Pilgrimage #2

There is a section of the first chapter which addresses the need for pilgrimage for those with few economic opportunities. They describe the need as a way of cleansing, “On such a journey one gets away from the reiterated ‘occasions of sin’ which make up so much of human experience.” This concept stood out to me because my original understanding of pilgrimage was a rite of passage, or a way to honor a sacred place. However, with this definition, it seems to imply that, while they are not always able to, a pilgrimage can act as a penance or “a release from the ingrown ills of home”. My previous understanding of pilgrimage was an act sought out by those within a liminal space; however, I now see that a pilgrimage can pursued by those who require a separation from their day to day. The more I consider this, the more I realize that rather than a redefining of my understanding of pilgrimage, that this is a broadening of what I consider liminality. Maybe a liminal state is not just defined as one on the verge of self growth, but may also include less outwardly significant journeys. A pilgrimage may not have to be sought as a means of experiencing or honoring the holy, but as a means of emptying the “stores of nagging guilt” accrued in the day to day.