El Camino, not el Destino

I’ve never thought of myself as much of a pilgrim, but recently I’ve become  fascinated with el Camino de Santiago de Compostela, the pilgrimage route that runs 500 miles across the top of Spain.  There are several routes, but for over a thousand years, Christian pilgrims have traveled from Saint Jean Pied de Porte, France, through the Pyrenees then westward through Pamplona and Leon to the Cathedral de Santiago de Compostela, in Galicia, Spain.  The even more zealous pilgrims continue on another 50 miles to Finisterre, Spain’s western most point.

For Christians, this pilgrimage pays homage to the remains of St. James, rumored to have been buried in Compostela.  More interestingly, cultures long before Christianity had rituals requiring the observant to following this exact route.  The Romans had trade routes that followed the same basic course and Finisterre actually means the end of the world in Latin.   Seekers would wander the course to the end of the world to watch the sun descend, wondering if it would ever rise again.  Druids were encouraged to walk the Camino as part of their priesthood initiation and other pagans journeyed the route to Finisterre, where they believe the souls of their dead went where the sun set.

There appears to be something in fibers of the earth compelling humans to make this journey.  Along the route, there were meeting places, churches, resting places, and opportunities for trade, commerce and community.  It never was just about getting to the end of the world.  It was about the journey.  Who you were when you left and who you became by the time you were finished.   People walked or rode donkeys.  Today, they go in groups, they go alone, they go on bicycle or by foot or by car.  You can do part of it, or all of it in one long adventure.  Many return year after year to piece together the entire route.  It’s your journey.

Hundreds, maybe thousands, of books and articles have been written about the transformative effects of the journey.  In one of my favorites, the author reminds us it is called el Camino, not el Destino.  A good reminder for me today.  Trite but true, it’s the journey, not the destination.

Hope yours is good today.