The Long Way In: Why Humans Go on Pilgrimage

Why do people leave home, accept inconvenience, and travel toward a meaningful place when they could simply stay put? In this lively panel, Eric Ebersohl, Sam Ellerby, and Tamara Golding explore pilgrimage as a human practice rather than a single religious tradition. They will compare sacred journeys across faiths, examine how effort and unfamiliar surroundings can sharpen attention, and ask why modern people still seek transformative walks, retreats, and personal quests. The conversation separates pilgrimage from ordinary tourism without treating either as superior, showing how intention, ritual, community, and return can turn movement into meaning. Listeners will gain a compact framework for recognizing the ingredients of a meaningful journey and a practical way to create a small, respectful “pilgrimage” in everyday life—such as walking with a question, visiting a place of learning, or returning with a changed perspective.