Jacob's Pillow, Past and Present

Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.  And the Lord stood beside him[ and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring; and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring. Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”  Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” 

Genesis 28:10-16

 Recently I came upon an article which made reference to a dance retreat centre in Massachusetts called Jacob's Pillow. The property was first settled by Europeans in the late 18th century and the zigzagging road to the hilltop became known as Jacob's Ladder. And a prominent rock was called Jacob's Pillow.

I find this quite enchanting -- what a "dreamy"  name for a dance centre -- and of course both of these names are references to the story in Genesis about conniving Jacob, on the lam from his angry brother Esau, who has an auspicious encounter with angels and God which change the trajectory of his life.

So often I see references and allusions to the bible in different spheres of life which bring to mind the book by the late, esteemed Northrup Frye called The Great Code in which he argues cogently that it is almost impossible to have a full grasp of Western art, music, and literature without some understanding of Judeo/Christian scripture. For his title Frye draws on William Blake, whose painting of Jacob's Ladder is above. 

In our time we are increasingly aware that this dominant narrative has minimized the stories of other, including Indigenous, cultures. It may well be that Jacob's Pillow had a First Nations title long before settlers arrived. Still, it is intriguing that this biblically-rooted name has persevered, even though many might not appreciate where it came from. 

                             Jacob's Pillow Dance founder Ted Shawn reclining of Jacob's Pillow Rock