Illuminating Paths
The events of one’s life take place, take place. How often have I used this expression, and how often have I stopped to think what it means? Events do indeed take place; they have meaning in relation to the things around them.
N. Scott Momaday
The Names: A Memoir
Life is a circle, and everything has its place in it.
Paula Gunn Allen
The Sacred Hoop
Spiritual
Pilgrimage
From Where I Stand: Exploring a Spiritual Landscape
A Pilgrimage to the Black Hills of South Dakota
September 18 -26, 2010
For thousands of years before Europeans arrived in what they promptly named “the New World,”
Native peoples called this continent home & told stories relating & binding themselves to the land. To the Lakota—known to their enemies as the “Sioux”—the Earth & everything in it is wakan, sacred. And so “place” has sacred significance.
Native peoples called this continent home & told stories relating & binding themselves to the land. To the Lakota—known to their enemies as the “Sioux”—the Earth & everything in it is wakan, sacred. And so “place” has sacred significance.On this pilgrimage to the Black Hills of South Dakota, we will travel to & through a landscape that for many of us is unfamiliar, exploring the story & sacred space of a people more or less familiar to us, but whose story is inextricably interwoven with our own. Our journey will take us through the Black Hills, the Paha Sapa of the Lakota, where we will dwell for a time among the ponderosa pines, the startling rock formations, the free-roaming herds of buffalo. We will travel from Bear Butte, a sacred mountain with its own story, to Wounded Knee, where the stories of two peoples have clashed not once, but twice, with painful results. And, at Deadwood & Lead, we will see firsthand what happens when place loses sacred significance.
We displace ourselves, so that we may come to a place that is authentically our own. Perhaps we will see how our individual stories “take place” not only in a particular landscape, but also in the context of a story that reaches far beyond our individual boundary lines.
As we explore together our inner and outer spiritual landscapes, we will reflect on such questions as: Where does your story “take place”? What significance does place have for your life story, for the spiritual landscape of your inner life, in the past & now? How does your story “take place” within a larger story? What is the view from where you stand?
Location
On the pilgrimage, we will visit such sacred sites as Wounded Knee, Bear Butte, Custer State Park, the Badlands, and the Black Hills. We will also rest and reflect at our pilgrimage home, Borderlands Education and Spiritual Center. Borderlands Center, located at Borderlands Ranch that occupies 135 acres of high plains, pine forest and slate cliffs in the Pe Sla - the heart of the heart of Lakota, offers a peaceful and nurturing environment for our pilgrimage.
The activities of Borderlands, grounded in the common values of Lakota and Celtic heritage and spirituality, are dedicated to the work of personal, cultural, and environmental reconciliation.
Schedule
| Day 1 |
Arrival at Borderlands; a time of welcoming, settling in, and storytelling.
|
| Day 2 |
Sabbath reflection time at Borderlands in the morning; a visit to the Sioux Indian Museum in Rapid City in the afternoon. |
| Day 3 |
The Black Hills: traveling through Custer State Park down to Wind Cave National Park by way of the Needles Highway. |
| Day 4 |
Journey through the Badlands to visit the Wounded Knee Memorial on the Pine Ridge Reservation. |
| Day 5 |
A day of retreat and reflection; celebration of the Fall Equinox. Options include a drumming circle, walking the labyrinth, hiking to Deer Lake. |
| Day 6 |
Visit to Deadwood & Lead, & Spearfish Canyon (including a “Dances With Wolves” film site); celebration of the full moon. |
| Day 7 |
Pilgrimage to Bear Butte, sacred mountain to the Lakota & the Cheyenne.
|
| Day 8 |
A day of retreat and reflection; opportunities in the afternoon to revisit the Black Hills or Bear Butte. |
| Day 9 | Departure from Borderlands; a ritual of farewells. |
Leadership
Christopher Copeland serves as the spiritual and creative director of Illuminating Paths and has led retreats andpilgrimages to sacred sites all around the world including Taizé, Iona, Ireland, Turkey, and Wales. As an ordained minister, Chris’s experience and expression of spirituality is grounded in the Christian tradition and is deeply influenced by the beliefs and practices of people of many faith traditions. Beginning with a college sociology course, Chris has felt a deep connection to the people, cultures, and spiritualities of Native peoples and has journeyed to the Black Hills numerous times since 1994. 
Karen Shipp has followed an eclectic path: from opera & concert stages in New York City to sweat lodges in Georgia, her life has never followed a straight line. While her work as a musician has taken her from Roman Catholic and Episcopal parishes to Presbyterian and Baptist churches, Karen’s personal spiritual quest has led her to explore the spirituality of Native American peoples, Celtic Christian spirituality, and spiritual practices such as Buddhist sitting meditation, drumming and singing as a meditative tool. Her love for the Black Hills goes back to her first visit in 1993; subsequent pilgrimages have only strengthened her sense that these mountains are her spiritual home.Costs & Registration
The total cost of the pilgrimage is $1100 for triple occupancy. For those wishing double occupancy the there is an additional fee of $150 and for those requesting single occupancy, the additional fee is $300.
Costs include 8 nights of lodging at Borderlands Ranch with meals ($550), ground transportation all through the Black Hills ($250), and programming including materials and admission fees to museums and parks ($300).
The maximum number of pilgrims is 18 and space is limited, so register early.
To register, submit a non-refundable deposit of $300 and the following completed forms: Terms & Conditions, Heath Information, Travel Information. You can make your deposit via credit card online or send a check to:
Illuminating Paths
807 East Main Street, Suie 6114
Durham, NC 27701
All forms and deposits must be received by June 15 and the balance must be paid by August 1, 2010.
Illuminating Paths
807 East Main Street, Suie 6114
Durham, NC 27701
All forms and deposits must be received by June 15 and the balance must be paid by August 1, 2010.
More Information
If you have questions or need more information, please email us and we'll be glad to answer your questions. Download a brochure for more information and to share with others.
We hope you'll join us on this adventure to explore the exterior spiritual land of South Dakota as well as our interior spiritual landscapes.