The Sacred Door Trail

Changing spiritual perceptions and attitude towards our environment, landscape and nature lead to a multitude of ways to relate to the outdoors.

New locations are becoming places of pilgrimage (both traditional religious or new age spiritual, and there are many other reasons to make a 'pilgrimage' (like film based, dark tourism, etc.)

This item is on the Sacred Door Trail, an interfaith pilgrimage route in Montana, USA. A little more than 5 years old, about 165 miles long. A circular route like the Shikoku in Japan.

So, let me be your guide in introducing you to the Sacred Door Trail.

Video Let's start with an introduction video (2:41) by the founder Weston Pew

Video As we're in video mode, perhaps have a look at the 'opening ceremonies' some five years ago in the Vimeo video (11:13)

 (click text above for video)

Text with video: "The Sacred Door Trail is a 175-mile interfaith pilgrimage trail in southwestern Montana dedicated to Spiritual Unity, Peace and our connection to Earth and Community. It is comprised of pre-existing National Forest Service trails, which form a loop that explores some of the most beautiful mountains, valleys, lakes and rivers in the United States. The trail serves as a bridge connecting us to our original church, our original temple ~ Mother Earth. 

On June 28-30th of 2012 people from diverse belief systems, cultures and lineages gathered together to offer blessings from many different traditions, thereby establishing the land and trail as a shared sacred space. The trail is a celebration of our rich spiritual diversity as humans, but more importantly, it honors the spirit that unifies all things, thereby turning the many into One. 

In hiking The Sacred Door Trail you not only carry your own prayers but the prayers of the world and all life upon your shoulders."

Article Only recently (May 2017) the Backpacker magazine published
"Sacred Door Trail Hike" by Elisabeth Kwak-Hefferan.

 "A piece about a woman trying to overcome the pain of a breakup, navigate her emotions and find peace on the Sacred Door Trail."

You find it here.

Brochure Curious?

Find out more in the brochure, click here.

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Online The Trail has it's own website and Facebook page.

Website here.

Facebook page here

Blog A blog entry by Weston Pew in Huffington Post (2013)Sacred Activism: The Key to Religious Survival in the Age of SBNRs.

See also In 2015 I introduced you to some other interesting (new and older) trails on Pilgrimage and Place.

One of them being the Walk of Wisdom in The Netherlands, also a route of contemplation.

You find the link here.

Celebrating life

On my personal FB page I noticed I included a collection of events I could name 'celebrating life'.

I collected them here, to celebrate summer.

Enjoy these tips for all life lovers, for those open to life.

Think resembles pilgrimage, being from home, looking for something, immersing in nature, social and self (the elements of meaning of place;-)

and even sometimes becoming a new you, transformated and ready for life.

Glastonbury Festival of contemporary performing arts

In june 2017 they "created the largest ever human peace sign as a symbol of our unity and love for one another".

More info on the festival here,

No Mind Festival

"No Mind is Scandinavia’s biggest alternative festival – a transformative gathering to open our hearts, become alive and free in our bodies, and relax into a wisdom beyond the mind."

Here's a look at last years event, hope it makes you happy.

click to see movie

Some time ago I saw Three miles north of Molkom.

Here's the trailer.

click to see movie

More info on the festival here.

Solstice Stonehenge

June 21 was the day of the solstice. Celebrated in many places, here's (click here) a compilation of photographs from The Guardian of Stonehenge June 21. 

Burning Man

Starting Aug 27, "Once a year, tens of thousands of people gather in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert to create Black Rock City, a temporary metropolis dedicated to community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance. In this crucible of creativity, all are welcome."

This year's theme is Radical Ritual, a temple will be erected.

Here's a movie of last year's event. What to expect...

More info, much more, on their site.

World Naked Hiking Day

And finally, June 21 wasn't only the day of the solstice but also World Naked Hiking Day

embrace nature

establish a sense of inner freedom 

#nakedhikingday

#glastonbury 

#nomindfestival

Introduction to pilgrimage and transformation

This introduction gives you some pointers and thoughts on pilgrimage and transformation.
Do people change while walking a camino?
Yes, people always change while performing.
OK, but tell me more...
Just read on and pick what you like...

Spirituality

First on spirituality, giving a clue where a transformation could occur. Not trying to define the concept ;-)

Recently I read an article from Fisher on four domains of spiritual wellbeing, a nice overview:

"spiritual health is a dynamic state of being, shown by the extent to which people live in harmony within relationships in the following domains of spiritual wellbeing:

1. Personal domain (wherein one intra-relates with oneself with regards to meaning, purpose and values in life. The human spirit creates selfawareness, relating to self-esteem and identity).
2. Communal domain (as expressed in the quality and depth of interpersonal relationships, between self and others, relating to morality and culture. This includes love, justice, hope, and faith in humanity).
3. Environmental domain (past care and nurture for the physical and biological, to a sense of awe and wonder; for some, the notion of unity or connectedness with the environment).
4. Transcendental domain (Relationship of self with some-thing or some-One beyond the human level, a Transcendent Other (i.e., ultimate concern, cosmic force, transcendent reality, or God). This involves faith toward, adoration and worship of, the source of Mystery of the universe."

(Assessing Spiritual Health via Four Domains of Spiritual Wellbeing: The SH4DI

John W. Fisher, Leslie J. Francis, Peter Johnson

Pastoral Psychology, Vol. 49, No. 2, 2000)

Caminoist on spirituality

A nice overview article on pilgrimage, the camino and spirituality provides Sandy Brown in this Caminoist blog article.

Seven secular pilgrimages (and one added;-)

CNN just published an update on seven secular pilgrimages that could change your life.

Perhaps you can guess the three on the picture?

The others are: Kumano Kodo (Japan), Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, Mount Kailash Pilgrimage (Tibet), Pilgrims' Way to Canterbury (England) and Char Dham (India).

I think CNN left out a rising star: Olavs route in Norway!
So look here for this one (Olavs Route).

And perhaps walking to Canterbury gives you appetite to follow on the Via Francigena through France, Switzerland and Italy to Rome.

Have a look here for the CNN article on the seven pilgrimages.

Sacred Travel: The Pilgrimage Experience

What can the ritual of Pilgrimage tell us about deepening the sacred dimension of life?

What spiritual state or benefit are pilgrims ultimately looking for?

How do they know and express it, if and when they find it?

See introduction and other parts of discussion with Phil Cousineau, Pico Iyer and Zoila Mendoza below.

Global Spirit: Sacred Travel The Pilgrimage Experience - Introduction

(3:11)

Further parts and discussion are available by following this link.

See also the conversation guide on the website of Global Spirit.

Conversation guide booklet in pdf format here.


The Power of St. James' Way

My fellow weblog The Pilgrim's Gaze just published a spot for a documentary The Power of St James' Way.

"The Power of Saint James’ Way is a documentary that contains true stories of pilgrims whose pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela radically changed their lives. Amazing witnesses that testify this phenomenon plus explanations from experts in different disciplines that try to identify why these changes may occur." See it here.

And finally some articles and books, a few among the many.

• Transformative Pilgrimage, William S. Schmidt, Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health, 2009 (article)
• We Make the Way by Walking: Spiritual Pilgrimage and Transformative Learning While Walking the Camino De Santiago,  Elizabeth J. Tisdell (article)
• Spiritual Tourism, Travel and Religious practice in Western Society, Alex Norman (book)
• Pilgrimage and Healing, Jill Dubisch and Michael Winkelman (book)
• Transformational tourism, tourist perspectives, Yvette Reisinger (ed) (book)