RIP Nitai Das - Founder of Krishna Camp at Burning Man

Nitai Das, 1980-2011

BURNcast just learned of the passing of Nitai Das from earlier this year -- almost a year ago on January 31st to be exact.  Nitai was force behind Krishna Kitchen, a prasadam distribution network that distributed food at festivals. He was most famous for feeding a 1000 people a day at Burning Man.

From their mission statement, Krishna's Kitchen "shares the ancient culture of Bhakti, through the production and distribution of sacred food." Through Nitai's expert networking, Krishna's Kitchen ended up becoming an integral part, of some of the biggest and most exciting alternative festivals of the new millennium; including Burning Man, Wanderlust and Bhaktifest.

Nitai's wife Mandali carries his photo
in procession to the temple

Nitai's spiritual community honored him with a memorial at the Temple this year. A complete recounting of his final journey to the playa can be read here.

You can listen our interview with Nitai from our old audio podcast episode "Burncast #064 - NYC Decom". It's available in iTunes or at Archive.org.


Krishna Camp Burning Man 2006 from Rasa Acharya on Vimeo.

Rhonda Bunkelman - Rest in Peace

Yesterday morning Rhonda Bunkelman, a Los Angeles Burner, passed away peacefully surrounded by loved ones. She had been recovering from a stroke that she suffered from in early January 2012. Rhonda is survived by her husband Jim Bunkelman and friend Marcy Rosenthal.  More information about services are forthcoming.

Two (2) Lower Tier Burning Man Tickets for Sale - What's your story?

Quin, who was a regular contributor to BURNcast in our hey day, is selling his lower tier Burning Man tickets at face value.

Here's the skinny from Quin:

I need to sell these tickets to Burning Man due to an unfortunate turn of events. However I'd like to send them on with someone who really wants to go and is willing to tell us why.

Is it your first time, are you bringing art, toiling in a cool camp, or have friends in need? Whatever it is write it down, take a picture, paint it or sing it out.

Creativity counts, but I do need to get cash so I can put it towards seeing my family in lieu of going to the Playa. My total cost for these tix was $505.

Best submission gets them. As shown, they come with two survival guides and a Lemon Head jaw breaker candy courtesy of BMorg.

Post your submission below in the comment or send your essay to burncast (at) gmail dot com

Check back for updates as to what happens to these tickets!

Best of Luck!