By Bob Makransky
Spiritual travel differs from standard travel, which operates on strict schedules and usually is in a big hurry. Spiritual tourism is not just a knock-off copy of the standard tour model, which happens to include so-called “spiritual” destinations and activities, like shamans performing rituals, or lectures on spiritual subjects: 6 am meditation, 7 am organic Diet Number 7 breakfast, 8 am lecture on Mayan religion, 9 am Mayan ritual at sacred site, and so on. Naturally, it is necessary that hotels be booked in advance. However, beyond this point it is necessary to keep flexible and go with the flow. You invoke Mayan spirits and then just let them decide the itinerary. This is not a problem, they can actually do this, and they like doing it. It works fine.
Spiritual travel should not mean racing at breakneck speed across Guatemala, for example. It is necessary to slow down in order to plug in. Spiritual tourism in really shouldn’t be done in only one week. However if it is necessary then the tour should be confined to one area such as Tikal, Lake Atitlan, or Coban (naturally the last evening is spent shopping in Antigua before flying out). When tourists race from one place to another they are basically reducing the freedom from routine which, presumably, is the reason they are traveling at all, to just another routine. Why then, even bother to leave home? You could watch a video of a lot more cheaply than traveling there; and most standard tours afford about as much interaction with and its people as watching a video would give. Another point is that spiritual travel groups should not include too many people: this is difficult for most people to integrate. Spiritual travel is about connecting; not being herded about.
It’s a good idea for spiritual travel to begin in Tikal rather than end there, as is usually the case (because Tikal is a climax). When you start in Tikal, the tourists are immediately removed from urban hustle-bustle to an exotic land in the heart of the jungle, which cuts people loose from their moorings and lets the magic begin. Also, you can invoke Mayan spirits there to guarantee blessings
on the entire journey. The invocation of local spirits is part and parcel of what spiritual tourism is all about; nor is it difficult to do. But if you are going to rely on spirits instead of strict schedules then you must be open to whatever presents itself in the course of your journey. For example, New Native tours took a group to a few years ago and began the trip with an invocation of the Mayan spirits at Tikal. When they left they happened upon some Mayan holy men who invited them into their homes and showed them some amazing things. Later on, by “coincidence”, they stumbled upon a folkloric pageant which they hadn’t known in advance was going to occur.
Part of spiritual tourism is relating to Guatemala’s squalor. It is important for American and European tourists to learn how most of the people in the world live. Also that money isn’t the be all end all of life; and that Guatemalans are managing somehow to live without all the riches and conveniences of the first world, but are doing so with great dignity. There are values that Guatemalans have – honesty and humility for one thing – which Americans and Europeans have largely lost in their hustle bustle to make a buck and impress people. There is much that poor people can teach the more fortunate about what the real purpose of life is. But at the same time these people are quite naïve about how the modern world works. Americans and Europeans can help them to face the modern world as empowered agents of change, rather than as victims. Tourists need to see that there is no reason to feel shame in front of poor people. Dignity is not a matter of how much money someone has or lacks. Poor people aren’t accusing you, so you need make no excuses. But they can use some help. This is why it is good to arrange a meal in a Mayan family’s home; or at least a luncheon for the group prepared by Mayans using their foods. This way tourists can at some point in their journey relate to local people by sharing a meal, which is the basic way that social ice is broken amongst the Mayans. Then eyeball contact can be made (even if language fails) in a deeper sense than during buyer – seller or master – servant interactions.
Spiritual tourism differs from standard tourism not so much in types of destinations visited or activities enjoyed. Rather, spiritual travel is a matter of slowing down and connecting instead of just cataloguing a bunch of sites.
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