The Way of St. James: A Pilgrimage Through Time and Change

[MichaelC]

Here's an interesting description of The Way from 1912. It's from The Story of Santiago de Compostela, by Catherine Gasquoine Hartley. It's a free download on Google Books.

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The pilgrims who made the journey to Santiago called the star-paved milky-way in the heavens El Camino de Santiago ( the Road of St. James ) . We read in the poetic writings of Daudet that a young shepherd, asked by his mistress whether he knew the names of the stars, began his answer as follows: “ Why yes, mistress. Look straight above our heads ; that is St. James's Road. It runs from France straight over Spain. It was St. James of Galicia who traced it there, to show the brave Charlemagne his way, when he was making war upon the Saracens.'

To-day, the path of the pilgrim is far different. He will journey from England to Vigo in one of the fine vessels of the excellent Booth Line, and will enjoy three days of most comfortable travelling. At Vigo, « The Golden Gate of Galicia ,” he will see together with much beauty and much that is old, many evidences of modern progress. He will then journey by train to the old seaport of Pontevedra, where the past still lingers, and where a stay of a few days may profitably be made. From Pontevedra the West Galician Railway carries the pilgrim to Compostela, and, perhaps, nothing brings home to the mind more sharply the movement of change than this modern approach. ...

To enjoy fully such a journey, one should cultivate deliberately the spirit of pilgrimage ... The ideal way is to leave the train at Padron, or better , at Cesures, and to walk to Compostela along the old pilgrims' way.

To the visitor to Compostela who desires a more rapid transit, nothing can be said, except to advise him to give up the enterprise. Let him wait in some one of the villages in this delightful valley, until he comes to understand the real unimportance of time. This is one of the first lessons to be learnt in this country of romance, where people understand so well the art of living beautifully.

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There are all kinds of tidbits in this book that were new to me, particularly in Chapter IV (The Great Pilgrimages) and Chapter V (The Way to Santiago). It's worth a download!

 

[MichaelC]

I dug deeper on the anecdote from Daudet. Per an article on Xacopedia [ Vía Láctea ] , the association between the Milky Way and the pilgrimage route to Compostela goes back to at least the 12th Century.

Here are some of the colloquial terms for the Milky Way from the middle ages:

Spain: el Camino de Santiago
France: le Chemin de saint Jacques
Genoa: Via Sancti Iacobi
Sicily: La Escalera de Santiago
Turkey: Camino de los Peregrinos

I really like this idea that the "Camino" is the stars above, not the actual path we walk on earth.

 

[mspath]

I dug deeper on the anecdote from Daudet. Per an article on Xacopedia [ Vía Láctea ] , the association between the Milky Way and the pilgrimage route to Compostela goes back to at least the 12th Century.

Here are some of the colloquial terms for the Milky Way from the middle ages:

Spain: el Camino de Santiago
France: le Chemin de saint Jacques
Genoa: Via Sancti Iacobi
Sicily: La Escalera de Santiago
Turkey: Camino de los Peregrinos

I really like this idea that the "Camino" is the stars above, not the actual path we walk on earth.

MichaelC,
Thank you for sharing these references and quotes.
One of the delights of the albergue at Eunate on the Camino Argones, now unfortunately closed, was falling asleep on mats in the dark while regarding above applied to the dorm ceiling a phosphorescent band of stars, the Milky Way, leading westward...Magic.

 

[William Garza]

I dug deeper on the anecdote from Daudet. Per an article on Xacopedia [ Vía Láctea ] , the association between the Milky Way and the pilgrimage route to Compostela goes back to at least the 12th Century.

Here are some of the colloquial terms for the Milky Way from the middle ages:

Spain: el Camino de Santiago
France: le Chemin de saint Jacques
Genoa: Via Sancti Iacobi
Sicily: La Escalera de Santiago
Turkey: Camino de los Peregrinos

I really like this idea that the "Camino" is the stars above, not the actual path we walk on earth.

A lifetime away and in the 90s..a bartender friend named James..while playing trivia against the customers..i asked who is Iacobus..
He looked at me and said..You have never heard of St.James, and the Camino de Santiago?

I said no, and he gave me a wonderful explanation.

I hope he made it to the Via Sancti Iacobi

Onward Pilgrim!

 

[VNwalking]

This resonates, still:

To the visitor to Compostela who desires a more rapid transit, nothing can be said, except to advise him to give up the enterprise. Let him wait in some one of the villages in this delightful valley, until he comes to understand the real unimportance of time

Love it.

Mahalo, @MichaelC !

 

[sillydoll]

Here's an interesting description of The Way from 1912. It's from The Story of Santiago de Compostela, by Catherine Gasquoine Hartley. It's a free download on Google Books.

----------

The pilgrims who made the journey to Santiago called the star-paved milky-way in the heavens El Camino de Santiago ( the Road of St. James ) . We read in the poetic writings of Daudet that a young shepherd, asked by his mistress whether he knew the names of the stars, began his answer as follows: “ Why yes, mistress. Look straight above our heads ; that is St. James's Road. It runs from France straight over Spain. It was St. James of Galicia who traced it there, to show the brave Charlemagne his way, when he was making war upon the Saracens.'

To-day, the path of the pilgrim is far different. He will journey from England to Vigo in one of the fine vessels of the excellent Booth Line, and will enjoy three days of most comfortable travelling. At Vigo, « The Golden Gate of Galicia ,” he will see together with much beauty and much that is old, many evidences of modern progress. He will then journey by train to the old seaport of Pontevedra, where the past still lingers, and where a stay of a few days may profitably be made. From Pontevedra the West Galician Railway carries the pilgrim to Compostela, and, perhaps, nothing brings home to the mind more sharply the movement of change than this modern approach. ...

To enjoy fully such a journey, one should cultivate deliberately the spirit of pilgrimage ... The ideal way is to leave the train at Padron, or better , at Cesures, and to walk to Compostela along the old pilgrims' way.

To the visitor to Compostela who desires a more rapid transit, nothing can be said, except to advise him to give up the enterprise. Let him wait in some one of the villages in this delightful valley, until he comes to understand the real unimportance of time. This is one of the first lessons to be learnt in this country of romance, where people understand so well the art of living beautifully.

-----------

There are all kinds of tidbits in this book that were new to me, particularly in Chapter IV (The Great Pilgrimages) and Chapter V (The Way to Santiago). It's worth a download!

Nine years after it was published she and its publisher were successfully sued for plagiarism by Annette Meakin. Meakin showed that Hartley's book was too similar to her book Galicia, the Switzerland of Spain. As part of the settlement Hartley's book was removed from libraries. In 1913, she published her final book on Spain, The Cathedrals of Southern Spain.

 

[elleley]

Thank you so much for sharing this gem! I love especially to learn of women authors I have never heard of, who contribute to my experience and appreciation of The Way. That I can access it easily and for free doesn't hurt either! I did not expect that my pilgrimage experiences would lead to such a curiosity of the history. It's a beautiful thing.
ultreia!
elle

 

[Holly Mitchem]

FYI the book Galicia the Switzerland of Spain is currently available in the US on Kindle for $1.99. I just purchased it. I enjoy reading old travel books. I think I might discover someplace that used to be interesting to travelers but that modern day guides have ignored. Many years ago I did read a circa 1940's guide to Grand Canyon trails that included at least one that is no longer hiked, my husband, son and I did a day hike on it during a backpacking trip and it was magical.

 

[trecile]

FYI the book Galicia the Switzerland of Spain is currently available in the US on Kindle for $1.99

Or free here

Galicia, the Switzerland of Spain by Annette M. B. Meakin

Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by volunteers.

www.gutenberg.org

 

[MichaelC]

The Galicia of Switzerland is a great find - thanks!

I like some of the ancient ceremonies she describes - - like how the priest would give each pilgrim a "sharp rap from the rod!" It's also interesting that pilgrims would bring offerings to leave in Compostela. That's a tradition I could see bringing back.

There is still preserved among the ancient constitutions of the cathedral a description of the ceremonies prescribed in connection with the pilgrims, and carried out by Archbishop Juan Arias 1282, 1266. The custodian of the altar and a priest standing erect with rods in their hands called up the bands of pilgrims in turn according to their nationality and in their own language, and told them to group themselves round the priest who was to hand them the indulgences they had gained by their pilgrimages. Each pilgrim received a sharp rap from the rod as he passed.

 

[Canche]

Here's an interesting description of The Way from 1912. It's from The Story of Santiago de Compostela, by Catherine Gasquoine Hartley. It's a free download on Google Books.

----------

The pilgrims who made the journey to Santiago called the star-paved milky-way in the heavens El Camino de Santiago ( the Road of St. James ) . We read in the poetic writings of Daudet that a young shepherd, asked by his mistress whether he knew the names of the stars, began his answer as follows: “ Why yes, mistress. Look straight above our heads ; that is St. James's Road. It runs from France straight over Spain. It was St. James of Galicia who traced it there, to show the brave Charlemagne his way, when he was making war upon the Saracens.'

To-day, the path of the pilgrim is far different. He will journey from England to Vigo in one of the fine vessels of the excellent Booth Line, and will enjoy three days of most comfortable travelling. At Vigo, « The Golden Gate of Galicia ,” he will see together with much beauty and much that is old, many evidences of modern progress. He will then journey by train to the old seaport of Pontevedra, where the past still lingers, and where a stay of a few days may profitably be made. From Pontevedra the West Galician Railway carries the pilgrim to Compostela, and, perhaps, nothing brings home to the mind more sharply the movement of change than this modern approach. ...

To enjoy fully such a journey, one should cultivate deliberately the spirit of pilgrimage ... The ideal way is to leave the train at Padron, or better , at Cesures, and to walk to Compostela along the old pilgrims' way.

To the visitor to Compostela who desires a more rapid transit, nothing can be said, except to advise him to give up the enterprise. Let him wait in some one of the villages in this delightful valley, until he comes to understand the real unimportance of time. This is one of the first lessons to be learnt in this country of romance, where people understand so well the art of living beautifully.

-----------

There are all kinds of tidbits in this book that were new to me, particularly in Chapter IV (The Great Pilgrimages) and Chapter V (The Way to Santiago). It's worth a download!

Thank you