Updates
A chronological view of all updates and changes to tender.garden.
July 25, 2025
2 updates
Transformative Magic
Transformative Magic is the art of changing the world by changing ourselves. In an era of widespread burnout, social fragmentation, and institutional collapse, many of us are waking up — but we’re unsure what to do with our awakening. Below, we intend to offer a map to reorient and rebalance. We believe that profound transformation happens when we focus on both polarities of the work: - Shadow Work: Integrating the hidden and denied parts of our psyche - Light Work: Shifting our energy toward luminous behaviors and outcomes It is important to find a good balance. Too much focus on Shadow Work could mean we're stuck in the past and its patterns, missing the bigger picture and hope. Just doing Light Work may result in unquestioned beliefs and an inflated ego. <Image src="../img/light-work-shadow-work.jpg" size="medium" alt="Light Work and Shadow Work"
Shadow Work
"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will rule your life and you will call it fate." – Carl Jung Shadow work describes the process of examining and integrating the hidden shadow parts of ourselves. It is about making unconscious patterns conscious, and integrating them so that we don't get controlled by aspects of ourselves that we deny. While shadow work is often used for individuals, there are also a lot of hidden and subconscious aspects in society as a whole. Carl Jung used the term collective unconscious. As above so below means that the collective shadow influences the shadow of human individuals, and vice versa. By working on recognizing our own subconscious patterns, we also help breaking patterns at the collective level.
July 24, 2025
2 updates
Article: Damien Echols on Embodied Presence
On his Patreon, Damien Echols published an article called The Sacred Ordinary: Daily Rituals for Embodied Presence. "Most people think of spiritual practice as something separate from ordinary life. Something you do on a cushion, on a mat, in a temple. But the truth is, the most powerful rituals aren’t always found in elaborate ceremonies—they’re found in the seemingly mundane." "In the traditions of internal alchemy and ceremonial magick, we’re trained to build energy, to direct focus, to purify the self. But all that training means nothing if it doesn’t show up in the places that actually make up your life—your mornings, your meals, your movements." "Embodied presence isn’t just an idea. It’s a physical experience. You feel it in your bones. In your breath. In your fingertips. It’s when your awareness sinks from the forehead to the heart, and then even lower—to the gut, the feet, the earth." "It’s the kind of attention that changes the quality of time, because it brings you into alignment with what’s real: this moment." "When you commit to presence, the world responds. Anxiety fades. Clarity increases. People feel safer around you. Opportunities start to find you. Because you’re no longer scattering your energy across a hundred unconscious actions. You’re gathering it, forging it, becoming more than you were the day before." Damien suggests small rituals that can be done to bring awareness to the moment: - Morning Grounding: Start the day with intention - Mindful Sipping: Consume a drink with total attention - Embodied Micro-Walks: Similar to Awe Walks
Gaza Genocide
While the word genocide was largely being suppressed by Western media until 2025, a growing number of genocide scholars and human rights experts are getting increasingly clear: - The International Association of Genocide Scholars declared that "Israel’s policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide in Article II of the United Nations Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide." - United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese calls Israel a settler-colonial project and highlights corporations who "have profited from Israel’s economy of illegal occupation, apartheid and now, genocide." - Amnesty International concludes "Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza." - Human Rights Watch published a report in December 2024 titled "Extermination and Acts of Genocide." - Omer Bartov, professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University, wrote a piece in NYT called I’m a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It.: "My inescapable conclusion has become that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people. Having grown up in a Zionist home, lived the first half of my life in Israel, served in the I.D.F. as a soldier and officer and spent most of my career researching and writing on war crimes and the Holocaust, this was a painful conclusion to reach, and one that I resisted as long as I could. But I have been teaching classes on genocide for a quarter of a century. I can recognize one when I see one." Israeli military officials told the New York Times that there is no proof that Hamas has been systematically stealing aid that was supposed to go to the people in Gaza. "It's not our fault. Hamas is stealing the food" is a lie that has been used heavily over the last 2 years to justify Israel's deliberate starvation of Palestinians.
July 23, 2025
7 updates
Resilience
"You build resilience by exposing yourself to discomfort on purpose. Cold water. Hard workouts. Difficult conversations." – Damien Echols in The Warrior's Mind
Article: Hanna Williams on Cancel Culture and Conflict
On her newsletter and in an Instagram video, Hanna Williams shares thoughts on cancel culture and the importance of learning to sit with the discomfort of conflict resolution. Hanna shares how conflict resolution skills are essential for building community: "I see so many people claiming they want to be in community, that they want to feel connected to their network of friends and peers, but who consistently demonstrate that they lack the one skill truly needed to make a community strong: conflict." "Conflict skills geared toward finding resolution, returning to connection, and creating stronger relationships where everyone’s unique perspective is honored and considered." Doing conflict well requires being present with the discomfort of hearing different perspectives: "It brings up a lot of intense feelings. In fact, one of the essential qualities needed to do conflict well is a tolerance for discomfort—a tolerance for high sensation—because it just comes with the territory." "Even in the best relationships, it brings up big emotions and requires a deep capacity to set our shit aside and hear people out. To get out of our own heads and into the hearts of others." She mentions how the intra-movement cancel culture seen in many leftist spaces can be a way to avoid doing the work of learning to do conflict: "And my take is that this obsession with saying and doing the perfect thing—the thing that has infiltrated the political left—is actually a form of conflict avoidance." "So many people on the left approach difficult conversations with one goal: to convert the other person."
Article Series: Because We Need Each Other
"Because We Need Each Other: Conversations on Cancel Culture" is an article series by Erika Sasson, Celia Kutz, Kazu Haga, and Shilpa Jain that was published on The Forge and Convergence. You can access the full series here. Find the article here "This first article shares our origin story. We were all part of a gathering called “Because We Need Each Other,” in which 25 people from across the US came together to grapple with the impacts of a punitive pattern in social change/movement left spaces." The authors share the motivation for the gathering and the importance of improving the ways we collaborate in movement spaces. "Given the profound political moment we are in—with the unraveling of many democratic rights and freedoms—it feels more important than ever to strengthen the ways in which we come together on the left" "Our capacity to mobilize is strengthened by our ability to work through disagreement and come back from conflict." They also share important insights from the gathering: "The key takeaway from our gathering—beyond any discrete action steps—was the power of airing our questions in a trusted environment." "Because we need each other, we understand that we also need worldviews that reflect and commit to wholesome, spiritual practices in our movement spaces. We came together to remember, in the important words of one of our beloved Indigenous elders, that we are all cousins. And that we want to continue treating each other as relatives in our work and communities as we go forward in these times."
Article: Damien Echols on Spiritual Ego
On his Patreon, Damien Echols published an article called The Shadow Fed by Light: How Magick Can Inflate the Ego. This phenomenon is often called spiritual ego. "power—real power—doesn’t just amplify the sacred. It amplifies everything" "Magick doesn’t discriminate. It’s not a moral force. It’s a tool. And when you pull in chi, or spiritus, or call down a planetary current, it doesn’t just fill the parts of you that you want to grow. It fills all of you. Every chamber. Every crack." "The energy doesn’t lie. It just flows. And if you’re not aware of the structures it’s pouring into, you may be reinforcing the very illusions you’re trying to transcend." "You’ll notice this in subtle ways at first. A little more self-importance. A sharper edge to your online posts. The creeping belief that you’re further along than others." "No one makes it far in magick without eventually encountering this shadow. And the ones who do make it far? They’re the ones who learn to bow. Not to external gods, but to the Work itself. They understand that the more power you channel, the more responsibility you carry—not just in the world, but within yourself." "That’s why grounding practices—zazen, martial arts, daily service, kaizen—aren’t optional." "And more than anything, that’s why watching yourself is part of the path. Notice your tone. Your impulse to correct. The part of you that feels insulted when someone doesn’t recognize your insight. These aren’t flaws to be ashamed of—they’re signals. They show you where the energy is leaking into ego instead of soul." "The more energy you gather, the more discipline you need to hold it. And not just discipline of action, but discipline of identity. Because if you let the ego grab hold of the power, it’ll hijack the whole operation. You’ll still be practicing. You’ll still be invoking. But you’ll be doing it for the wrong self."
Article: Damien Echols on the Warrior's Mind
On his Patreon, Damien Echols published an article called The Warrior’s Mind: Discipline as a Sacred Fire. He uses the image of the warrior to show how everyday discipline is an important skill on the transformational path, including: self-mastery, purpose, emotional resilience, presence, humility, service and integrity, stillness and solitude. "People think warriors are forged in battle. But the truth is, battle only reveals the edge you’ve already sharpened." "I’ve known cages made of concrete and cages made of comfort." "So what defines a true warrior’s mindset? It’s not aggression. It’s not fearlessness. It’s not domination. It’s clarity. Discipline. Presence. Purpose." And it doesn’t just happen. You cultivate it—daily. "Self-mastery isn’t about punishment. It’s about sovereignty. The ability to command your own mind, body, and emotions. To train when you’re tired. To speak with care when you’re angry. To act with honor when no one will ever know." "_You build self-mastery through daily practice:
Intention
Doing something with intention means being more present while doing it. In light work practices, the practice of setting an intention is also often used.
Stream of Consciousness Writing
The technique stream of consciousness writing helps tap into the unconscious by writing down whatever comes to mind, ideally circumventing the conscious mind. The goal is to focus on just writing without questioning the content that is coming out. This technique can be beneficial for many things, including: - Processing emotions, for example writing about feelings of sadness or anger - Shadow work and communicating with the unconscious - Working on setting intentions and visions, like future journaling There are several things that can help with stream of consciousness writing: - Get into a relaxed state that lets you write without overthinking. For example, a form of meditation or embodiment practice can be used. - Set an intention before you start writing. This can either be part of the meditation or in a step right before writing, for example using prompts. - You can set a timer (e.g. 10 minutes) and try to keep writing until it goes off.
July 22, 2025
4 updates
Article: Hanna Williams on Cancel Culture and Conflict
On her newsletter and in an Instagram video, Hanna Williams shares thoughts on cancel culture and the importance of learning to sit with the discomfort of conflict resolution. Hanna shares how conflict resolution skills are essential for building community: "I see so many people claiming they want to be in community, that they want to feel connected to their network of friends and peers, but who consistently demonstrate that they lack the one skill truly needed to make a community strong: conflict." "Conflict skills geared toward finding resolution, returning to connection, and creating stronger relationships where everyone’s unique perspective is honored and considered." Doing conflict well requires being present with the discomfort of hearing different perspectives: "It brings up a lot of intense feelings. In fact, one of the essential qualities needed to do conflict well is a tolerance for discomfort—a tolerance for high sensation—because it just comes with the territory." "Even in the best relationships, it brings up big emotions and requires a deep capacity to set our shit aside and hear people out. To get out of our own heads and into the hearts of others." She mentions how the intra-movement cancel culture seen in many leftist spaces can be a way to avoid doing the work of learning to do conflict: "And my take is that this obsession with saying and doing the perfect thing—the thing that has infiltrated the political left—is actually a form of conflict avoidance." "So many people on the left approach difficult conversations with one goal: to convert the other person."
Vulnerability
Choosing to stay soft and vulnerable in a world full of violence and conflict avoidance is a powerful act. Being present with vulnerability enables deeper connection.
Book: Nonviolent Communication - A Language of Life
This book by Marshall B. Rosenberg describes Nonviolent Communication (NVC) as philosophy and method. Nonviolent Communication is a process with the goal to focus our attention on four pieces of information: "First, we observe what is actually happening in a situation: what are we observing others saying or doing that is either enriching or not enriching our life?" "The trick is to be able to articulate this observation without introducing any judgment or evaluation–to simply say what people are doing that we either like or don't like." "Next, we state how we feel when we observe this action: are we hurt, scared, joyful, amused, irritated?"
Safe(r) Space
A Safe Space is a space where the goal is for people to feel safe, respected, and free from fear of violence or judgment. It provides a protected environment that fosters openness, vulnerability, and mutual understanding. It is also often referred to as a Safer Space to emphasize that no space is completely free from violence and discrimination–and to show the intention to make the space progressively safer over time. See also: Brave(r) Space The safer we feel in a space, the freer and more vulnerable we can be there. For us, conflicts usually show how safe we feel in a space: when harm occurs, we strive for all involved to take responsibility, learn from the situation, and find ways to interact with more understanding and compassion in the future. If this does not happen, if conflicts are swept under the rug, it can result in the space feeling less safe. We share less of what’s going on inside us because we fear further hurt. For us, there are three ways to handle such situations: - Conflict Resolution: The attempt to repair, resolve conflicts, and create a space where all involved feel safer again. - Adaptation: If this doesn’t work (e.g., because involved parties are unwilling to engage in conflict resolution at the moment), we need to adjust our behavior. We show ourselves less freely and vulnerably to prevent hurt. - Distance: We decide whether to continue staying in a space or if we would have to adapt so much that it makes more sense to keep our distance for the time being.
July 21, 2025
4 updates
Article: Damien Echols on Sovereignty
On his Patreon, Damien Echols published an article called Sovereignty. It's about kingship as a metaphor for power from within, not power over others. "Kingship, in its esoteric sense, doesn’t mean power over others. It means sovereignty—mastery over the inner kingdom. A true king has conquered not the world, but the self." "The crown isn’t given. It’s earned through sacrifice, discipline, and transmutation. That’s why kingship is always preceded by the Work. You don’t get to wear the crown without walking through the fire." "Even in the Bible, when Jesus is accused of claiming to be king, it wasn’t just a political accusation—it was a metaphysical one. They feared not a rebellion, but a man whose inner authority made him immune to the control of external structures. He was sovereign in a way that threatened all systems built on fear and dependence." "In magick, we talk about “becoming king of your realm.” That doesn’t mean egoic dominion—it means taking full responsibility for your energy, your thoughts, your actions, your path." "No more blaming others. No more waiting to be rescued. No more serving false masters—whether internal or external. The true king serves the divine spark within, and nothing else."
Article: What Love Isn't by Yung Pueblo
In What Love Isn't, Yung Pueblo writes about attachment being the "greatest enemy of love". "The greatest enemy of love is attachment. Why? Because it tries to disguise itself as love. There is a similarity between closeness and clinging that easily confuses the mind." "a fear of loss or craving to control creates the type of clinging that tries to grasp another person with tension" "Attachment is essentially a refusal to come to terms with change, it’s an attempt to keep things the same or under your power." "Love is meant to be grounded in freedom. Attachment is an opposing force to freedom; it tries to keep things the same, while freedom understands that change is ultimately good." "Attachment will create images in your mind of what you crave the most and it will direct your energy into creating and maintaining them in the external world." "We can end up “falling in love” with the idea we have of someone and whenever the reality of that person deviates from the image we have of them in our mind, we fear the dissonance and fight against it." "Attachment will ask our loved ones to stay the same, but this is impossible when the river of existence constantly flows forward."
Attachment
Attachment means trying to control things the way they currently are (or our idea of how they should be). The practice of non-attachment means gradually letting go of desire, expectations, and idealization. "Attachment is essentially a refusal to come to terms with change, it’s an attempt to keep things the same or under your power." – Yung Pueblo in What Love Isn't
Conflict Avoidance
Conflict avoidance means having (conscious and unconscious) strategies to evade conflict resolution and the vulnerability that comes with it. Too often, we are outsourcing our conflict resolution to hierarchies.