A Place Apart News

Gifts of a Vision Quest

by Bob Etzweiler

I've heard it said that the first step in spiritual growth is to "know thy self." With the life that I live and the choices I make (I won't speak for anyone else), it's so easy for me to avoid myself. Most of the time, I'd much rather turn on the radio, read a book, or find work that I need to do, rather than listen to what is going on within me.

This past summer, I could no longer avoid the stirring that I had been feeling. I knew that I would be going on another Vision Quest. A group I knew was running one in the Pine Barrens in southern New Jersey. I signed up; I had to. And from the second I did, I thought, "Oh man, what am I doing?" During the time leading up to the Quest, every time I thought about it, I was overcome with emotion.

A Vision Quest is a ceremony often used for a person to gain personal insight, clarity, or guidance, or for spiritual growth. In the tradition that I Quest in, a person goes alone into the wilderness, fasting from not only food but from everything familiar, for four days and nights. It's like a continuous 96 hour prayer or meditation. It's uninterrupted time with only the self and the Creator. I've heard it described as the sledgehammer approach to spiritual growth. Without the luxury of the distractions that our daily lives provide, there's no way to avoid what's going on within.

Each Vision that I've been on has been quite different from the other. During this most recent Quest, I was more fully able to put aside my expectation of what I felt the Quest should be and more fully experience it for what it was. The greatest gifts this Quest brought me were personal insights. I learned a great deal about myself. Quite often during this Quest I so desperately wanted it to be over. However, the second it was, I was already planning the time for the next one.

One thing that became clear to me on this Quest was my desire to help facilitate this experience for other people. Seemingly coincidently, the day I got home, I was asked about leading a quest for some people I know. Then soon after that, a piece of land was brought to my attention where Quests could be run.

I think everybody should go on at least one Vision Quest. I don't know of a better way to receive the gifts that a Quest has to offer. It's time.

This article originally appeared in the Fall 2009 newsletter. To download the entire newsletter in PDF format, click here.