JOHN BRIERLEY +
The guide is now smaller than previous editions and designed to fit easily into your pocket measuring only 12cm x 19cm and weighing a mere 275 grams. Welcome to El Camino that leads from the foothills of the Pyrenees in France to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia ? a distance of 791 km (490 miles). During the past ten years the Camino has witnessed an amazing revival to regain its place as the most popular Christian pilgrim route in the world ? but this is no modern fad for this ancient path has been transforming lives for more than ten centuries. In recognition of, ?The testimony to the power of faith and the 1,800 buildings of great historic interest that lie along its path? it was proclaimed the first European Cultural Itinerary in 1987 and inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1993. First published as A Pilgrim's Guide to Camino de Santiago in 2003 these popular guides are regularly updated. Walked by millions over the millennia the Camino de Santiago represents a major force for spiritual renewal and transformation. In the spaciousness of the Landscape Temple we walk through we become open and receptive to the wisdom that is in us and around us. When we step beyond the habitual judgments and expectations that confine us, we become ready to expand, to change and to grow. With an appreciation for what the path shows us, the growing becomes joyful adventure. There are thousands of long distance pathways we can walk but only the Camino has achieved world recognition for its historical and spiritual significance and, inevitably, such accolades bring greater numbers wishing to experience its healing potential. Although numbers have increased tenfold during the past ten years, this is still less than half the estimated pilgrims that walked the Camino each year during the medieval period. Perhaps now is your time?
