Experiencing the Sacred in Peru

Sylvia Maddox wrote, "There is a Celtic saying that heaven and earth are only three feet apart, but in the thin places that distance is even smaller. A thin place is where the veil that separates heaven and earth is lifted and one is able to receive a glimpse of the glory of God. A contemporary poet Sharlande Sledge gives this description.

“Thin places,” the Celts call this space,
Both seen and unseen,
Where the door between the world
And the next is cracked open for a moment
And the light is not all on the other side.
God shaped space. Holy.

It is no wonder that thin places are most often associated with wild landscapes. A thin place requires us to step from one world to another and that often means traveling to a place where we have less control and where the unpredictable becomes the means of discovery."

For me, Peru is most definitely a "thin place."  Part of my reason for exploring Peru with my family during this sabbatical/renewal time was to explore sacredness and sacred spaces in new and different ways.  Here are just a few of my experiences in doing so.

1.  Choquequirao - I chose the Choquequirao trek for no reason other than I wanted an alternative to the much traveled Inca Trail, and Choquequirao seemed to fit into our schedule.  It was only after hearing Puma talk about its origins and see our guides approaching the trek much like a pilgrimage did I realize that I had chosen one of the most sacred of Inca sites to travel to and explore.  It is accessible only by the trail we hiked and so there were only a handful of other people there when we arrived.  It is deep in the mountains.  It has only been partially excavated - 60% of the site is still under the cover of trees and vines.  The stonework belies the commonly held view that Choquechirao was built only as the last refuge and fortress of the Incas following the Spanish Conquest.  Perhaps it was used for that purpose, but Choquechirao was built far earlier and was like a monastery - home to the high priests, a site for priestly training, and perhaps a pilgrimage destination.  Our discoveries of niches for mummies and offerings, the condors flying overhead, and the sense that we had arrived at some place very special will always mark Choquechirao as a sacred space for me, one that I was privileged to visit and explore.

2.  The Mountains - The mountains are so vast, it makes one feel so small, such a tiny part of the universe, of God's creation.  Traveling by mountain faces dotted with caves that once - or maybe still - hold Incan mummies makes one feel deeply a sense of the ancient and a connection with times both past and future.  The mountains were sacred to the Incas, inhabited by the apus, the spirits of the mountains that protected the local people.  They became sacred spaces for me as well.

3.  The Caves - There were several that stand out in my mind.  Outside of Cusco, there was the heart of the puma, a reddish rock that jutted down from the mouth of a cave.  You can reach out and grab hold of the heart, pull it close, even lift your feet just a few inches off the ground - and as you hold it, you give all the heaviness in your heart to the puma, who graciously accepts it.  There is the cave of the puma on the trail to Huayna Picchu.  You might leave a few coca leaves near the rock that, when you look closely, is indeed shaped like a puma's head.  After a time of silence and perhaps a prayer, you can exit the cave, but only on your hands and knees.  When you emerge, it is said that you emerge with the strength of the puma within you.  There is also the condor cave at Machu Picchu.  The condor is symbolic of the one of the three senses of self in Incan culture.  The serpent represents the conscious self, the puma the physical self, and the condor the divine spark which is in each one of us.  Exiting the condor cave, you are minded of the divine spark and the light from which all of us comes and to which all of us are connected.

4.  Spanish Language Mass at the Cathedral in Cusco - I attended one of the four daily masses at the cathedral.  It was in Spanish, and I complement myself for figuring out that the Gospel reading was about the hemorrhaging woman from Luke having enough of a grasp of Spanish to be able to share the peace of Christ with those around me.  There is something unique about attending worship in a huge basilica (even an unheated one).  The stone columns, flickering candles, statuary, and massive paintings add something unusual to the experience.  This cathedral is an interesting one to poke around in.  Built by the Spanish, some of the artwork was done by the Cusquena School of artists.  They were imaginative and creative in the ways that they incorporated Andean culture into their work.  Perhaps the best example is a huge painting of the Last Supper.  Jesus is holding a loaf of bread in his hands, and a chalice of wine is nearby.  At first glance, there is nothing unusual with the scene.  A closer look, however, reveals a cuy (guinea pig, Peruvian gastronomic delicacy), roasted, its little feet sticking up in the air, on a platter in the center of the table.

5.  My Family - Perhaps the very best part of this journey was being able to share it with first my immediate family - and then extended to include my Peruvian family.  With the kids grown, we really are all of us together only for a day or so at Christmas.  To be able to spend these three weeks with Joe, Heather, Paddy, and Tim was so special, and that part of the experience is something I will always hold close to my heart.  To be able to share it with Puma and his family was special as well.  I believe that God did not create us to live in isolation from one another, but rather in community, bound together, bound to our past and to our future, in a sort of sacred web.