Vision Fast and solo time in nature
Excerpt from the Worldview Dimension of Gaia Education’s online course in Design for Sustainability
I entered the life of the brown forest
And the great life of the ancient peaks, the patience of stone,
I felt the changes in my veins
In the throat of the mountain, and I was the stream
Draining the mountain wood; and I was the stag drinking; and I was
The stars
Boiling with light, wandering alone, each one the lord of his
Own summit;
And I was the darkness
Outside the stars, I included them, they were a part of me.
I was mankind also, a moving lichen
On the cheek of the round stone …
How can I express the excellence I have found,
That has no colour but clearness;
No honey but ecstasy …
— Robinson Jeffers
Rites of passage ceremonies exist in all of the world’s traditional cultures. They are an important marker of transition, transformation and change in the lives of members of these cultures. The transition from childhood to adulthood, from adulthood into eldership, the transition into parenthood, the confirmation of a new role in the community, the intentional and ceremonial leaving behind of modes of thinking and acting that no longer serve us, all these important moments of change and transformation can be energized and celebrated through rites of passage ceremonies. They serve to support individuals and to help them to recognize and take possession of their unique gifts and potentials, for their one benefit, for the benefit of their community, and for the benefit of the world.
In the industrial growth society we have done away with traditional rites of passage or turned them into in-effective vestiges of their ancient counterparts, only celebrating adulthood at the age of 18, or graduation from some kind of educational institution. The lack of real and meaningful rituals and rites of passage is reflected in the drastic rise of binge drinking, drug abuse, and extreme sports or risk seeking among young people. The need of initiation expresses itself through these activities, which are desperate attempts by young adults to initiate themselves into a new phase of their lives.
Vision quest, or vision fast, is a powerful ritual that can help individuals to mark these important life stages and transitions in a meaningful and helpful way. It offers a container whereby the individual’s personal transition and change process can be recognized and honoured by his or her community.
For most people, there comes a time when they must leave family, friends and work behind and go off alone, looking within to discover how their inner changes are reflected in the circle of life. Vision Quest or Vision Fast are two names for this journey.
The Vision Quest is an ancient rite of passage ceremony, enabling men, women and youth to engage in an age-old ceremonial pattern: completion of an old life, movement through the threshold of the unknown, and return to the world reborn. People in any life stage or transition will find meaning in this powerful process. This is a path that has been followed by human beings for many thousands of years. When it is time for you to consider such a ritual, you will hear these questions calling you — Who am I?; What do I have to give?; How can I heal my wounds and leave behind the habits that don’t serve me any longer?
“The modern day vision fast is a border crossing practice. When one steps across the threshold and into the unknown wilderness, boundaries begin to dissolve and our vision begins to expand. Everything is pregnant with meaning, and nature speaks to us in the voices of rock, tree, and wind. Following the ancient pathway of this rite of passage, we step into our true nature and remember our home among the wild. We become who we were born to be.”
— School of Lost Borders, 2012
Just as meditation can connect us to our inner wisdom and intuition, and practicing the way of council can connect us to the collective wisdom of our community and our people, nature-based rites of passage — like a 24-hour solo or a 4 day and 4 night vision fast in the wilderness — have the power to connect us to nature as a profound source of insight, guidance, vision, and strength. The School of Lost Borders in California, Sacred Passages in Colorado, and the Eschwege Institute in Germany are among the places where you can start to explore the power of modern day rites of passage for yourself and let these rituals help you to step into your own full power to become an agent of positive change in this world.
Note: This is an excerpt from the Worldview Dimension of Gaia Education’s online course in Design for Sustainability. In 2012 I was asked to rewrite this dimension as part of a collaboration between Gaia Education and the Open University of Catalunya (UOC) and in 2016 I revised it again into this current version. The next opportunity to join the course is with the start of the Worldview Dimension on June 1st, 2020.
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Daniel Christian Wahl — Catalyzing transformative innovation in the face of converging crises, advising on regenerative whole systems design, regenerative leadership, and education for regenerative development and bioregional regeneration.
Author of the internationally acclaimed book Designing Regenerative Cultures
