Pilgrimage Mantras and Prayers

Here begins the Journey Now begins the Day. With one step upon the Road My soul is on its Way. © JS Selfe

Ancient Hasidic Saying: “When you walk across the fields with your mind pure, then from all the stones and all growing things, and all animals, the sparks of their soul come out and cling to you and become a holy fire in you”.


Buddhist prayer: "Simply looking ahead without looking down at our feet, we shall stumble. To look at others and not look at our own self is a horrible thing."





St Anthony's messenger:
1. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if you find that the camino opens your eyes to the unseen.
2. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if what concerns you most is not arriving, but arriving with the others.
3. Blessed are you, pilgrim, when you contemplate the sights of the camino and find them full of names and of new dawns.
4. Blessed are you, pilgrim, because you have discovered that the true camino begins at its end.
5. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if your backpack empties of things as your heart doesn't know where to fit so many emotions.
6. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if you discover that a step backwards to help another is more valuable than one hundred forward without awareness of those at your sides.
7. Blessed are you, pilgrim, when you have no words to give thanks for all the wonders in every nook of the camino.
8. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if you search the truth and make of your camino a life and of your life a camino, after Him who is the Way, the Life, and the Truth.
9. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if in the camino you meet yourself and make yourself a gift of time without hurry so that you may not neglect the image of your heart.
10. Blessed are you, pilgrim, if you find that the camino is rich with silence, and the silence is rich with prayers, and the prayers are encounters with the Father that awaits you.

"Not all who wander are lost." JRR Tolkien

Thomas Merton : “Sitting at home and meditating on the divine presence is not enough for our time. We must come to the end of a long journey and see that the stranger we meet there is no other than ourselves - which is the same as saying we find Christ in him."

The journey of one thousand miles begins with one step.

Always aim for the ultimate.Never look back.Be forever mindful of others.Keep your eyes always set on the Way.

What is important is not the destination,but the act of getting there.The Path itself is the goal.


St. Gildas - 5thC
In health may I and all of my companions
Safely arrive with no harm or injury –
May my boat be safe in the waves of the ocean,
My horses safe on the highways of the earth,
Our money safe as we carry it with us
To pay due heed to our poor necessities.
May our enemies fail to do harm to us,
However evil the counsels which inspire them,
In the eternal name of Christ our Master,
May my roads all lie plain before me,
Whether I climb the rugged heights of mountains,
Or descend the hollow depths of valleys,
Or trudge the lengthy roads on open country,
Or struggle through the thickets of dense forest:
May I walk always in straight ways and shining
To longed-for places . . .”
Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go.

“If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home.” James A. Michener

Jewish Prayer: May it be your will, Lord my God, to lead me on the way of peace and guide and direct my steps in peace, so that you will bring me happily to my destination, safe and sound. Save me from danger on the way. Give me good grace, kindness and favour in both your eyes and in the eyes of all whom I may meet. Hear this my prayer, for you are a God who hears to the heart's supplication and communion. Blessed are You, Lord our God, who hears prayer

Where will yon lonely pilgrim wander,
Where will my ancient pigrim roam?
Away on the road to Compostella.
Who know when he’ll reach his goal?
His weary feet are stained with gore
And he can tramp no more.

Pilgrim Blessing (1078): In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, shoulder these rucksacks which will help you during your pilgrimage. May the fatigue of carrying them be expiation for your sins, so that when you have been forgiven you may reach the shrine of St. James full of courage, and when your pilgrimage is over, return home full of joy. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

O Lord whose word makes all things holy, bless we beseech you these emblems, rucksacks and staffs to be used on this pilgrimage. May all those who carry them arrive safely at the shrine of St. James the Apostle, the objective of their journey. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

"Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart." Helen Keller.

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep;When in the morning light I wake,Teach me the path of love to take.