses often capture and contain the horror that has happened within them. Sick Houses crosses the threshold of these eerie spaces to explore how different types of architecture become vessels for terror and how these spaces, meant to shelter us, instead become the source of our deepest fears. Using film, television, and literature to explain why we are drawn to haunted and haunting places, Sick Houses is a must read for anyone who has ever looked at a house and sensed there might be something unsettling going on inside.

Online Talk · Saint Valentine: The Patron Saint of... Epilepsy, with Eric Huang of Saint Podcast
Saint Valentine presides over romantic love. His feast day marks a day and night in which couples around the world exchange flowers, chocolates, and other tokens of affection. Facebook statistics suggest something else is brewing beneath the candle-lit dinners—something darker. The two weeks immediately before and after Valentine's Day record the highest changes in relationship status from "dating" to "single." This irony perhaps makes sense when we look at the original hagiography of this martyr from Ancient Rome, which has nothing to do with love. Tonight, discover how an obscure patron saint of epilepsy, beekeeping, and the plague became a Christian Cupid.

Free Online Member Event · Sunday Night Movie Orson Welles’ “The Stranger” (1946): Screening and Discussion
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Join us for a viewing of Orson Welles’ film noir debut The Stranger ( 1946), starring Edward G. Robinson and Loretta Young. The film traces the story of a war crimes investigator on search of a high-ranking Nazi fugitive in a Connecticut town, and was the first Hollywood film to include documentary footage of the Holocaust. After the screening, we will have a chance to discuss the film and share our responses.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online · Guided Death Meditation with Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo
In Eastern esoteric spiritual traditions, life is ultimately seen as an occasion to practice and prepare one for death. This weekly group meditation—led by Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo—is aimed towards helping reduce fear of death and preparing participants for end of life while also cultivating a community of like-minded people with whom to share this collective experience.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online Talk · The Sacred Edge: Mythology, Kink, and the Power of the Blade with Mythologist Selena Madden
This lecture will explore the intricate interplay between mythology and kink, focusing on the symbolic and experiential resonance of the blade. By examining the mythological blade as a tool of transformation and transmutation, we will delve into its potent archetypal presence as both a weapon and a sacred instrument. From the swords of ancient myths to the sharp edges of intimate power exchange, the blade emerges as a conduit for profound psychological and emotional connection. This lecture will invite you to see mythology and kink not as disparate realms but as interconnected expressions of the human experience.

Free Online Member Event · Talking Death Meetup with Morbid Anatomy Founder Joanna Ebenstein
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Hope to see you at this free, informal, online monthly meetup devoted to open and non-judgemental conversations about death with likeminded people from around the world. Any related topic is welcome.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online · Guided Death Meditation with Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo
In Eastern esoteric spiritual traditions, life is ultimately seen as an occasion to practice and prepare one for death. This weekly group meditation—led by Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo—is aimed towards helping reduce fear of death and preparing participants for end of life while also cultivating a community of like-minded people with whom to share this collective experience.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Talk · How COVID-19 Transformed the Spirituality of Death in America, with Natasha L. Mikles, PhD
COVID-19 fundamentally transformed Americans’ understandings of the relationship between death, spirituality, religious community, and trauma. The COVID-19 pandemic left millions grieving their loved ones without the consolation of traditional ways of mourning. Patients were admitted to hospitals and never seen again. Social distancing often meant conventional funerals could not be held. Religious communities of all kinds were disrupted at the exact moment mourners turned to them for support. These unprecedented circumstances caused dramatic transformations of not only communal rituals, but also how people make meaning after the losses of loved ones. This talk presents an intimate portrait of how COVID-19 changed the ways Americans approach, understand, and mourn death. This talk, by Natasha L. Mikles—author of Shattered Grief: How the Pandemic Transformed the Spirituality of Death in America—will tell the story of spiritual innovation, religious change, and the struggle to achieve personal and national self-understanding against the backdrop of mass casualties.

Free Online Member Event · Sunday Night Movie Otto Preminger's "Laura" (1944): Screening and Discussion
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Join us for a viewing of Otto Preminger's film noir classic Laura, 1944. With an investigator in love with the portrait of a dead woman—seeming to presage another memorable dead Laura in the oeuvre of David Lynch—the film is riveting, atmospheric, and over the top in all the right ways. It also features an engaging performance by a not-yet-typecast Vincent Price. After the screening, we will have a chance to discuss the film and share our responses.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Online · Guided Death Meditation with Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo
In Eastern esoteric spiritual traditions, life is ultimately seen as an occasion to practice and prepare one for death. This weekly group meditation—led by Eastern-Trained Meditation Teacher and End of Life Doula Bryan Melillo—is aimed towards helping reduce fear of death and preparing participants for end of life while also cultivating a community of like-minded people with whom to share this collective experience.

Visit The Morbid Anatomy Library and Gift Shop in Brooklyn, New York
The Morbid Anatomy Library houses hundreds of books and artifacts for your edification and pleasure. The giftshop features signed books, used and antique books, t-shirts, tote bags, and sundry artifacts from around the world. Admission is free, and no appointment necessary.
We are part of the Industry City complex, which is just 20 minutes from Manhattan, located on the Brooklyn waterfront. Enter at 254 36th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232. Immediately turn right, and ascend one flight of stairs, or use elevators to floor 2. You will find us in room 2-C248.

Free Online Member Event · Interview and Q and A with Lisa Pahl, LCSW, Co-Creator of The Death Deck
FREE to Morbid Anatomy Patreon members at Oracle & Joanna’s Psychopomp Salon ($15/mo) and above levels. Eligible members will receive a viewing link in their Patreon inbox on the day of the event. Become a member here.
Join us for a live video interview and Q and A, hosted by Morbid Anatomy founder and creative director Joanna Ebenstein, where we welcome special guest Lisa Pahl, Hospice and Emergency Medicine Social Worker and co-creator of The Death Deck. We will discuss, among other things, how her work with the dying led to her creation of The Death Deck, a game that encourages players you tap into stories and ideas about death with friends and family. Guests will be invited to ask questions and join the conversation.