Like the migrating animals that our ancient ancestors once followed, we have been making planned long-distance journeys for millennia. What was first a matter of survival in time became a celebration of seasonal abundance – even today, many pilgrim festivals remain tied to the solar-lunar cycle that guided small bands of hunter-gatherers to come together at special times and places. The era when we were all nomads is long gone, but the impulse to undertake a ritual journey remains: each year, 200 million of us embark on a pilgrimage of some kind. These journeys of purpose may involve great hardship, great danger, or half a lifetime of waiting just to begin. Ranging from the Stone Age pilgrims of Anatolia to the New Age pilgrims of California, ‘We Are Pilgrims’ is a quest to understand what drives this rich and varied human behaviour, unbounded by time or space, faith or identity.

Author Victoria Preston Published by Hurst & Company ISBN 9781787383036 EAN 9781787383036 Bic Code Cover Paperback