Landscapes of the Sacred (1): Skylar Minick
Chapter 2 thoroughly deepened my understanding of sacred places. Lane says there is a change of consciousness when a regular place or a topos suddenly becomes a place of significance or a chora. He also brings up the idea that experiencing these topos and chora is like two different dimensions, which makes total sense especially when taking into account chora carries its own energy. It makes me wonder if that is where the word choreography from dance came from or if it was the other way around. There is also the dimensions of time which are chronos and kairos, chronos being merely the passage of time or ticking clock, but kairos is a moment bearing significance and meaning. Lane says to experience chora and kairos simultaneously is to truly encounter wonder. It got me thinking if I have ever encountered an experience such as that and not much comes to mind, so I guess I have that moment of pure wonder to look foreword to at some point in my life. Lane also talks about the way that the environment participates in our experiences not just the other way around. When I think about it in my own past experience some of the best times of my life have had participation from the environment as well such as the time I was out with some of my best friends and all of a sudden it started pouring raining and we just danced in the rain until we were all soaking wet. Sure it was fun being around them before it started raining but the rain really made the whole experience unforgettable. I feel like I was truly present in that moment because I can remember it vividly even after years have passed and it encapsulates this idea that there is this reciprocity in touching and being touched by the environment. I guess I could say that street we danced in is a sacred pace for me. Lane also offers examples of sacred places, one being Sedona, Arizona which I have actually visited myself and been on a jeep tour and hiked to one of the vortex sites. It was a very spiritual trip. It is a shame to read about all of the sacred sites Lane mentions that are being ruined by tourists. It is so awful that groups such as the Navajos must lose their sacred ritual sites for the greediness of tourists.
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