Zen & The Art of Dying

Zenith Virago is the go-to marriage celebrant of Byron Shire, Australia, having conducted over 1500 marriage ceremonies. She's also the region's deathwalker, offering end-of-life decision planning and DIY funeral alternatives through her Natural Death Centre. Both sides of her work share the same mission: to help people reclaim their most personal, vulnerable, and significant life moments from commercial forces, government bureaucracy, and cultural taboos.

Zenith's work and the support of Byron Shire's citizens and elected officials compel each of us to reclaim an active role in how we love and how we die: those two greatest sources of hope and fear in the human experience.

After a powerful shoot, we are now in post-production on Zen & the Art of Dying, a documentary about Zenith and the Natural Death Centre, and are seeking completion funds for the project. We are also seeking financial support for a larger Natural Death Web Initiative that will provide practical information, personal stories, and a virtual space for ongoing connection and conversations beyond the film.

It is our hope these works will fill a powerful void in popular representation and cultural conversation, helping us to reclaim death as a natural, instructive, and socially supported component of an open society. Learn more at http://www.zenandtheartofdying.com.