Carol Anne's Triangle Pilgrimage
Last year I was accosted by a Frenchman who told me I must ‘‘put your book away! You must wash your brain! while you are walking”. It was north of Fatima where I met Alain, who had himself given up work for two years as he washed the brain and walked the talk. Impressed, I asked him what was his motivation- ‘God, of course.’
This was my introduction to the first of the three functions of a pilgrimage – purification. The other functions are to increase merit and to increase faith, but purification seems to be primary motivator, as it was for King Henry who, needing to atone for having ordered his friend, the Archbishop of Canterbury to be stabbed, walked for 100 miles on his knees to Canterbury Cathedral, becoming the first pilgrim of England.
The idea of walking with a spiritual motivation, to atone for one’s sins, to create a peaceful world made sense, since all things from breakfast to world peace are created through wishes. It seemed a big ask to present a radical idea and an ancient custom as something of urgent significance in modern times, but support was abundant, and generosity offered both from the Dharma community and the people I met walking. So thank you for your good wishes, they were very appreciated and ensured I had a lot of fun journeying between the three Dharma centres in Scotland.
from Tharpaland in Dumfriesshire, to Mahabodhi centre in Edinburgh
The Bothy in Ettrick
As well as a useful and much needed shelter, this particular bothy had many functions, it had hosted a stag party some nights before, and was a venue for art installations. It had all manner of useful things, such as tinfoil, which I used to waterproof my dewy boots and tomato juice and frosties left by the last travellers, thanks and praise to them. It is amazing that volunteers can be bothered maintaining a remote refuge just in case a wanderer may have need of it, a manifestation of Scottish hospitality code in an unconditional form.
The Last Shepherd of Ettrick
A few miles down the road I met the golden ringleted ‘ last shepherd of Ettrick’ who gave me a lift and dropped me beside a statue of his namesake, James Hogg. I had declined his offer but remembered that the few miles I had walked in the wrong direction – almost accidently reaching Samye Ling- meant I could accept his offer without cheating. He was in the process of erecting a Bothy in memory of his brother who died in an accident on the St Cuthbert way, two months ago. He and his brother had done the Southern Upland way in January! In the snow! On bike! This image of them became my sobering, perspective granting memory whenever after I felt tired or cold. He had been at his friend’s stag do in the afore –mentioned bothy, the wedding venue was to be a hilltop, and the guests transported via tractor to the summit.
Former sergeant major George
The splendid sight of George and his friend Gordon climbing over the summit of a hill between St Mary’s loch and Traquair gave me hope when I had lost the will to live, which is an exaggerated way of saying when I was a bit tired and lonely. I squinted up at then, looking more than a bit bedraggled. ‘what are you doing young lady?’ asked George. ‘I’m em, on a sponsored walk for world peace’ ‘give the young lady £20 for world peace’ George sponsored me on his 73rd birthday, Gordon gave me the best kit kat I have ever had, and I enjoyed their company as they, rather embarrassingly, carried my stuff for three miles to Traquair.
From Mahabodhi centre in Edinburgh to Vajrayana Centre in Glasgow
Adam
I overtook him then he overtook me then I overtook him, then he said , ‘where are you going?’, Adam had just traversed the perimeter of England with a friend to raise money for cancer research. The challenge was to travel without taking any money, and people sponsored them for this and set them additional ‘mini-challenges’. I asked if they had to sleep by the road and eat out of bins. He said ‘we lived like kings’ –people’s generosity was unbelievable. Their adventures are documented on ‘Around England by Any Means’ – see especially the mini challenge where they convinced Derren Brown to shuffle with them, and raised thousands for their cause.
Adam accompanied me 30 miles down the canal and we parted at Falkirk Wheel car park where he decided to hitch ‘as far North and West as possible’. A man who knows how to fulfil his wishes, when I texted him the next day, he was at the foot of Ben Nevis, a few days later, he’d made it to Skye.
Audrey, Sean and Kevin from Tyrone
Very wet, I went to the toilets of a pub a few miles outside Kirkintilloch where I changed all my clothes and dried my socks on the hand drier. After ages had passed Audrey the barmaid came in to see if I was okay. I apologised and explained my situation. Audrey made me three cups of coffee (complimentary) and very useful advice on where to camp and Sean and Kevin from Tyrone gave me all the money they had on them (about £7) for world peace.
And back to Tharpalan
Jackie
Carrying a stone enscribed with ‘wisdom’ I made my way from Vajrayana Centre to the clyde walkway, I was fine until carmyle, where I met a man who told me I was on the wrong side of the Clyde. He helped me to the right side of the Clyde, where with a bit more help I found Hamilton, and was treated to Jackie’s hospitality, as she met me with oranges on the way and put me up for the night in the most luxurious lodgings of her meditation suite.
The emphasis of the last leg of my pilgrimage was most definitely on purification- as I was reflecting on this outside Lanark , a lady whose toilets I had visited a few miles prior pulled up and asked if I had stole her soapdish!
Denis
On the last full day of my pilgrimage, more than my brain was washed, as I awoke in torrential rain which didn’t stop. After five miles, it had soaked through my waterproofs, then my clothes, and then I started shivering, and decided it was time to phone a friend. The friend in question, Denis of excellence, arrived in under an hour with a flask of hot soup and a towel and drove me to Moffat where he bought me a tshirt and I changed all my clothes. He took my stuff back to Lochmaben and, dried and unburdened I walked the 15 miles to his caravan. I had a clear conscience as I had stated I would travel between the centres walking at least twenty miles each day, in case of such an emergency and it had seemed appropriate to make use of the technological advantages unique to modern day pilgrims.
I met a man handcycling from Lands End to John o Groats to make money for ‘Help for Heroes’, whose companion made me coffee and a scone,
And the next day I completed my trip. The cows had temporarily disappeared from the track and I was able to walk up to Tharpaland, the beginning and end of my pilgrimage triangle, to deposit the wisdom stone.
Pilgrimages and triangles don’t really have a beginning or an end and I hope to continue walking around with a spiritual motivation. It was nice to have time, it was nice to meet many people that live in various places between Dumfries, Edinburgh and Glasgow, it was nice to walk all day, and it was nice, despite a lack of organisation and forward planning, to have everything work out spontaneously. Thanks and praise to the local guardians and to the people who did not want me to die in the pursuit of world peace – your generosity has raised over £700.