Week Reflection No.1

Religion. It surrounds all of us and has been around for almost longer then any of us can remember. Religion can be defined as a belief system which governs the individual's lifestyle, moral values, opinions, theology and overall usually provides an answer to the meaning of life, the creation of the universe and all the other anomalies that humanity has so desperately tried to nut out for a terribly long time. Therefore, because humanity is so diverse, with many different cultures, locations and civilisations, people came up with their own ideas and answers that they believed were the most efficient, logical and comfortable religions. As you can imagine, because of this, it became very difficult for everyone to agree on the same idea. In conclusion, religion is a fundamental aspect of life to a large percentage of the population, and therefore it's most certainly worth taking a few moments out of our lives to talk about it.

Michelangelo's "The Creation", illustrating mankind's desire to reach and connect with God

 That is why I am part of one of my most favourites classes, aptly titled "Study of Religion" and the term speaks for itself. In a bit more then two weeks, my class has covered the origins and basics of Buddhism, as well as discussing and examining the sacred spaces for most religions. Undoubtedly, the sacred space of a religion is extremely important and central to understanding the individual's preferences for his spirituality - from this we can understand that religion and religion as a whole.

A famous painting, illustrating Buddha's achievement of enlightenment

I, myself, am inclined to the beliefs and fundamental basics of Christianity, but I do indeed have cemented ideas of what my sacred space is, and many other Christians share my views as well. My idea of a sacred space is that it can be anywhere, granted that the environment is quiet, humble and comfortable. I also believe sacred space can be beautifully shared with a few friends. However, I do not believe sacred space is solely the Church building, for it has it's flaws. Sometimes, it can be distracting and does not allow the individual to fully focus with the divine in this kind of environment, especially when there are many people residing in the area, making noise. That is not to say that my view must be right, but it is the one that I am most certainly comfortable with. I would say the other half of Christians would disagree and most definitely consider the Church building  to be the top and most important sacred space. In the wider world, sacred space can go as far as a whole city or a large building. For example, many Muslims consider the city of Mecca a very important sacred space, as it was a central location to Muhammad's teachings. This is the same for Jews and Christians, who believe the same of Jerusalem, where Jesus resided for a number of years and taught some of his most important lessons. As for Buddhism, Lumbini is a sacred space, as it was Buddha's birthplace. However, sacred space is ultimately defined by the comfort, relevance of spirituality and tranquillity to the individual. The place that the individual can sit down, connect with their god and experience true enlightenment because of it - that is what sacred space is.

A short clip from the movie "Of Gods and Men", demonstrating sacred space