Journey To a Divine World

In his book, The Sacred and Profane, Eliad Mircea categorizes man and the immediate "space" around him as being either homogeneous and neutral, or strong and significant. The difference between the two experiences is clearly distinguished; Eliad describes one as sacred, while the other is profane.


If man has a religious and holy experience, his space is labeled as sacred and affixed at the "center of the world". Eliad describes the sacred experience as one that begins at a fixed point of orientation. A world can only be lived in if it has been created, and the fixed point, or center of creation is representative of the creation of the world. The sacred space is considered to be the only real space and everything that falls outside of it is formless and non-meaningful.

The unholy experience does not include a sense of beginning, purpose, or end. The profane man lives outside of the sacred space (cosmos), so his existence, and everything it involves is considered to be chaos. Chaotic land is thought to be inhabited by people who are assimilated to ghosts and evil. So how does a profane space become sacred? In mythical times, the cosmic axis played a role in establishing a world of sacred space. Rituals and beliefs stemmed from the idea of this axis mundi, including the belief that a sacred pole connected heaven, earth, and its base descended into the underworld. This connection to heaven allowed communication with the Gods, which made life possible, and allowed the creation of an area of cosmos. The area surrounding this universal pillar is thought to represent the center of the universe.

Eliad mentions several examples between cultures in which an object represents the cosmic axis, and a sacred world is built around it. The cosmic mountain, churches, and temples are all thought to represent the three cosmic levels which include heaven, earth, and the underworld. Temples are thought to be a symbol of the cosmic mountain. The Temple of Jerusalem was built on a rock that was thought to be the center of the earth. The roof of the temple represented the link to heaven, while its floor represented earth, and the foundation represented the lower regions. Babylonian sanctuaries have been given names which symbolize their construction as representing a link between heaven and earth. Herdsmen and breeders in Central Asia, and pastoral peoples in Africa have been found to practice the ritual of establishing a sacred pillar in developing an area of cosmos as well. Universally, religious man desires to live as close to the "Center of the World" as possible.

Eliad concludes that every world is either a powerful work of the Gods, or it has been established as cosmos by man imitating the work of the Gods. He explains that religious man fears the land that extends beyond his own sacred space. If man strays beyond his sacred world to the unholy space, he may dissolve into the profane experience, live an empty life, and eventually die.
Religious man yearns for meaning and existence, therefore, decisions are based on on faith in hopes of living a full life, and inhabiting a "divine world".



Eliad, Mircea. The Sacred and The Profane: The Nature of Religion. New York:
Mariner Books, 1968.