Written by Sting, the song tells of a mystical journey that will make the traveller a "holy man".

According to Sting, the lyrical inspiration for "Secret Journey" was the 1963 novel Meetings with Remarkable Men, written by George Gurdjieff.

[3] The B-side of "Secret Journey" was "Darkness", a Stewart Copeland penned track that was also from Ghost in the Machine.

"[5] Giovanni Dadamo of The Face noted the track as one of the "magic moments" on Ghost in the Machine, and it was also described as "perhaps the best cut on the album" by Chart Songwords.

[6] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Mike Duquette rated it as the Police's 20th greatest song.