I should preface this review of the recently released "New Mexico's Sanctuaries, Retreats and Sacred Places" by admitting that I'm not exactly what you would call a "spiritual" person.
I am, however, quite capable of appreciating places that are sacred or significant to people of all types, and I have visited many of the places described in this book. And I have often thought to myself that the state's glut of tourist books could use one more. One that celebrated our proliferation of things and places sacrosanct to one person or whole cultures - from goofball new-age Zen retreats, to downright silly shrines built around tortillas, to the truly mysterious Loretto Chapel spiral staircase - our state certainly has its share of hallowed ground.
And if you can get past the plentiful and corny references to ion power and spirit-feeding, author and photographer Christina Nealson has done just that with "Places."
In her well-organized and beautifully illustrated book, Nealson briefly explains more than 100 churches and religious facilities, hot springs, retreat centers, shrines and outdoor destinations. Each place is given a context drawn from New Mexico's rich cultural history, as well as easy-to-follow directions and descriptions of accessibility, fees and facilities. The book is divided into five sections, and each section is likewise divided between sanctuaries, retreats, sacred places and what she calls "spiritual events," which include everything from American Indian dances - smile for the tourists, now! - to the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta mass ascension.
Nealson, a Taos psychotherapist, has lived in the Southwest for 25 years, and it shows in her language. This is where "Places" gets challenging for me. In the six years since I moved here from Ohio, I have yet to get used to that unmistakable spirituality of city folk who will do anything to pretend they are somehow connected to the land. And if I would have copy-edited this book, I think I might have been a little bit more liberal with the red pen. These examples speak for themselves:
"The spiritual implications of this site are many, for some olden pueblo peoples believe they came from the stars," in an attempt to extrapolate some religious significance from the Very Large Array radiotelescope near Soccorro.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
"It doesn't take long for bliss to saturate your desert-drenched soul," from a section on Sitting Bull Falls, near Carlsbad.
"If it is puma energy you seek, it crouches before you," describing the Shrine of the Stone Lions, carved statues in Bandelier National Monument.
And there's plenty of attribution of feminine qualities to geological formations, miracles and negative ions - which are present in springs and waterfalls and can lift depression, among other things, according to Nealson. Hmmph.
But despite its appeal to older, less cynical audiences, "Places" has something for everyone. There are some wonderful hikes in here, from the Catwalk, near Mogollon, to White Sands National Monument, to the mysterious and historic Hermit Peak in northern New Mexico. And Nealson beautifully describes our state's impressive array of churches and missions, from the ancient to the modern. I've been to a lot of these places, and this book has inspired me to visit many more. She's obviously done her research, the historical abstracts, especially, jump off the page.
And, though this is insignificant, I appreciated that her photography didn't give everything away - witness the Jesus tortilla, situated in a shrine near Roswell. Her compelling photograph of the open doors to the tin shack chapel made me want to hop in my car and drive down there to look at the desiccated lard delicacy contained within.
So, though I don't consider myself a "spiritual traveler," I would recommend this book to natives and tourists alike, if, for nothing else, some great day-trip ideas. And, for outsiders, it will provide, without intending to do so, a peek into modern New Mexico new-age religious culture.
"New Mexico's Sanctuaries, Retreats and Spiritual Places" is published by Westcliffe Publishers. For more information, check its Web site, www.westcliffepublishers.com.
