The Island Mystic/que: Seeking Spiritual Connection in a Postmodern World

Since ancient times islands have been equated with sacred space. They have been seen by Pagans and Christians as places where land and sea are closest. The Celts called them “thin places” where the veil between heaven and earth is thinnest and humans can feel connected to the cosmos. The ocean has been arguably the most powerful and enduring metaphor for the eternal while the island represents the self. The shoreline where they meet is an especially powerful liminal space, where, as Prince Edward Island author David Weale says, “The eternal makes love to the temporal.” Today islands have become a refuge for people escaping mainstream society – as vacation getaways or as a place to strip down to essentials and get in touch with nature and the self: the outer journey mirrors the inward journey. Artists find islands attractive for their inward journeys to creativity. On islands they can connect with a place geographically, psychically, spiritually, and emotionally, surrounded by the ocean, which is a powerful symbol for the unconscious, a metaphor for limitless possibility and inspiration. Indeed, for some island-dwellers, island living is another kind of pantheism, often expressed through art and writing. Based on research on island artists who are poles apart, Newfoundland and Tasmania, I explore the role islands play in artistic and spiritual expression.