Attacked on the Camino: When Peace is Broken on the Way

 “Hope, I need some hope
I took a road I thought I knew but now I don't…”
Northwest Stories, Great Big Adventure

Reflecting on being assaulted on the Camino

Once again, we have so much to think about while on the Via de la Plata.  Not being used to physical violence, let alone being attacked on a hike or pilgrimage, we are uncertain how to respond, what to think about or even what to say to what happened yesterday on the trail.   

I will not deny that in the immediate moment, there is a great desire to find the individual who attacked Sean and respond in kind.   We both know that as pilgrims that we are supposed to be more understanding, more open-minded, and more forgiving, but the fact is that since being attacked by another pilgrim, both of us are really frustrated and angry.

However, we also know that an eye for an eye leaves the world blind and that more violence on the Camino will do nothing to solve the breach of trust in the safety that we have long placed on the Way and the pilgrims we meet each day along it.  

Indeed, more violence, I think, would further remove from the Camino, and if anything, we would rather leave a place better than we found it than add to its decline.  

And so tonight we are left with our frustrations and doubts because this was more than a violation by one person against another, it was an attack on a person by a pilgrim who did this.  

A situation for which neither of us has answers.

Slowing Down and Reflecting 

The Camino de Santiago invites us to slow down, to strip away what is unnecessary, and to open ourselves to something ancient and healing.  As we all know, the Way is made by walking.   It’s a path walked by adventurers, hikers, seekers, wanderers, and the spiritually curious - many walking in hope.

But clearly, even sacred paths are walked by imperfect feet. What happened yesterday is unnerving, not just for the violence, but for what it revealed about the human complexities, frustrations and anxieties that we all carry, even on pilgrimage.

Discomfort, Disbelief and Doubt

As we continued on the Via de la Plata after the attack, pilgrims, hospitalarios, and even the Civil Guardia would ask what happened.  To which we would tell them the details of what took place.  While walking from Fuenterroble de Salvatierra to Morille, we were both accosted and Sean was hit by a pilgrim who cracked him across the face with his walking staff.  The result was that by the end of the day, Sean would have a swollen black eye and lose a tooth.  

We told people partially to explain and partially to warn them about this violent individual on the way.   However, what soon became very evident was that no one wanted to hear of these events.  No one wanted to believe that one pilgrim could do this to another.  What had happened to Sean only made people feel uncomfortable. 

People, as it turns out, do not like complexity; they like clear-cut, easy-to-relate-to and optimistic tales.  They want to believe that things are utterly ordered, sensible and safe.  Especially on pilgrimage.  

“No Pilgrim Could do Such a Thing!”

After being “corrected” several times and being informed that we were wrong,  as “no pilgrim would or could do such a thing” when questioned, Sean began to tell people that he had accidentally fallen on his camera while walking and looking through it, the result being that he received a black eye.  

This allowed people to commiserate or laugh at his misfortune and feel comfort in the fact that pilgrimage and pilgrims were utterly noble and walked on without the troubles of the world intervening.   

We were reminded that people hold onto stories and carry them as a means to navigate the uncertainties of the world.  A pilgrim hitting another pilgrim only made things more uncertain; however, a clumsy person falling on a camera and getting a black eye is relatable and fits into an orderly perspective of things.   Rather than an uncomfortable event, people heard a positive explanation that fit into what they wanted to hear, see and believe. 

A Jarring Break in the Silence

While this was the solution we chose – to tell a quaint story with a simple explanation – it ignores some of the challenges this situation fosters.  

The Camino is not only a walk through landscapes but a walk through emotion, memory, and the inner self. We often speak of the Camino as a healing path - and it is. But healing is not always a gentle process. Pilgrimage tends to bring to the surface things we thought were buried. The physical challenge, the solitude, and the stripping away of distractions can leave emotions raw and unguarded.  Tensions can arise: from exhaustion, pain, misunderstandings, or unhealed trauma carried silently in backpacks heavier than they appear. But when those tensions erupt into violence, something sacred is shattered.

This was not a drunken bar brawl, nor was it an act of self-defence - it was a moment of anger turned physical, and it left a visible, painful mark. Not just on the person who was hit, but on the shared trust that we as pilgrims build together with each step.  There is no excuse for violence on the Way - but it is a reminder that we are all walking with extra baggage, regrets, and anxieties.

This is something that no one wants to think about.  

The question now is, how do we process this? How do we, as pilgrims, walk forward and not be nervous or vengeful but continue on with compassion?

At this moment, I don’t honestly know. 

The Deeper Pilgrimage

The road to Santiago has always been more than a physical journey. It is a mirror, showing us who we are when we are tired, vulnerable, and stripped of comforts. When peace is broken, we have a choice.  We can retreat into fear, or we can strive to recommit ourselves to walking with deeper integrity, intention, and understanding of what others might be going through.

Perhaps what makes the Camino holy is not the absence of suffering, but how we respond to it.

At the moment, our only response is to keep walking and not respond to violence with violence.  With that said, however, we are continuing on, not blindly, but with awareness. Remembering that even when the path and those who walk it are shaken through theft or violence, the Way itself endures and continues on, offering hope that things can be better.

Tomorrow, we too will continue on in the hope of something better.

See you on the Way!