Pilgrimage in the Marketplace

Studying examples of modern pilgrimage in Japan, India, China, Vietnam, Europe, and the Muslim world, Reader (religious studies, Lancaster U., England) draws attention to the market forces and interest groups that help shape the pilgrimage experience, arguing that the dynamics of the marketplace, including such issues as consumerism and the acquisition of material goods and souvenirs, are not mere distractions that undermine the authenticity and spirituality of the pilgrim experience, but are in fact crucial to its successful functioning, development, appeal, and nature. Chapters explore the reasons that pilgrimage sites become popular destinations, the role of religious specialists and officials and civic and regional authorities in promoting pilgrimage sites, the ways in which pilgrim consumer choices shape the landscape of pilgrimage, pilgrimage souvenirs as intrinsic to the spiritual experience of pilgrimage, and the ways in which pilgrimage entrepreneurs borrow from other pilgrimages in the ways they market and brand pilgrimage experiences. Annotation ©2014 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)