For the first time in a month, I awoke last night and didn’t know where I was. And yet I was in my own bed at home, whereas for the last four weeks I have been travelling across Europe to Morocco and back, in an extraordinary adventure I’d like to share with you. 

About six months ago I had the inspiration to travel overland to Morocco with a group. I put out a call to my friends in the DUP (Dances of Universal Peace) and Sufi community to see if anybody en route would like to receive us and host a dance circle. What emerged was bigger and more powerful than I could have ever imagined. A month-long journey of 4,500 miles by train, bus and ferry, across four countries to the edge of the Sahara and back again, meeting old friends and new in 13 different circles of dancers, connecting hearts and hands in fervent prayers for peace and in love for our beautiful planet. A palpable thread of loving connection joining one circle to the next across two continents. Beautiful gifts of loving support given and received everywhere we went. In a last-minute inspiration, I bought a series of wooden hearts, carved in Palestine from olive-wood, which are sold in my local organic cooperative. These became powerful symbols of peace and remembrance, and we gave one to each person who helped our caravan at each stage of our pilgrimage, placing them like nodes in this web of light we were weaving together. My deep thanks and appreciation go to all my beloved friends in the dance family who hosted us and organised the dance circles on our journey. Here follow some of the messages and photos I posted during the trip: 

13-16 February – St-Remy-la-Varenne

Jilani’s Caravan to Morocco is in motion! Follow me on this epic journey across Europe and Morocco and back again, by train, bus and ferry. This is a photo from the first stop, at St-Remy-la-Varenne near Angers in France, where we danced in a beautiful Medieval priory.  

Three of us (Jilani, Sue and Hilary) travelled from the UK, meeting travellers from Germany (Regina) and from Brittany (Joy Azima), to be with this beautiful group of souls for a weekend of Dances of Universal Peace and Sufi practice. It was my delight to lead alongside my dear friend Joy  Azima for the first time for many years!

Many thanks to Helen for organising, and to all who helped. We ate, danced and prayed together and shared laughter and tears. We gathered prayers for peace, and for all beings to be well, happy and free from suffering. The little group of travellers continues on our way, to share these blessings and prayers with everyone we meet. Hanna joined us in Paris. Next stop is Die, in the Drôme region, where Manoelle will host us. Tomorrow we will eat, dance and pray with another group of beloveds! And on we go.  Follow us on our journey, and add your prayers for peace and harmony! 

The little group of travellers in St-Remy just before leaving! Now we are nearly at Die – the train from Valence was an hour late – so we had to negotiate the lift to access the waiting room.

This turned out to be the only delayed train we experienced during the whole journey, and as it happened it worked out better for Manoelle who was meeting us at the station. Oh Ram, how inscrutable are your ways!

16-18 February – Die 

Welcome to the latest update from Jilani’s Caravan to Morocco! We had such a sweet time in Die, chez Manoelle. Around 30 people came to dance, and leaders from France, Germany and England shared dances. We are carrying hearts carved from Palestinian olive wood as gifts for the circles we visit along the way. We gather your prayers for  peace, we receive them with gratitude and carry them with us to share with everyone we meet on our travels! 

 It was quite a challenge to fit all six of us into Manoelle’s car with all our luggage including guitar and violin…perhaps you can see from the photo! Not much room for our feet…

There were other challenges here too: one of our party fell, and broke a bone in her foot. She received excellent care at the local hospital, and  furnished with boot and crutches we continue!  

We are trying to remember to meet the challenges the journey presents as our friends and teachers, and to see every person and situation we meet as a face of the One! We are inspired by Papa Ramdas and the stories of his journeys across India. It is amazing to see how things fall into place as we journey in trust. Even apparent setbacks turn out to be perfect in their way. 

On to Barcelona today! We left before dawn, the mountains dimly lit by the light of the moon and the stars. Keep following us as we travel!

18-19 February – Barcelona

Thank you Barcelona! Another beautiful session, with so many beloved friends old and new! Dances were led by two local Catalan dance leaders, plus leaders from Germany, France and the UK.

It was followed by a fabulous meal in a local tapas bar – Gracias, la Mestressa! Conviviality, friendship, and prayers for peace, given and received. We ate, danced and prayed together once again! And had a wonderful bonus visit from my gorgeous nephew who lives in Barcelona. 

Many thanks to Gaelia for organising the dance circle. We give our blessings to the Barcelona circle, leaving an olive wood heart from Palestine as a prayer for peace.

19-21 February – Alicante

Our first dance circle in Alicante was hosted by dear Isha in her beautiful healing space. We danced and prayed and then ate the delicious food she had prepared for us, including a special cake baked by her mother! Another time of sweet and loving connection: the love, harmony and beauty continue to flow.   

The caravan at play! We had some free time in Alicante to explore the beautiful old town and eat  delicious local food.     

We had two nights in Alicante, and two dance circles in different venues. The second night was in Teteria Luz de Luna, a beautiful Moroccan inspired tea house. We danced, and our hosts joined us for a while before their work called them away. We were treated to the amazing violin playing of our host Reda Bentahar (look him up!) and another delicious meal.    

A really sweet end to the evening came when we were approached by a  family of Syrian Palestinian refugees who were eating in the restaurant before returning to their new home in Sweden the following day. They asked if they could dance with us, so I got out my guitar again and we danced the Welcome to the Prophet, which is such a well-loved tune across the Middle East. We told them about the olive wood hearts from Palestine that we are offering to each circle we dance with, along with our prayers for peace. We shared tears and hugs and phone numbers. Another spontaneous blessing on our journey! Shalom, Salaam, Shalama. Today we take the bus to Granada for the next phase of the adventure!

21-23 February – Granada

Beautiful Granada we love you! Thank you for a wonderful visit! We danced in the Tombuctú Teatro, with inspired music on ney and oud from Andrés as well as our usual guitars and violin. Three Spanish dance leaders shared dances, plus French, German and English. We honoured the Jewish and Moorish communities who had to leave Granada, and we sent prayers for peace and unity in Palestine and Israel. Such warmth, tender hearted feeling, tears, love and  laughter. We gave another olive wood heart from Palestine to Aitana who organised our Granada stay, and also our next stop, in Malaga. May these circles, which are rather new, flourish and grow under her guidance!

We also visited the astonishing Alhambra in very British weather- heavy rain and cloud! Nonetheless we were all very touched and impressed to be there. Sadly we said goodbye to Joy Liengaard who has been a great inspiration and support to us ever since our first gathering in Angers. Next we bring our caravan of peace and prayer to Malaga, and then tomorrow we cross to Morocco. Keep holding us in your prayers and we will carry your prayers with us as we go. 🌹   

At this point I realised I was falling for the social media trap of making everything sound shiny and perfect, so I wrote a more honest reflection on the challenges of our journey:

This caravan of peace is such an extraordinary journey, both inner and outer. As one participant commented, ‘the last person I expected to meet on this journey was myself!’ The highs and lows are really phenomenal. Each time we meet and dance in a circle, the energy is so sweet and powerful, and the love, harmony and beauty are so palpable. And yet at the same time, each day we face the most intense challenges. On day 1 Joy lost her ukulele on the train, and Sue fell and broke a bone in her foot. (And the instrument has been found and is in the lost property in Paris awaiting collection. And Sue has continued bravely to follow the caravan with her crutches and boot, lovingly supported by the group who carry her bags and help when needed.) We have had challenges with accommodation, and with communication due to some phones that won’t connect to the internet. This even led to two dear members of our party being left behind in Barcelona where they had to spend an extra night before rejoining us the next day. People have been locked out of their apartment, and the power and internet have gone down. The rhythm of each day is quite intense. And so on and on – every day a new high and a new low, and we do our best to meet everything that arises with equanimity, as our teacher. This is how it is right now! On we go, as best we can, walking cheerfully over the world, and answering that of God in everyone we meet, to quote George Fox. Ram Ram! La illaha il’llah!

23-24 February – Malaga

Wow, Malaga is more beautiful than I expected for some reason! Jilani’s Caravan arrived in time for lunch in the sun, and a glimpse of the city (cathedral, Roman theatre…) before we headed to @urumaya_malaga for our dance circle. What a wonderful space, so welcoming and peaceful. Thank you to dear Aitana for finding the place, and to Jeronimó at @urumaya_malaga for hosting us. We were blessed to have the talented Sufi musician Ignacio Bejar there, @ignaciomusicoterapia, to play ney and rebab  for us. The teaching of the ney led us deep into an awareness of the breath, and the session was profound and sweet. Dance leaders from Scotland and Spain led alongside Jilani. The circle included @christer.hernestig from Sweden- the second Swedish connection we have made on this caravan! We breathe in your prayers for peace and we breathe them out at the next destination, linking communities and circles in this breath of love, peace and joy. Next stop Tangier where we will gather at @mandala.tanger. Join us if you can! Either in person or in your prayers. 

24-26 February – Tangier

Jilani’s little caravan of love and peace has landed in Morocco! What a sweet time we had in Tangier. Our friend Yacine met us at the ferry port and took us to the Hotel Rembrandt- a beautiful, comfortable and very convenient base for our time here. Yacine took us for a delicious Syrian meal and then an evening walk around the Kasbah and the Medina.        

The following morning we met at the beautiful Mandala Yoga Centre hosted by Yacine and Andrómeda, for dances, walking practices and Sufi teachings. The sohbet (Sufi conversation) was very sweet. Widad offered us her wisdom and insight into some Arabic words and sounds, and we found her words to be perfectly aligned with the teachings we have received from our Ruhaniat  teachers. What a precious meeting. 

After the session we had another delicious meal. Some of us went to an amazing traditional fish restaurant, with beautiful tiles and earthenware pots, and no menu – everyone eats the same  delicious food.   

After an afternoon rest we gathered again to dance and pray together. This time more locals joined us. What a wonderful time we had together, again with tears and laughter and so much love. 

A precious  moment was  dancing the  Welcome to the Prophet or White moon Zikr. The local women sang the verses in Arabic, I sang the English translation and we all joined in the chorus of ‘La illaha il’llah Hu’. Powerful and joyful, with tears of gratitude and love. We gave another olive wood heart from Palestine to Andrómeda for her circle, giving prayers for peace and with deep gratitude for the beautiful adab we have been shown here. The evening finished with a sweet invitation to take hibiscus tea and snacks with Yacine’s mother in her house and beautiful garden. My heart is full and warm! It’s so good to be back, and at the same time happy/sad to be moving on. This morning we took taxis to the station, en route for Marrakesh and eventually Taroudant, our furthest point on this journey. With great sadness we bid farewell to Jorge and Isha, who have supported and helped us with such loving care and attention for the last week. Ya Shakur Ya Hamid! Bismillah irRahman irRahim.   

26 February – 5 March – Taroudant 

We arrived in Marrakech in the afternoon, and Rachid from La Maison Anglaise met us with the minibus to take us four hours further south to Taroudant. The landscape is more and more arid and water becomes ever more precious. Somehow we managed to bring the rain with us. It’s sobering to see how the group’s first reaction of ‘such a shame to have rain on our holiday’ changes to a real understanding of what it means for the local population to have the rain finally falling here, in an area where there has been drought now for six years. The impact can be seen, not only imagined, in the dead orange trees and the dry, sandy soil which  was once fertile and rich.  And what a different appreciation one has of water when one has seen the sparkling irrigation channels in the oasis making a green and lush paradise garden in the desert.

We sang with the women in the argan oil cooperative, one of whom borrowed my guitar for a while! We danced in the oasis, and in our own paradise garden at La Maison Anglaise, where we always receive such beautiful lessons in adab, the refined and subtle care and respect given by our hosts to their guests. We danced and played with the beautiful musicians who came to play for us. 

We were able to dive deeper into Sufi teachings here, which is so beautiful to do in the landscape where these teachings are rooted. For example, with Ya Wahhab, Ya Razzaq, Ya Fattah, Ya Ghaniyy, we experienced the rain falling freely in the desert like God’s love, raining freely down on us always (Ya Wahhab). But we need to carve out the irrigation channels so that love can flow like the water in the oasis (Ya Razzaq), opening the gates which direct the flow where it is needed (Ya Fattah), to nourish the date palms in the paradise garden of our hearts (Ya Ghaniyy).

Rested and nourished by our stay in the beautiful garden eco-lodge, well-fed with delicious meals, and cared for so sweetly at all times, we were ready after a week to continue our journey. By now Ramadan was underway, and great crowds of people were gathering at the mosques to pray. People are so happy and excited to be able to spend this precious month in prayer, purification and fasting, and being with their families. It was a wonderful moment when the first new moon appeared in the sky and Ramadan began! 

This little statue of Mullah Nasrudin carrying his donkey stands on a window ledge at La Maison Anglaise, reminding us of the tale. Sometimes it was helpful to me to remember that I can’t please everyone! 

One day Mullah Nasruddin and his son were walking to market with their donkey. While they were on their journey, they encountered a group of people who commented: ‘Now look at these fools. Both of them walk in the hot sun and none rides the donkey!’ So the Mullah put the boy on the donkey.

After a while they encountered another group of people who commented: ‘Look at this strong boy. Is this the youth of today? No respect for the elderly! He is riding the donkey while his poor old father has to walk!’ When these people had passed them, the young boy felt ashamed and insisted that his father ride the donkey while he walked instead. So the boy got off and the father rode the donkey.

A short time later, they passed more people who said: ‘Now look at this! The poor young boy has to walk while his father is riding the donkey!’ When these people had passed them, the Mullah said to his son: ‘I think the best solution is if we both ride. That way we can avoid any criticism.’ And so they did. After a short distance, they again encountered other people, who said: ‘Look at that poor donkey having to carry both of them! He’s exhausted’. So they both got off the donkey and the man carried the donkey over his shoulder.

When the people saw them walking along the road, they laughed, pointed at the poor man labouring in the heat, under the weight of the donkey, and said: ‘Look at that silly man carrying the donkey! Why would you go to the trouble of having a donkey to carry it everywhere?’ The man put the donkey down and they walked as they had at the beginning of the journey.

Now the Mullah turned to his son and said: ‘This shows us how difficult it is to adjust to other people’s opinion. The truth is you can’t please everyone so you just have to do what you know is right and please God.’

5 – 8 March – the journey from Taroudant to Plum Village

After our wonderful week at La Maison Anglaise in Taroudant, we turned around and began our journey back north. Once again Rachid drove us up to Marrakech to the grand railway station in the centre of the city. We had quite a long wait for our train when we arrived, but some of us were able to share iftar (the breaking of the Ramadan fast) with other travellers in a cafe at the station.  We had the customary dates and sweet pastries, plus the traditional and delicious Moroccan soup called ‘harira’. 

Then we boarded our overnight train to Tangier. There were 8 of us by this point on the journey, so we fitted nicely into two compartments. The group had been distinctly nervous about this part of the journey, expecting it to be rather arduous and unpleasant, but in fact it was fine, and some of us even declared it to be the best night of the caravan! Rather like a sleepover, with lots of giggling!

We arrived in Tangier first thing in the morning and went straight to find a taxi to the ferry port. All the cafes were shut because of Ramadan, so there was no chance of breakfast or even a coffee for weary travellers. But we had the sweet and unexpected surprise of meeting our friend Yacine outside the station! He was dropping another friend off, and waited to meet  us, knowing we would be passing through at that time! 

On arrival at the ferry port, we again had quite a wait. We hoped we might be able to board and earlier crossing, but no luck. So I got out my guitar and we sang the Sura Fateha and different Zikrs for an hour and a half – at first very gently, not wanting to offend the staff, but later greatly encouraged by their enthusiastic reception! 

On arrival back in Spain, we took a bus from Tarifa to Algeciras, where we had time for lunch before boarding the train for Madrid. This was the longest continuous travel of our trip: 32 hours from Taroudant to Madrid, but as one caravaner pointed out, ‘nobody fell out with anybody else!’ Quite an achievement given how tired and scratchy one can feel in the circumstances. Really it was such a feature of the caravan that people were so willing to embrace it as a spiritual journey, a journey into ourselves as well as across the land, and even when difficulties did arise they were quickly and sweetly resolved, with all parties taking responsibility for themselves and their experiences. Alhamdulillah!

We had a comfortable night in our hotel in Madrid. Some of us went out for tapas before falling into bed!

In the morning we went for a walk in a nearby park before again boarding the train, for San Sebastian where we spent the next night. Here we had an evening to explore and experience the local restaurants, guided by my lovely niece Katherine and her partner, who live there. Aptly, our hostel was right next to a cafe called ‘Caravanserai’ where we could have our breakfast in the morning!   

8-11 March – Plum Village

Finally on Saturday afternoon we arrived at our final stopping point, Plum Village in Lot et Garonne, France. This is the monastery set up as part of a global community of mindfulness practice centres by the Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh. Here Zoe and Lou were hosting us in the gîte at Thénac, just nearby. We danced on Saturday and Sunday evenings, and  spent the Sunday with the Plum Village  community at Lower Hamlet. Here we experienced guided mindfulness practices, mindful walks and dharma talks, and shared a mindful meal with the Plum Village community. Finally we spent the Monday dancing all day. People came from Spain and across France to join us, as well as from the local community. It felt very special to be connecting with this place and walking and dancing in the footsteps of Thich Nhat Hanh. What a beautiful way to complete our journey together!

11 March – journey home!

At last we were on the final stage of our travels together. We rose early to catch the train to Bordeaux, then to Paris. Everything continued to flow so smoothly – the right taxi arrived at just the right moment! We had time for a final lunch together, and then it was just four of us on the Eurostar  to London.   

Saying goodbye we went in our separate directions at last. What an incredible time together, with so much intense experience, which we might choose to name as good and bad, or simply as what was unfolding in every moment! And yet as the days pass, my sense is that the caravan continues… everywhere I go, whoever I meet, it’s another opportunity to carry the thread of light, love and peace, to connect with another community of loving beings. I have bought some more Palestinian olive-wood hearts to carry with me as I go…