Another vote for the Cathedral:
The Camino, from France to Spain
Thursday, Nov 7, 2013, 10:45 IST | Agency: DNA
Parvez Damania
Parvez Damania walks you through his 11-day journey-on-foot to Compostela de Santiago in Spain.
The
Camino de Santiago, or the Way of Saint James, has for centuries been one of the most respected pilgrimages of the Western world. The camino or 'Way' starts anywhere in three countries, France, Spain and Portugal, but ends only in Compostela de Santiago, a Cathedral in Spain.
I took the
Camino Frances, starting at Astorga, with two dear friends on a chilly October morning.
Although it is the most popular route, extending 790 km, we decided to walk only the 276-kilometer-stretch directly leading to the Cathedral. I thought Saint James would still approve.
It is most certainly a pilgrimage for those who complete the entire camino, but I was doing it as a salutation to a powerful and venerable tradition. It was rewarding to meet some true pilgrims en route, like the 73-year-old man who planned to walk the entire way merely a year after his triple bypass surgery, and a couple in their 70s who were doing it for the sixth time. I met kids, schoolboys and even a doughty dog trotting right along his master.
If you follow the yellow arrows, painted along the entire route–on streets, trees, markers, posts and buildings–you can't go wrong.
If you're tired, halt at albergues (rest stops) maintained for pilgrims, where you can freshen up and get a good night's sleep. They are open in the afternoon and close in the morning, once the last pilgrims set out. If you try to cheat on your way by taking a vehicle, you won't just find yourself waiting outside the albergues, but you'll also be denied the precious stamps on the special passports issued to pilgrims at different points. For a formal certificate that declares your successful completion of the camino, you need the right number of the right stamps. So walk right, walk true and walk to the finish!
I walked for 11 days, covering 38 km on my longest day and 24 km on my shortest. I had the route well mapped out in advance and the only privilege I allowed myself was having my knapsack shipped from one stop to another.
It was a pleasure walking through the countryside, its forests and towns. I stopped at just about every church on the way, attended the evening Pilgrim's Mass at a few and soaked myself in the river of energy that has been running through the camino for hundreds of years.
Watching strangers feelingly wish each other "Buen camino" as they passed by was was an extraordinary experience. When every person's heart is so full of encouragement, you wonder about the scale of errors human beings make by way of battles, losing out on brotherhood.
Lest I forget, along the way you'll encounter the Ferro Cruz and the Iron Cross, surrounded by a mound of stones, of all sizes. You usually pick a size signifying your sins and drop it at the foot of the Cross. I decided that a modestly sized pebble would do for me, spent a moment in prayer and looked in wonder at the large stones left behind.
Saint James is known to be buried in the Cathedral. One of the first followers of Jesus Christ, James is the Patron Saint of Spain. The significance of this pilgrimage has inspired millions to walk the distance (2,00,000 people have completed it in 2012 alone).
To my joy Spaniards are delighted to meet Indians and the ones who've visited India have left images of Hanuman, Shiva and Parvati, Meher Baba and have even scrawled Om on a signpost that featured the traditional icon of the camino, the scallop.
The Cathedral at Santiago is a reward in itself. The Pilgrims' Mass, held in the ornate baroque inside the Cathedral, has a cleansing effect with its ritual ceremony, music and the devotion of the priests and worshippers. Incense sticks are lit in a giant urn and swung across the church in benediction. If you want your country to be included in the roster of countries called out during Mass, then register early. I was thrilled to hear India's name, as I was carrying back blessings from a journey that was everything I had hoped for, and more.
