Jerusalem – Israel
There are many who contend that there is something inherently sacred about places that cultures adopt as holy sites. Of all the Earth’s sacred places, this idea seems most embodied in the city of Jerusalem.
Mount Sinai – Egypt
In the remote and rugged high desert of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula lies a land with immense historical and spiritual significance to the world’s three great monotheistic religions. The Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions all have deep ties to the landscape and monuments of this region.
Alto Purús – Peru
The conflict surrounding the estimated 24,000 petroglyphs — ancient carved rock images — west of Albuquerque, N.M., demonstrates that even a national monument is not safe when it comes to suburban development.
Petroglyph National Monument – United States
The conflict surrounding the estimated 24,000 petroglyphs — ancient carved rock images — west of Albuquerque, N.M., demonstrates that even a national monument is not safe when it comes to suburban development.
Medicine Wheel – United States
In December 2001, a federal judge ruled in favor of a Historic Preservation Plan that protects the Bighorn Medicine Wheel and Medicine Mountain in Wyoming, a site considered sacred to Native Americans. A Wyoming timber company had challenged the plan, which was negotiated with tribal organizations, state and local governments, as a hindrance to logging.
Taos Blue Lake – United States
Hidden in the mountains of northern New Mexico lies Blue Lake, or Ba Whyea, an ancient sacred site for the Taos Pueblo community. After the U.S. government appropriated Blue Lake and the surrounding area and placed it under the control of the Forest Service, the ensuing battles for Blue Lake
Holy Island of Lindisfarne – United Kingdom
The Holy Island of Lindisfarne has been a Christian holy site and pilgrimage center since 635, playing a pivotal role as a cradle of Christianity in Northern England and Southern Scotland. Nature and spirituality are very much linked here through a line of “nature saints,” of which St. Cuthbert
Shellmounds of the Bay Area – United States
The Bay Area’s oldest shellmound at Huichin, now Berkeley, was a massive burial site
Lands of the Penan – Malaysia
Living in the rainforests of Borneo in Southeast Asia, the Penan people are one of the last indigenous groups in the world with members who still follow a traditional nomadic lifestyle, relying solely on their natural environment for material and spiritual sustenance.
Nez Perce Homelands – United States
For decades, the sacred Hawaiian island of Kahoʻolawe, the physical incarnation of the sea god Kanaloa, was wracked by explosions set off by the U.S. Navy. Native Hawaiians demanded an end to the military assault, and in 1976 activists occupied the island, making headlines across the country.