Jake Lever 

Bardsey Island - the interconnection of all things 

I recently spent a week on retreat, returning to the ancient pilgrimage island of Bardsey (Ynys Enli) off the rugged coast of Wales. Sometimes known as the island of twenty thousand saints, it was a major pilgrimage site in medieval times, and a place where many went to prepare for death. Bardsey is now home to a handful of people who live without electricity or wi-fi. It is what many would call a thin place, where the veil between this world and eternal reality appears imperceptible.

One of our group was a young scientist called Pete who led an inspirational conversation around the intersection of art, science and spirituality. He introduced us to the drawings of neural pathways created by the Nobel Prize winning scientist Santiago Ramon y Cajal.  His beautiful drawings illustrating the “tree growth” of brain cells made in the early 1900s are still in use for educational purposes in the study of neuroscience.  Everywhere on the island Cajal’s branching images of neural pathways were reflected in windswept trees, wild grasses and seaweed; the interconnectedness of all things was made vivid and compelling.