Sacred Travel
I’ve been traveling throughout the United States and now the world since I was a young girl, and I’ve been a witch since I was a teenager; travel and magick are intertwined for me. Travel can be an act of conscious creation of sacred within our lives. When we travel, we create connections to the unknown and expand our perspective far beyond the ordinary. At the same time, travel—whether down the road or around the world—can be stressful. It requires that we literally step outside of our comfort zone, spend time in a liminal space where we often have little control over our movement, and then arrive in a strange place. No wonder travel magick is an ancient practice!
Ideally our travel magick begins with finding the sacred in the journey. For me, that means connecting to Deity, but this is not necessary. If your sacred practice encourages personal responsibility and growth, then with or without a Name or Power’s involvement, we can find the sacred. There are places on this earth that positively ooze sacred. It’s hard to stand in the darkness of Newgrange as the light breaks through at Solstice’s dawn and not feel a deep sense of awe. While I’ve never been, pictures of the faithful touching the Wailing Wall move me deeply. Looking out over the Grand Canyon provoked strong feelings of terror at being so small, at the same time as feeling joy at being a part of this world.
Sacred travel offers us the chance to get away from our day-to-day life and embark on an adventure. We are given the chance to experience something new and in so doing, we grow. When we leave the safe confines of our usual environment, we have the opportunity to make new connections. When we make new connections, we expand our world and actively experience the diverse gloriousness of what it means to be human. We grow closer to the sacred, linking ourselves to something MORE.
I will always remember the moment my husband and I were walking the streets of Paestum—the remains of a sacred city in Italy—and realized that we were walking where people just like us had walked thousands of years before. People who were looking to have lunch at the corner café, go shopping, make dinner, or just be lovers walking hand in hand. It’s an enormous privilege to be able to leave the known, the mundane, and explore the rich vast mystery the larger world offers us.
How do we find the sacred? One way is to travel to the places Deity considers sacred. Consider this: Hecate is a goddess of the crossroads, worshipped throughout the Roman empires wherever three roads met. But you don’t need to go to Italy to find Her sacred places; just look for such an intersection near you. I’ve recently begun to work with Hecate and make monthly offerings. Just north of where I live now is an intersection where six streets meet around a circle. In the center is a monument to a priest who was prominent in the revolutionary activities on behalf of democracy. When I make offerings to Her in this place, I feel a strong sense of approval that I do so.
Another is to shift our mindset to one in which that travel begins the moment you step outside your door, not when you arrive at your destination. I know that when we hear the word “travel” we usually think of Roman Holiday and weeks away from mundane life, but if we add conscious intent to traveling to a destination—ANY destination—we connect the journey with the sacred.
Brighid is the goddess of smithing, poetry, and healing. Engaging in healthy activities (however you define that) can be an act of worship, just as much as traveling to a poetry reading. If you feel called to make a big gesture, you can visit her well in Ireland. That said, Brigid isn’t impressed by how much is spent on an airplane ticket, She appreciates effort and intention. An appropriate gesture that doesn’t require international travel could be to find a smith near you. Not just a blacksmith, but any metal worker. You could have a piece of jewelry made or buy something unique from a small crafter, such as a special knife or copper cookware for using in the kitchen.
For those of us who do not have the resources or physical ability to easily go places, connecting to sacred locations through the magic of the internet is wonderful. One of the few positive benefits of the pandemic is how many cultural institutions all over the world have put their entire catalog online. A surprising number of artifacts and locations are almost better experienced digitally than in person. There is something magical about going to Paris, yes, but the actual experience of seeing the Mona Lisa is tempered by how small the painting is, and how large and boisterous the crowd around her is. I much preferred calling up the hi-res image of her on my tablet in the local cafe after the disappointing experience of seeing her in the Louvre. The Minoan Palace of Knossos on Crete is hot, rocky, and impossible to explore if you aren’t in decent physical shape. A virtual tour makes the site accessible to millions who would otherwise never experience it.
Sacred travel is amazing. It’s an enormous privilege to be able to leave the known, the mundane, and explore the rich vast mystery the larger world offers us. When we leave the safe confines of our usual environment, we can make new connections. When we make new connections, we expand our world and actively experience the diverse gloriousness of what it means to be human. In doing so, we grow closer to the sacred, linking ourselves to something more in new and unusual ways.
Safe travels!
A Traveler’s Guide to Making Magic by Lisa McSherry
