Secular Organizations and Sacred Places Paper - Essay Example

Common Elements in Mythical Sacred Places The United s opens up an excellent basis for cultural studies as it is an agglomeration of several ethnic groups and religious beliefs. The population comprises almost all small and large religious groups with their own unaltered uniqueness. Mythical sacred places have been a significant human concern from ancient periods especially since the times of cave life. The ancient humans, though not schooled had experienced an intrinsic need to frame sacred places in order to adore God.

They also used some common mythical elements and felt the presence of God in idols. This mythical practice continued from generation to generation as part of custom and it prevails in this 21st century also. The common elements such as stones, water, fire, writings, statues and metals, trees, and caves have been considered as mythical elements in sacred places. They are discussed below in detail. Stones in various kinds and sizes have been attributed sacredness by religious ideologies. Evidences of megalithism can be seen across the globe and it is credited to most ancient cultures.

Some religions build specific configurations using special arrangements of stones; and it clearly reflects the cultural features of the respective religions. Water is another important sacred element which has a devotional image in majority of religions. According to Christian, Islam, and Jewish beliefs water is a significant element in religious practices. For instance, according to their notions, water symbolizes internal purification and anointment. According to Bible, the spirit of God separated water from water by a firmament and was found ‘hovering over the waters’ (Genesis 1: 1-6).

Other world religions including Hinduism also heed higher importance to water in their religious ceremonies. According to Hindu concept, all inhabitants of the earth originated from the ‘primordial sea’. Another mythically sacred element is fire which is considered as one of the most important rudiments in religious ceremonies. Its significance is that it purifies all things without being defiled. Fire is a symbol of respect or terror and thus it plays a great role in religious. The Bible reflects that the God appeared many times in the form of fire; and the holy books of Hinduism and Islamism also point out the interrelation between the fire and God.

According to Zoroastrian religious faith, fire is the symbol constantly used to represent Ahura Mazda who is the god of Zoroastrians. The holy writings or holy books are the popular elements of almost all religions irrespective of their size and culture; for instance the Bible for Christians, Vedas for Hindus and the Quran for Islam. The essence of majority of religions is included in their holy writings. Followers of every belief deem that the principles contained in the writings are the direct advice of God and therefore people give great reverence to those scriptures.

Likewise, statues erected in sacred places are also traditionally mythical elements. Probably, statues represent the figures of the holy books and hence the religious followers believe that they (idols) are of some holy powers. It is a common belief that these statues can accomplish human wishes if they are contented with prayers or sacrifices. In some religions, the metals like gold and silver are the important notional elements in their sacred places. They believe that these metals have the capacity to resist humans from all evils.

Caves, sometimes natural or artificial are also considered as sacred elements by many religions. According to Pollack (2003 as cited in Reid-Bowen, 2007, p.91), cave is represented as the womb of mother earth and has become the sacred place for many traditional religions. Caves have been given religious significance from prehistoric periods. In the same way, there are many religions that worship a tree or group of trees in their religious practices. In short, regardless of the variance in basic ideologies, there are certain common elements that all religions consider as sacred.

Among them stones, water, fire, scriptures, metals, caves, and trees are highly important. References The Holy Bible. Reid-Bowen, P. (2007). Goddess as nature: Towards a philosophical theology. England: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.