“For
many pilgrims the journey itself is something of a penance. Not only may the
way be long, it is also hazardous, beset by robbers, thieves, and confidence
men aplenty (as many pilgrim records attest), as well as by natural dangers and
epidemics.” - Victor Turner and Edith Turner (7).
Pilgrimage
is marked by removal from the ordinary and going forth to a holy place. Although the destination is glorious, whether
it is reaching Mecca or a specific mountaintop, the journey itself is a
valuable part. Victor Turner and Edith
Turner speak of pilgrimage as a type of penance. By this they must mean that the journey, full
of its trails and difficulties, acts as a cleansing. Spiritual tests can lead pilgrims to repentance.
I
have found that it is hard to change for the better when you are surrounded by
what’s familiar. Humans are creatures of
habit and we learn to get too comfortable.
In the voluntary decision of choosing pilgrimage, we are brought out of
these places of comfort and released into a new environment. Here, the heart is able to open up and be
cleansed. Difficult circumstances may very well try to trap the heart once
again, however, in them the heart has the potential to grow stronger. A pilgrim is liberated from the old and
brought into a new, deeper level of reality than the previous accustomed life
he knew.
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