"As they walk the path to the entrance of the courtyard of shrines, the priestesses chant the names of their Holy Powers." ~ A vision of a Goddess sanctuary by Trish Deneen

Generative art by Trish Deneen

This piece accompanies Danica Swanson's essay, "The Contemplative Practice of Accepting Limits." You can read it here: paragraph.xyz/@blackstonesanctuary/the-contemplative-practice-of-accepting-limits

"The Sanctuary is a dark monastic incubation space inspired by animist pre-Christian Nordic and Germanic religious and folk traditions." Learn more about the vision for Black Stone Sanctuary from Danica Swanson: paragraph.xyz/@blackstonesanctuary/welcome-to-black-stone-sanctuary

As part of the Sanctuary's commitment to accessibility, we've produced a transcript for our first spoken meditation published onchain on Zora here:
zora.co/collect/zora:0xcfa43a880fb6c783d2c2cef0cbc04e42ee10d334/12

"The Sanctuary is a dark monastic incubation space inspired by animist pre-Christian Nordic and Germanic religious and folk traditions." Learn more about the vision for Black Stone Sanctuary from Danica Swanson at our welcome page: paragraph.xyz/@blackstonesanctuary/welcome-to-blackstone-sanctuary

The script for the meditation is written by Trish Deneen and is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=chooser-v1)

This quote from Danica Swanson (@danicaswanson at Farcaster) is the first quote in our new collection, PMVPC. The acronym stands for Polytheistic Monasticism: Voices from Pagan Cloisters, a first-of-its-kind anthology from the emerging Pagan monastic movement. The quote appears in Danica's essay, Of Hearth and Shadow: A Contemplative Norse Polytheist and a Fledgling Animist Sanctuary.

Besides that essay, Danica also has one interview of a fellow polytheist monastic in the anthology. For more info, visit the publisher's page: www.collectiveinkbooks.com/moon-books/our-books/polytheistic-monasticism-pagan-cloisters

Learn more about the Sanctuary's monastic rule here: paragraph.xyz/@blackstonesanctuary/contemplative-animism-and-non-contrivance-monastic-rule

See our first multimedia quote, You Are Not Alone: zora.co/collect/zora:0xcfa43a880fb6c783d2c2cef0cbc04e42ee10d334/8

Art by Trish Deneen from “Cave Dwellers Unite” blog post by Danica Swanson for Black Stone Sanctuary.

Read the full post on Paragraph: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/cave-dwellers-unite?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/cave-dwellers-unite?referrer=danicaswanson

The first-ever Black Stone Sanctuary meme. Made by a follower of the /blxstonesnctuary channel on Farcaster unsolicited.

We loved it and decided to run with it, so it became an emergent three-way collaboration.

Idea: @zoo
warpcast.com/zoo/0xc1c3fd58

Implementation: Danica Swanson + Trish Deneen

Images: Wikimedia Commons. Public domain in the US.
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aleister_Crowley,_Golden_Dawn.jpg
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Goblet_MET_69261.jpg

Welcome to the first offering in our planned collection of visually enhanced quotes from our work at Black Stone Sanctuary. This piece is, You Are Not Alone, Multimedia Quote #1, from Danica Swanson's Essay, On Religious Place-Making and the Sacristan Role, which you can find here: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/on-religious-pace-making-and-the-sacristan-role?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/on-religious-pace-making-and-the-sacristan-role?referrer=danicaswanson

The image and music are curated from our Black Stone Sanctuary Zorbish Meditation #1. You can find the full meditation here: zora.co/collect/zora:0xcfa43a880fb6c783d2c2cef0cbc04e42ee10d334/3

I believe this quote beautifully expresses our optimism and determination for the Sanctuary, and I invite you to share in our vision. ~ Artist Trish Deneen

From "On Religious Place-Making and the Sacristan Role" by Danica Swanson.

Image: a divination table and fully-lit shrines at Black Stone Sanctuary, circa 2016. Photo by Ilana Hamilton.

Read the full post on Paragraph: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/on-religious-pace-making-and-the-sacristan-role?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/on-religious-pace-making-and-the-sacristan-role?referrer=danicaswanson

The rant and personal story associated with this image "Violet Visions" (title: "Episcopagan: Why This Polytheist Attended an Episcopal Church") was originally circulated privately within Black Stone Sanctuary's inner circles only, and then released to the public in 2020. It became a reader favorite, so in 2024 the Sanctuary is bringing a lightly edited and updated version onchain.

TL;DR: Pagans, if we ever hope to build enduring religious traditions, it's time to grow up.

Read the full post (11 min read) on Paragraph: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/episcopagan-why-this-polytheist-attended-an-episcopal-church?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/episcopagan-why-this-polytheist-attended-an-episcopal-church?referrer=danicaswanson

Black Stone Sanctuary is a Pagan polytheist monastery-bootstrapping project by Danica Swanson and Trish Deneen. We call it contemplative animist monasticism with a goth nesting instinct.

Collect the art on Zora and read the full post about our experimental liturgical framework on Paragraph:

paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/liturgy-at-black-stone-sanctuary/referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/liturgy-at-black-stone-sanctuary/referrer=danicaswanson

Collage art, words, and resource curation by Danica Swanson.

Explore Black Stone Sanctuary's releases from onchain launch week (April 8-15, 2024), and peek at what's in the pipeline.

Art by Danica Swanson.

Read the full post on Paragraph: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/launch-week-recap-upcoming-releases?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/launch-week-recap-upcoming-releases?referrer=danicaswanson

Welcome to Black Stone Sanctuary's first meditation video. The Sanctuary is a Pagan polytheist monastery-bootstrapping project by Danica Swanson and Trish Deneen. Our work is inspired by animist pre-Christian Nordic and Germanic religious and folk traditions.

This video is an example of the aesthetic and vibe associated with the Sanctuary. Music and visuals are the focus, so there are no spoken words, symbols (besides the orb), or hints of certain deities. It's for you to enjoy as your own mini retreat, and to commune with your Holy Powers.

Read our full intro to the Sanctuary on Paragraph: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/welcome-to-black-stone-sanctuary/?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/welcome-to-black-stone-sanctuary/?referrer=danicaswanson

Credits: Art and video editing by Trish Deneen. Music by NaturesEye at Pixabay: pixabay.com/music/meditationspiritual-deep-atonal-meditation-112012/

What is slowcore? And why did Danica and Trish decide to launch the next phase of their niche Pagan polytheist monastery-bootstrapping project on Farcaster?

Words by Danica Swanson. Zoon with stars art by Trish Deneen.

Read the full post: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/slowcore-and-the-inner-genius/?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/slowcore-and-the-inner-genius/?referrer=danicaswanson

Welcome to Black Stone Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is a Pagan polytheist monastery-bootstrapping project by Danica Swanson and Trish Deneen. Our work is inspired by animist pre-Christian Nordic and Germanic religious and folk traditions.

Read our full intro on Paragraph: paragraph.xyz/ href="/blackstonesanctuary/welcome-to-black-stone-sanctuary/?referrer=danicaswanson.eth">@blackstonesanctuary/welcome-to-black-stone-sanctuary/?referrer=danicaswanson