Spiritual Pilgrimages

The process of learning to embody spiritual teachings, often experienced as a practice of living daily life outside of the box of understanding, can be enhanced by the circumstances and opportunities spiritual pilgrimage can provide. Learning how to walk a prayer is a practice. By placing oneself in situations to which the ego is not accustomed, the mind has to adapt—as do one’s belief systems. Then, one can begin to walk their prayer.

The practice is to walk one’s prayer without judgment or assumption. The practice is to develop the “watcher”. The practice is to promote active listening, let go of “the plan”, and flow with the unknowable. Therefore, pilgrimages are considered a vital dimension of spiritual study, and are offered yearly.

The Center for Sacred Studies (CSS) works to create opportunities for individuals from different cultures to meet and share their ways of life, heal relations, create collaborative relationships, and combine resources in order to manifest solutions to the challenges that currently threaten the global village.
 
Toward this end, CSS sponsors pilgrimages to such places as Brazil, Costa Rica, India & Europe, facilitated by CSS Spiritual Director, Jyoti (Jeneane Prevatt, Ph.D.).

Here's what a pilgrimage to the Amazon looks like: We travel for 4 days, first by air, followed by a quite adventurous 4-5 hour taxi ride over roads that change with the weather. From there, we take a dugout canoe, and travel into the deep interior of the virgin forest of the Amazon, where we participate in ceremonies and healing practices that are designed to help people “meet” themselves.  You should plan for approximately 3 weeks for this journey, including traveling time.

Contact CSS at pilgrimages@sacredstudies.org for more information.

In addition, you can participate in spiritual pilgrimages offered as the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers travels the globe, holding prayers for world peace. For more information, please see EVENTS on the Grandmother’s website www.grandmotherscouncil.com.