Vision Quest FOR ADULTS AND TEENS in the Mountains of Virginia

“I have lost my way many times in this world, only to return to these rounded, shimmering hills and see myself recreated more beautiful than I could ever believe.”*

To sit alone in the wilderness and Listen… to ask of the birds, of the trees, of the Creator, “Have pity upon me!”… to hold within one’s heart the deepest Question of life… to dare to stare into the abyss of one’s darkest doubts… to watch the sunset on the last day of one’s old life… to rejoice with the birth of the first dawn, with the rebirth of a new life… This is the power of the Vision Quest.

The Vision Quest is a process for personal transformation that originates in ancient cultures worldwide, but still shapes lives today. Under the guidance of skillful and compassionate facilitators it can be a profound way to seek answers to life’s fundamental questions, or to search for guidance during times of uncertainty or when faced with the possibility of great change in one’s life.

In the Virginia Vision Quest the seeker ceremonially removes him/herself from the distractions of everyday life and searches for answers alone in a sacred place in nature. Through private prayer, meditation, and the contemplation of the wisdom inherent in nature, new insights into life’s questions and quandaries appear. But the Vision Quest consists of far more than simply sitting alone in the woods; it is composed of four stages, each conducted as in ancient times under the facilitation of guides who have themselves found answers in this sacred manner.

The first stage takes place at a group base camp and lasts three and a half days. During this time the facilitators prepare the seekers for their solo periods. They help the seekers clarify the reasons for their quest. They introduce the skills necessary to enable them to find their “Visions”, or answers. These skills include prayer, meditation, and communication with nature and her creatures—and will serve the questers for their entire lives. Seekers participate in shorter “solo sits” to help them find their “power spots” in nature and become at ease alone there. A sweat lodge is also offered to prepare them. In this first stage a close supportive community is formed with fellow questers and staff.

The second stage is the solo period, when questers remain rooted to their sacred place of power “crying for a vision”. One way Virginia Vision Quests differ from most other contemporary vision quest programs, and a way they differ from a solo camping trip, is the simplicity and starkness of this solo period. In this way our quests are more like the traditional quests of American Indians. The seekers are brought to the place they have chosen for their solo time by their guide who consecrates and secures it through ceremony. They are encouraged to not leave this circle, their Center, for the entire solo time. They build no fires, and so spend no energy maintaining them and no time gathering wood. For adults who choose to eat and for teens their food is simple, healthy, and pre-prepared. There is nothing else to do, rooted in their circle for those days, but to pray, be receptive, and look deeply into their Question. This simplicity enables seekers to focus wholeheartedly on their undertaking. They confront their personal demons of boredom, doubt, and loss in the quest for transformation. When they sleep they dream the dreams of the holy ones. Through perseverance and humility, through the skills they have acquired during the preparation period at base camp and the prayers of their supporters, and most importantly, through Grace, they find clarification-- “Vision”.

The third stage is the reincorporation, when the seekers are welcomed back triumphantly into the camp community. After the formal ending of their Quests by giving thanks in a sweat lodge each quester shares their Vision with their facilitator of choice who helps them crystallize its meaning.

The fourth stage is the “giveaway”, in which the seekers symbolically and literally give the benefits of their Visions back to their people as they prepare to reenter society. A quest that would not bring good to the world would be a quest unfulfilled. Questers commit to bring their Visions to fruition at home, at work, at the supermarket checkout line.

Support
In Native American vision quests family and close friends of the quester often stay at base camp to offer their prayers and support. We incorporate this beautiful loving element in our quests as well. Alternately, a seeker may feel called to sever his/her ties to the outside world more fully by coming alone.

A Program in Nature
In order to remain closely attuned and receptive to the wisdom found in nature, the entire program will take place in a beautiful forested area in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia. These are some of the oldest mountains in the world, and their wisdom will help you find the Vision you need, the Vision the world needs.

Participants are encouraged to leave most of their home comforts behind in order to reawaken to nature and cut the ties to their old lives. Distractions such as cell phones and iPods are discouraged at base camp. There is time to cool off and play in a pleasant swimming hole in a nearby mountain stream, to journal, to walk, to live simply.

A Program that is Accessible
The program takes place at a rustic scout camp and its surrounding forest near Shenandoah National Park. For the adult quests no hiking is necessary to reach the quest site, and the base camp area is relatively flat, so persons of limited physical ability can participate. For their solo time individuals may choose to either hike up to a more remote area or to stay closer to base camp.

Private Quests
Private vision quests are also available. Contact us for details.

Contact:  Vision Quest Virginia
staff@visionquestvirginia.com
434-969-2704
2935 Woodland Church Rd.
Buckingham, VA 23921

* Joy Harjo, Secrets From the Center of the World (Tuscon: Univ. of Arizona Press, 1989)

These programs are led by Stephen Sylvan Willig, who has himself completed six guided Vision Quests at critical times in his life. He has sought his answers both through very traditional quests facilitated by a Lakota ceremonial leader, as well as through quests led by more contemporary teachers who have modified the ancient ways for modern Americans. Sylvan’s Quests have been the most transformative experiences of his life, and he strives to continue to live his Visions each day.
Sylvan is a carrier of the sacred Lakota cannunpa (prayer pipe) and a sundancer. He is certified as an instructor of hatha yoga beginner through advanced classes, as a stress management therapist, and in Wilderness First Aid. He also has formal training in leading contemporary group therapeutic processes.  
Sylvan is a professional naturalist and is the founder of Sylvan’s Youth Education Service. The YES offers outdoor and experiential education in the fields of Woodslore, Native American studies, Deep Learning, and Environmental Education.