Marisa Cranfill Young is an internationally known spirit house enthusiast who has lived in Asia for over 15 years. A native Californian, frequent trips to Thailand as a child compelled her to study comparative religions in Japan, India and China through Long Island University before moving into a professional career as creative director of her family Thai silk business (www.marisabaratelli.com) in Bangkok. There she had the opportunity to learn the traditional Thai spirit house ritual with 5 shaman priests, and is the first foreign woman to perform traditional spirit house installation rituals in the United States of America. Her approach to spirit houses reflects this unique background combining a refined aesthetic for creative ritual expression with reasoned inquiry into our beliefs and limitless potential.
In addition to preserving a Thai cultural heritage, Marisa’s vision is to make the spirit house an internationally accessible and contemporary expression of our critical connection to Mother Earth. For the last 8 years she has written and given lectures on the topic at the National Museum of Volunteers Bangkok, Siam Society Bangkok and the Asian Civilizations Museum Singapore (FOM). She currently divides her time between homes in Los Angeles and Bangkok where she directs S.H.C., teaches YOQI yoga+qigong http://www.yoqi.com/ and is writing a book about spirit house adventures in Thailand.
Check out Marisa’s upcoming events here.
