Transcript File - Mr. Nelson`s AP human geography

Topic: Religious Holy Places
Aim: For what reasons do certain areas hold
religious significance?
Religious Holy Places:
•
Certain locations are elevated to a holy position - recognized
by a religious group as worthy of devotion, loyalty or fear to
the extent that it becomes either sought out or avoided,
inaccessible to the non-believer or removed from economic
use.
1. Ethnic religions: less widespread distribution, therefore holy
places derive from the distinctive physical environment of its
hearth (mountains, rivers, etc)
2. Universalizing religions: endows cities and other places
associated with founders life with holy position -not
necessarily related to the physical environment
• Pilgrimages, journeys for religious purposes, are
incorporated in Islamic doctrine.
Sacred Space:
– Geographers study the impact on the landscape made by all
religions.
• Places of worship are sacred structures that physically
anchor religion to landscape.
– Christian Church
» More significant role in Christianity than in other
religions because of belief that building is the house
of God.
» Church traditionally largest and tallest building in a
community. Additional significance given to it by
locating it in a prominent location—e.g., square or
center of town
» No single architectural style
Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage
Vatican City
Pope John Paul
II greeted
pilgrims in St.
Peter’s Square
Statues of St. Vitalis and 139 other saints overlook a crowd gathered to hear Pope John
Paul II deliver Easter greetings from St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican
Saint Peter’s
Basilica
The Church of the
Holy Sepulcher
The Via Dolorosa
The path that Jesus
walked to his crucifixion
Sacred Sites and Rituals:
At Saint Declan’s Holy Well in Ardmore, Ireland
Pilgrims hang scraps of clothing as offerings
This
practice is
common at
sacred sites
in Far
Eastern
Russia
Wailing Wall:
• Sacred Space
– Muslim Mosques
» Space for community assembly
» Not viewed as a sanctified place
» Attention to cardinal directions is emphasized—
e.g., pulpit at end of a courtyard faces Makkah.
» Distinctive feature is a minaret, a tower where a man
known as a muezzin summons people to worship.
– Buddhist Pagodas
» Prominent and ornate element on landscape that often
includes tall, many-sided towers arranged in a series of
tiers, balconies, and slanting roofs.
» Contain relics believed to be a portion of Buddha’s
body or clothing.
» Not designed for congregational worship
Absorbed in ritual motion – with at least one youthful exception – women pray in
Indonesia’s Istiqial Mosque. Traders and settlers brought Islam here centuries ago and
now no other nation has more Muslims.
Muslim Mosques
Dome of this
mosque in Isfahan,
Iran demonstrates
the importance of
geometric art evident
in Muslim
architecture.
• Sacred Places in Universalizing Religions
– Cities and places associated with the founder’s life are
endowed with holiness.
• Not necessarily in close proximity of each other
• Not needed to be related to any particular physical
environment
– Buddhism and Islam place most emphasis on
identifying shrines that mark locations of important
events in the life of Buddha or Muhammad.
• Pilgrimages, journeys for religious purposes, are
incorporated in Islamic doctrine.
Holy Sites in Buddhism:
Most holy sites in Buddhism are locations of important events in Buddha’s life and are
clustered in northeastern India and southern Nepal.
Swedogon Pagodo in
Yangon, Myanmar
Eight hairs of the
Buddha are preserved
under the dome (chedi)
BUDDHIST
PAGODA,
SARNATH, INDIA
The Dhamek pagoda,
in Deer Park, Sarnath,
was built in the third
century B.C., and is
probably the oldest
surviving Buddhist
structure in the world.
Burnished by the sun and by generations of prayer, Myanmar’s Golden Rock is
journey’s end for Buddhist pilgrims, who believe it is balanced on the edge of a cliff
with a single strand of the Buddha’s hair.
Prayer flags surround Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, India. Here, on a May evening
in the 5th century B.C., a prince called Siddhartha Gautama sat to meditate, achieved
enlightenment, and became the Buddha.
Following the Buddha’s path toward selflessness, nirvana, and an end to suffering,
pilgrims prostrate themselves every three steps on their long walk to Lhasa, the capital
of Tibet.
The Potala Palace in Lhasa was home to every Dalai Lama from its construction in the
17th century until 50 years ago, when the Dalai Lama, disguised as a soldier, eluded
invading Chinese troops and fled to India. Since then, Buddhism in Tibet has been
suppressed, sometimes brutally.
Buddhist Stupas:
72 stupas, each containing a sculpture of the Buddha in meditation
were built around 800 CE and still stand in Borobudur, Indonesia.
At southern California’s Crystal Cathedral, they do everything big. With 2,700 seats and
10,000 panes of glass, this is the Hollywood epic of megachurches.
6 billion
# of faith tourism
travelers around the
world each year
300 million
Amount of revenue
generated by faith
tourism annually
18 billion
# of copies of bible
in circulation
(world’s best selling
book)
• Sacred Places in Universalizing Religions
– Holy Places in Islam
• Holiest locations are in cities associated with Prophet
Muhammad.
–Holiest City is Makkah (Mecca), birthplace of
Muhammad.
»Now contains the holiest object in the Islamic
landscape—al-Ka’ba—a cubelike structure
encased in silk that stands in Islam’s largest
mosque, Masjid
al-Haram.
–Second-most-holy place is Madinah (Medina).
»Muhammad’s tomb is in Madinah.
The Hajj:
Pilgrims circle the holy Kaaba in the Grand Mosque
in Mecca, Saudi Arabia during the Hajj.
Pilgrims pray at Mecca’s Grand Mosque, the obligatory destination – at least once – of
all Muslims. Around the world, one in five humans turn in daily prayer toward the cubeshaped Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site, in the mosque’s courtyard, at upper right.
In an orbit of faith, Muslim pilgrims in Mecca’s Grand Mosque walk seven times
around the Kaaba. During the annual hajj, participants are required to perform the
ritual at least twice. It takes at least 5 days to complete the rites of the hajj in Mecca.
• The Landscape in Ethnic Religions
– Ethnic religions are closely tied to the physical geography of a
particular place.
• Hindu Landscape
– Hinduism closely tied to physical geography of India
» Mt. Kailas is holy because it is home to Siva.
» Holiest places are riverbanks and coastlines.
» Hindus believe that they achieve purification by
bathing in holy rivers—e.g., Ganges River
• Solstice
– Special significance in some ethnic religions
» Stonehenge is a prominent remnant of a pagan
structure aligned so that sun rises between two stones
on solstices.
•
Hierarchy of Hindu
holy places: Some sites
are holy to Hindus
throughout India; others
have a regional or
sectarian importance, or
are important only
locally.
Sacred Landscapes of Hinduism
Pilgrimages follow prescribed routes, and rituals are followed by
millions.
Varanasi, India on
the
Ganges River
where Hindus
perform morning
rituals.
Hindus perform aarti, an offering of lamps to the sacred Ganges in Haridwar, India,
where the river leaves the mountains and enters the plains. Here, they believe, the
power of Mother Ganga to wash away sins is strong.
Following in Jesus’ steps, Brazilian evangelical Christians immerse themselves in the
Jordan River, traditional site of Jesus’ baptism. Evangelicalism in Brazil has blossomed,
inspiring pilgrimages to the Holy Land.
Visions of the Virgin Mary were reported at a grotto (small cave near water) in Lourdes,
France in 1858. Water from the Lourdes spring is believed to have healing powers.
About 5 million pilgrims visit Lourdes every year.
St. Bernadette Soubirous – reported 18 apparitions of the Lady of Lourdes in 1858.
Although she died in 1879, her body was exhumed in 1909 and several times after. Her
body is said to be incorrupt or preserved from decomposition.
Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal is famous for religious visions that took place there in 1917.
Three peasant children claimed to have seen Our Lady of Fatima. The economy of the town
now relies on religious tourism.
The Virgin Mary is said to have revealed 3 secrets to the children. 1. Vision of Hell 2. End of
WWI and prediction of WWII 3. Assassination attempt of Pope John Paul II
Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, consecrated in A.D. 537, was once the largest church in the Christian
world and the symbol of Constantinople, seat of the Byzantine Empire and spiritual rival of
Rome. It was converted to a mosque after the Ottoman Turks take over. Today the massive
edifice is a museum.
Judaism’s sacred text, the Torah, is lifted during one of the many services that unfold
around the clock in front of the Western Wall. Beyond the wall is the Temple Mount,
site of the First and Second Temples.
15 million
2 million
175
Number of Jews in
the New York
metropolitan area
Abraham’s age of
death, according to
scripture
Number of Jews in
the world
Dancers venerate Confucius in Qufu. Respect for ancestors, teachers, and old ways are
core values of Confucianism. Now that the master’s wisdom is once again in favor in
China, so are feudal costume dramas. There are 350 million followers of Confucius.
Seeking good fortune, hands touch a stone tiger – the ancient Taoist symbol of yin – on
the first day of the year of the tiger at a Taoist monastery in Beijing.
A sacred waterfall at Japan’s Tsubaki Grand Shrine washes away impurities in a Shinto
ritual that celebrates the communion of worshipper, water, and the creative life force of
the universe.
Shinto speaks of spirits called kami that dwell throughout Japan. Kami are venerated at
sacred sites such as Meoto Iwa, which are rocks joined like husband and wife.
Adherents of Shintoism believe there are 8 million kami in the Shinto universe.
Shinto shrine on Mount Fuji in Japan. Most Japanese blend Shinto and Buddhism.
Sacred places
In nature
The Sea of Galilee – according to Gospels, Jesus performed miracles here including
walking on water, calming a storm, feeding 5,000. It is said he delivered his Sermon on
the Mount on a hill overlooking the windswept lake. The 64 square mile lake lies at the
base of the Golan Heights and is Israel’s largest body of fresh water.
Chimney Rock – stands above the San Juan National Forest in southwestern Colorado.
Ancient Pueblo people considered the site sacred and built a great house close by from
which they could observe the moon rising between the massive spires for two years at
the end of each 18 year lunar cycle. Later in history, this site served as a landmark for
conquistadores, missionaries, and prospectors. Today it is an archaeological site, tourist
destination, and place for Native American cultural gatherings.
Uluru (Ayers Rock) – this massive sandstone monolith towers over the desert sands of
central Australia as one of its most recognizable natural icons. At more than 1,100 feet
tall, it reaches higher than the Eiffel Tower and is believed to be between 300 and 400
million years old. To the Anangu, descendents of the ancient people who first settles
the continent some 60,000 years ago, it holds great cultural significance in Aboriginal
legend and religion. In 1873 British explorer William Gosse spied the rock and renamed
it in honor of the premier of South Australia, Henry Ayers.
Sacred places:
man-made
Stonehenge – famous cluster of stone megaliths, carefully arranged in a grassy field on
England’s Salisbury Plain, is one of history’s enduring mysteries. Experts agree that
Stonehenge was erected in stages, probably between 3000 and 1500 B.C., and that the
stones are aligned with the rising and setting sun and mark the passing seasons. Yet
whether it was designed as an astronomical calendar or as a temple or for sun worship or
for healing, its unknown builders left no records and its purpose remains unclear.
Today it is a popular site for neo-pagan solstice celebrations.
Machu Picchu – high atop a mountain range in southern Peru, half a century before the
voyages of Columbus, the powerful Inca emperor Pachacuti built a majestic citadel of
polished-stone palaces, chambers, and temple to the sun god. With the invasion of
Spanish conquistadores, the Inca abandoned the city, though it never came under
attack. Machu Picchu – “the old mountain” – fell into ruin and was swallowed by the
rain forest. In 1911, American archaeologists unearthed this “lost city” of the Incas.
Since then it has become a revered cultural site and popular tourist attraction.
Serpent Mound – it is said to be the largest effigy mound in the world, a molded 1,302
foot snake with an exaggerated eye and a coiled tail, winding along a wooded bluff in
southwestern Ohio. Scholars link the site to the Fort Ancient people who lived in the
Ohio River Valley between 1000 and 1600 A.D. and buried their dead in nearby mounds.
The site is believed to have been used in religious ceremonies. The head aligns with the
setting sun on the summer solstice; the coils align variously with the rising sun on the
summer and winter solstices and spring and fall equinoxes.
60 Minutes: Palestine
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6K23rXLev7o