What Death Teaches Us About Life

Posted On: 24. Februar 2026
Posted By: pr-gateway

A Journey Between Life and Mortality

The Swiss association Rite de Passage is offering a program in Sweden for the first time: From April 12 to 17, 2026, the transformative retreat „Walking into That Good Night: A Practice of Living and Dying“ will take place at the Kärlingesund Retreat Center in the Bohuslän Nature Reserve. The six-day practice combines elements of traditional rites of passage and end-of-life guidance in a contemporary context, inviting participants to engage with their own mortality – to live more clearly, courageously, and fully.

In a world where we can find answers to nearly every question, death remains one of life“s greatest mysteries. As an inevitable part of living and the ultimate rite of passage, it is nevertheless often avoided. But what if our encounter with death began long before it is near? A conscious, early engagement with our mortality can sharpen our focus on what truly matters – on what makes this finite life genuinely worth living.

Just steps from the sea and ancient forests, the program provides a space to consciously explore universal themes of farewell, mortality, and meaning. Participants engage not only in reflection but also in shared experiences in nature, fostering renewed energy, clarity, and guidance. Originally developed by Joyce Harvey Morgan and Meredith Little in the Death Valley Wilderness (USA), the program is part of the series „The Practice of Living and Dying.“ Its essence lies in bringing conscious attention to the often-avoided reality of one“s own mortality, deepening the presence, significance, and quality of life.

The practice includes daily solo time in nature, silent night walks, and one full night alone. In darkness and silence, a space opens beyond distractions and social roles. Individual experiences are supported by ritual and communal moments, including the ceremonial creation of a personal death mask, initiated at night. Talking circles and clearly structured ritual frameworks provide guidance and support without directing the inner process.

The retreat is led by Carine Roth and Lien De Coster. Roth, co-founder of the Association Rite de Passage, integrates contemporary rituals with nature-based rites of passage and helps participants cultivate inner strength and a sense of connection with themselves and the natural world. De Coster“s focus is on guiding processes of death and rebirth through grief rituals, conducting rites of passage with queer adolescents on the path to adulthood, and facilitating talking circles and Vision Fasts in the Northern European tradition for adults.

About the Association Rite de Passage:
The organization promotes and implements contemporary rites of passage that accompany people through conscious life transitions. The programs combine nature, connection with living things, successful relationships, and cultural balance to deepen meaning, orientation, and inner clarity. The term „Rite de passage“ originated in 1909 with the ethnologist Arnold van Gennep. He observed that all traditional cultures had rituals to accompany transitions in life – something that has been largely lost in modern societies.

About the Kärlingesund Retreat Center:
Embedded in the lush green province of Bohuslän on Sweden“s west coast, the Kärlingesund Retreat Center offers a serene setting surrounded by sea, forests, and granite cliffs. With individually designed rooms, light-filled communal spaces, a spacious hall for gatherings, and access to sauna, shoreline, and woodland trails, the center provides an ideal environment for reflection, connection, and deep nature-based practice.

We are an association for the promotion of healthy, inclusive rites of passage, based on nature and our connection to the Living, right relationships and the balance of our place in the world and our culture.

Company-Contact
Rite de Passage
Carine Roth
Chemin de Renens 12
1004 Lausanne
Phone: +4917630465907
E-Mail:
Url: https://www.ritedepassage.ch