Eli Loftus, owner of the ever-popular women’s clothing shop at Carolina Boutique at 76 Throckmorton Ave., and her boyfriend Doc Kelley, an assistant professor at the New School in New York City, opened Fez, a music- and meditation-inspired men’s clothing and home goods shop in October 2020 at 118 Throckmorton Ave., the former home of the Mill Valley Hat Box, as well as Sundry and Branded Boutique.
Since they’ve done so, they’ve hosted myriad events in their space, from a ‘Beyond the Narrow Life: A Guide for Psychedelic Integration and Existential Exploration’ to photographer Lindsey Ross making tintype and ambrotype portraits.
Now they’re cooking up another enticing concept with the “Secret Drugs of Buddhism: Mountain of Smoke Ceremony + Book Talk.” One of the least-discussed features of Vajrayana (e.g. Tibetan) Buddhism is its use of psychedelics. “The use of these is a closely-guarded secret known by a select few,” Kelley says. “Fortunately, there have been enough loose lips over the centuries for Lama Mike to write a book about it!”
Join Lama Mike Crowley at FEZ for a a special “Mountain of Smoke” ceremony followed by a book talk on Secret Drugs of Buddhism: Psychedelic Sacraments and the Origins of the Vajrayana (Synergetic Press, 2019). Lama Mike will also be teaching from his forthcoming book, Psychedelic Buddhism: A User’s Guide to Traditions, Symbols, and Ceremonies (Simon & Schuster 2023).