The Spirituality Of Surfing: Finding Religion Riding The Waves by Antonia Blumberg

excerpts:

"In the religious symbolism, water is one of the great images of life and energy. It’s a symbol of God’s presence.”

World-champion surfer Kelly Slater described the sport as womb-like in an interview with CNN, hinting at the kind of sacred experience Taylor identified.

"Surfing is my religion, if I have one," Slater said. "The barrel [the hollow of a breaking wave] is really the ultimate ride for any surfer. It's the eye of the storm. Some guys say it's like being in the womb."

Tom Blake, a surfing legend who died in 1994, may have offered the best explanation for the relationship between surfing and religion in his 1969 essay, "The Voice of The Wave." After decades of surfing and studying the sport's cultural roots in ancient Polynesia, Blake developed the concise philosophy: Nature = God.