Planetary Consciousness, Witnessing the Inhuman, and Transformative Learning: Insights from Peace Pilgrimage Oral Histories and Autoethnographies
Religions May 3, 2018 DOI: 10.3390/rel9050148 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Contemporary peace pilgrims, including the author, whose oral histories and autoethnographies are analyzed |
| Citations | 12 |
| Key findings | The author argues that peace pilgrimage narratives reveal four paradigmatic themes: the call to journey and out-of-the-ordinary communications, the transformative learning process, glimpses of planetary consciousness, and bearing witness to the inhuman. These themes, the author proposes, may guide personal meaning-making and collective societal healing from psychic and social wounding and traumas. |
Abstract
This article describes insights and consciousness transformations reported in several contemporary peace pilgrimage oral histories and autoethnographies, including my own. Autoethnography is a form of autobiographical writing that stresses the interpretation of experiences in their psychosocial, cultural, and historical contexts. Peace pilgrimages are typically self-defined journeys and projects which may be inward and metaphorical, or which may involve actual travel to destinations that memorialize historical events of mass killing and profound suffering, and places that envision, cultivate and educate for global or inner peace. The insights and learnings include (a) the call to journey and other out-of-the-ordinary communications; (b) understanding the transformative learning process; (c) glimpsing the meaning of planetary consciousness; and (d) bearing witness to the inhuman. These paradigmatic themes may be applicable to one’s personal search for meaning, and as signposts for collective, societal healing from psychic and social wounding and traumas. The themes may be useful for educators and researchers in peace studies, religious studies, history, biography, philosophy, psychology and consciousness studies.