World Heritage Sites as Sacred Places

Abstract

This essay explores the relationship between spirituality and the preservation of sacred places such as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. As humanity has been unable to achieve a balance between urban growth and development and maintaining our natural resources, there is a need to explore ways in which environmental protection can be enhanced. Further, this essay discusses environmental concerns and ways in which different religious and spiritual beliefs can support the environment, and offer ideas of how the sacred nature of our environment can be restored. In particular, the relevance of spirituality, as an essential dimension of contemporary culture and its relationship to nature, will be discussed. The intersection of both spirituality and the environment through sacred ecology can designate natural spaces will be highlighted. Also, the essay will identify multiple UNESCO World Heritage Sites which are tied to spiritual or religious frameworks. This newer approach to studying the interactive effects of culture and environment offers a novel resolution to the world's ecological crisis. Sacred ecology offers a systematic view of life, our earth and how our own biological and cognitive aspects of life, mind, body and spirit are an integral part of an integrative whole. This discipline demonstrates an understanding that human beings and nature are all interwoven and interconnected.