Scenes from Burning Man 2024
From the eyes of a virgin
A city is built in a stark desert, it grows until it reaches a deafening crescendo, and then it burns.
But before the desert is returned to its dusty barren self, the Burners come to play. Welcome to Burning Man 2024.
As I meandered through this desert, I found myself constantly discovering expressions of human ingenuity…and I’ve never been as fascinated, inspired, or joyful in any other week of my life. First-timers like me are called Virgin burners. No matter how many times you go, it is difficult to describe this experience, so I’ll just try to show you some scenes from the Playa.
Scene 1: El Pulpo
I was riding back to my tent around dusk, trying to understand how the streets are laid out (like a clock with the Man in the center, and each hour mark radially from him is a major street). And suddenly I saw this.
Some Music pulled my attention towards this… Giant mechanical Octopus with tentacles moving up and down… Fire spewing in sync with the music. Its eight eyes tearing out of its skull in horror as the beat drops and the blaze goes ‘whoosh, whoosh, whoosh’.
2 guys had built this mutant vehicle, they were up there DJ’ing - playing with both music and flames. Imagine being surrounded by tanks full of propane, in a metallic sculpture spewing fire, with hordes of Burners riding over to dance around you. Turns out that some Texas theme park bought it for 30 times how much it cost to build, so the artists sold the first one and built a second one to bring it back to Burning Man!
Other mutant vehicles drove over to watch the show. Some looked like Spaceships, others like Monsters, Some had dance floors at the top, I loved the Pac-Man Ghost cars that kept looking for the Pac-Man itself (but I think the Pac-Man car didn’t come this year!)
Scene 2: Naga
That first night, after I successfully pitched my tent, and had dinner with my tribe we set out to explore the Deep Playa. The deep playa is an area where no one lives, but where artists install their pieces for people to discover. We would spot a glimmer of light and start riding towards it, and chance upon wondrously playful pieces. Contrary to looking at Art at a museum, in Burning Man you’re encouraged to touch the pieces. Play with them. Climb them. Push the buttons. See what happens.
I didn’t climb things till I saw Naga.
Snaking up from the Desert. Staring at the ship it had wrecked with an expression that could not be discerned. Was it protecting the treasure chests that had gotten strewn about the desert floor or was it there to destroy this ship? Look at this photo, and you’ll see Naga’s size, by the tiny-looking bicycles for scale. And off in the distance, a concert has kicked off based on the crazy lights there.
The Naga art piece was so elaborate that we explored it for probably an hour. The shipwreck was 3 huge pieces - you could enjoy the third floor deck view, or lay down in the quarters where the sailors slept. I climbed the mast of the ship, opened drawers, and explored random things for unknown wondrous minutes.
I found a diary on the ship with a sailor’s observations and the entries ended at “a monster seems to be circling the ship, preparing to attack.” Just as I was about to leave, I push one of the crates on the ground. And it sprang open. Each crate itself was a work of art. Some had paintings, others had strange marine animal remains, one created an illusion that there was a massive hole dug deep into the desert!
I sought and found a person from the artist’s team and learned that 3 female artists had built Naga over an entire year, with the help of 100 volunteers. This explained the intricate craftsmanship… so much effort went into this shipwreck, it was awe-inspiring to just chance upon it within the desert.
Scene 3: The Temple
I’ve spent a lot of time in religious structures. But nothing like this.
Drone Video credit to Ben.
I’ve visited churches in Vatican City, mosques in Saudi Arabia, synagogues in Israel, Hindu and Jain temples in India, and Buddhist monasteries near Tibet. People imbue such places with an energetic aura over decades of worship and devotion. They fill such places with prayers, hopes, tears, and dreams. Priests conduct elaborate rituals, and over time, Religious buildings seem to possess an energy that normal buildings don’t.
I felt this energy at the Temple of Together in Burning Man.
The Temple felt like the most unpretentious place of Surrender I have ever experienced. The place had a simplicity and intensity that I wasn’t prepared for. I sat down and yanked out my notebook from my trusty backpack. I began to write as if I was in a trance. Hours went by. The temple let me surrender. The words in that notebook recount my gaping gratitude for so many life experiences, my bright-eyed ambition, and my unspoken fears.
Many Burners brought photos of loved ones they had lost. Some brought wishes for the future. Palestinians and Israelis left their messages of Hope next to each other.
When I was pondering the tragedy that this beautiful place would be burned within days. Someone mentioned that maybe it had done enough within that week. Holding all these emotions, letting so many people relieve their grief, soaking in so much hope and fervor. Maybe it had served its purpose and watching it burn would give all the people who left those photos and messages in there, the closure they needed. I nodded and left a message of love to my grandparents. But I took my trusty notebook and rode away to watch a beautiful sunrise because the night had passed while I was at the temple.
Scene 4: The tent is on fire
San Francisco has many burlesque shows. But none as beautiful and sexy as the Muse’s performance of Alice in Burnerland. It inspired my friend Lisa to shed so many inhibitions and dance like she’d never danced before. I couldn’t find any links to this show online, so I can’t even pay to watch it again with my wife. They set the top of the tent on fire, lit the DJ’s table on fire, and still somehow put on this insane show, followed by an incredible party - please wait till the last second of the video below!
Scene 5: The music never stops
Rüfüs Du Sol performed at Sunset. Jan Blomqvist performed around midnight. Tycho performed at Sunrise. There were many sets where I didn’t know the DJ. I probably haven’t danced this much in years and its surprising how dancing releases so many endorphins and makes you feel so connected to people.
How do you find your favorite DJ performing on a moving stage in the middle of a pitch-black desert? You look for the Giant Laser beaming up to the heavens and start riding that way.
The Mayan Warrior was one of many mobile stages that hosted DJs that people fly across the world for. I danced away to Rüfüs Du Sol on a Sunset Set that was stunning because the lights changed as the show grew in intensity.
I can’t imagine what went into building that stage, with its pyrotechnics, the lasers everywhere, the audio quality, and the performers.
The music never stopped. When I wanted to sleep, I put on earplugs and closed my eyes. The exhaustion took me in her arms and I awoke to more music.
Scene 6: The Man burns
On Saturday, the Man burns. Hundreds of fire dancers first show up to set the stage.
A cacophony of Music emanates from every direction. Mutant Cars circle the crowd and light gleams off every Burner’s eyes. Then 20 different stages of fireworks emerge from the man to get you enraptured. Then the man catches fire.
The Man then burns to the ground in a blaze of glory.
Then the guards lift the perimeter and allow you to experience the blaze up close. People pull out marshmallow skewers to warm and then snack. Some take off their clothes and run around the fire in circles. It is a sight to behold.
Scene Feeling 7: The feeling of being your full self
People wear outrageous things at Burning Man. Some wear nothing at all. But one thing is for sure - there’s no other place where no one judges you for being too outrageous. You have to be lit at night, so there are sparkling colors everywhere, especially on the bicycles. And in a desert full of attractive people, you gotta stand out during the day so the outfits get creative.
This was a long article, but words can’t do justice to Burning Man. Someone tried explaining it in this awesome highlight video that you could try. But the best way - is to come experience it in 2025.
It won’t all be comfortable. Surviving the desert is not easy. Each day is scorchingly hot, each night is freezing cold, a dust storm can blow away your tent at any time. the Porta Potties get smelly, and I kept seeking different ways to shower (and found them). I even chipped a tooth while trying to do acrobatics at 5 am one night and falling flat on my face.
Still, it was the happiest week of my life. It was like I was in Wonderland. It felt like being on a different planet. Anything can happen in Burning Man, and it may never happen again. But I’ll definitely be going back.
Hindu mythology says that all life has 3 phases - birth, growth, and destruction. Thus, there are three major Hindu Gods: the Creator, the Preserver, and the Destroyer. Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. At Burning Man, this entire cycle of life plays out in a couple of weeks.
A city is built in a stark desert, it grows until it reaches a deafening crescendo, and then it burns.
Fun to read