Why is walking spiritual? Giles Fraser asks if the power of pilgrimage in it's destination, or along the pathway.
Alice Sainsbury was recovering from a serious neurological illness when she slowly started to walk again. Step by step she found herself again through walking, and small pilgrimages near her home in Cornwall. It wasn't just a physical journey for her, but a spiritual one as well.
She tells Giles Fraser why she walks. And Giles asks a panel of enthusiastic pilgrims from different faiths about the religious beliefs behind walking and pilgrimage.
Phil McCarthy, a former GP, has founded Pilgrim Ways, promoting walking pilgrimages in England and Wales. Sr Radharamana Das is a scholar in Sanskrit and Vedic literatures and a volunteer at his local Hare Krishna temple. And Professor Raminder Kaur is the leader of a project about pilgrimage and economics at the University of Sussex.
Boots laced, let's begin.
Producer: Rebecca Maxted
Assistant Producer: James Leesley
Editor: Tim Pemberton
Published on Wednesday, 10th July 2024.
Available Podcasts from Beyond Belief
We are not the BBC, we only list available podcasts. To find out more about the programme including episodes available on BBC iPlayer, go to the Beyond Belief webpage.