Zhenevere Sophia Dao
Post-Daoist & Neo-Romantic
Cultural & Existential Philosophy
& Counter-Capitalist Imagination
Mythosomatics
My little flames kip up everywhere,
trying to burn us with sameness,
but you say, “
You poor, poor ocean,
you mess of endless stars.”
ZSD
Photo by Willa Roberts, August 2024
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Mica Gillard, Student My name is Mica Gillard. I am writing this as a student and friend of Zhenevere’s. At the time that I write this testimonial, it is midsummer of 2024, and I have been a student of Zhenevere’s for, I think, nearly three years now. I had been learning with Zhenevere online for at least a year and a half before I worked with her in person in Costa Rica and New Mexico last year. This means (amongst other things), that I have only ever been a student of Zhenevere’s since the defamation attempt, and have slowly unravelled a little of what this has meant for her and her student body these past years. It is a horrible thing, this attempt to defame someone - anyone. I am also angry and tired, because this project hurts everyone involved, and is the opposite of healing. The only thing that this world needs is healing, not more violence, and yet sometimes we end up perpetuating violence because of our own woundedness. I can only pray that those wounded ones who have sought to project their wounds outwards onto someone who had only their best interests at heart, may be healed from the traumas that caused them to lie about someone they used to love. I don’t want to say much more about “the defamers” because frankly they don’t need any more attention, and as I said, I was not involved with Zhenevere or the Moga Dao institute when this was all going down. Therefore, I feel it isn’t necessarily my place to comment further on these events. What I do feel able to speak to with clarity, is Zhenevere herself, her character and her role as teacher and friend in my life. I had very little doubt about Zhenevere before I met her in person, and any doubt that she could in any way be capable of the claims made by these few unfortunate people were erased entirely upon meeting her. The idea that Zhenevere would waste her time by pursuing students in an unprofessional and inappropriate way frankly annoys me. Zhenevere is, amongst many other things, clearly too busy living a beautiful and challenging life, to pursue such ignoble actions (as claimed by said defamers). It is tiresome to be involved in a scenario where I feel I must “pick a side”, because ultimately any situation where division has occurred represents a lack of love and compassion, a contraction, and a failure to recognise the wholeness and unity of all things. Nevertheless, conflicts do arise, and I must stand to defend the one whom I know to be trustworthy. It is quite a big deal for me to call anyone trustworthy. I am someone who is deeply traumatized and sometimes struggles to feel that I can trust any human beings at all. I can also recognise that my life story could easily make me form an “unhealthy attachment” to Zhenevere in the very way that the defamers themselves have done. I could project all my desires and dreams of healing onto Zhenevere, and get angry and upset that she would not fulfil them. I also know that this is not fair, or reasonable. Zhenevere is a truthful and powerful woman, and unfortunately this defamation has followed the age-old pattern of the witch hunt attitude: If I cannot have you, then I will destroy you. The sad thing is that attempting to destroy someone, or something, only destroys the perpetrator. We can see this in society today on a grand and miniscule scale: We are destroying the earth, and certain groups of its inhabitants, and in doing so, are destroying our own humanity. The gravity of these situations is immense, and Zhenevere holds all of this very close. Zhenevere’s teachings have the profound effect to heal deep wounds because they have emerged from a place of deep sensitivity, solitude, wisdom, open-heartedness and open-mindedness. I have never met someone quite like her. She has woven together so many threads present in the world to create an expansive oeuvre of work ranging from written poetry, to various movement forms, to an entire philosophy, to horsewomanship and being a farrier, and the list goes on. I also see how part of the challenge for certain people is Zhenevre’s ability to be so deeply expansive and truthful, when many people may hold their tongue for fear of coming across “too strong” or of pushing someone away. She also possesses such a deep trust in humans and humanity, despite her own woundedness. She keeps her heart open, her whole being radiates optimism and hope for humanity. We may then see Zhenevere’s own truthfulness and trust as, in a sense, her achilles heel. The attitude of the defamers to target this place of vulnerability feels to be part of another age-old pattern: You represent a truth that threatens my sense of self, and so I will annihilate you. As a trans person myself, I experience the violence of these attitudes frequently in macro and micro ways. And she (/we) must, and can only, continue to stay open and loving and hopeful, for hope and hopeful actions are often all we can cling to in these critical times for humanity itself. I remember reading through some of the testimonials on Zheneve’s website and wondering who these people were and how they could advocate so strongly and passionately for someone. I now understand why. Zhenevere has given hope to so many of her students for a better world, a better state of humanity, a better life, a deeper love - the list goes on. She has given so many of us tools to dismantle violence and rebuild it into love. The flowering punch exercise for example amongst thousands of other movements, is so potent a force of healing. This exercise is done either “solo”, or with a partner. There is not usually any touch at all involved, and yet the profundity! I have witnessed people moved to tears by this exercise. This exercise alone has brought such potent healing, more than I have witnessed before within a larger group of humans working together. And how does healing happen? It happens when you can drop in and trust the one guiding you. The workshops in Costa Rica and New Mexico had such a strong foundation of trust and mutual respect. There was such caution around touch. The consent was impeccable. Unlike so many of the troubling stories I have heard about sexual misconduct that happens all across the world in so-called “sacred” and “spiritual” spaces - usually perpetrated by cis men in positions of diseased power, there was nothing but a sense of deep unity, trust, affection and truly beautiful connection between the students, Zhenevere, and the lands upon which we resided and “worked”. I have memories from these experiences that will “feed me” for a lifetime, such was the nourishment. Although I could, and willingly will say more, for now this feels to be enough. I will just sandwich this piece with a prayer for all those who are suffering under the veils of illusion. It is such a shame that true power is so threatening and unpalatable to so many people. I pray that all beings may be liberated from the suffering caused by separation. I pray that all beings may receive the healing in this lifetime that they need in order to be fulfilled and free from violent persecution. I long for liberation.
Diane Chase, Student One of the rarest occasions in a person’s lifetime is to encounter brilliance, compassion, humor, wisdom, as well as deepest trust and admiration in another person. This is the case with my relationship with Zhenevere Sophia Dao with whom I have had the privilege of studying since 1995 when I met her as a teacher of Qigong and Tai Chi in Taos, NM. Ever since those beginning days of her teaching career, when I knew her as Daniel, I continue to be inspired by her creative genius. Those many years of study and training are an essential part of what buoys my life’s waves, my awareness and well-being. I attest and stand by my experience of Zhenevere as the most trustworthy and forthright of persons, and I know her teachings, speech, actions and demeanor to be of the highest caliber of integrity. Her presence is very magnetic and can fill a room or an auditorium with her eloquence and creativity and philosophical discourses and sharing of personal, meaningful life experiences. I have witnessed the evolution of this amazing person in so many ways and always, always, I know her to inspire so many people over the years with her deeply rooted teachings, instilling of trust, safety and compassion and understandings of the enormity of what it means to be human.