Recommended Books

Geomancy

The Earth Spirit: Its Ways, Shrines, and Mysteries, John Michell, 1975, 1989. - this is a good introduction to earth-centered spiritual traditions and the variety of types of places regarded as sacred.

The New View over Atlantis, John Michell, 1969, 1989 - this book falls under the category of Earth Mysteries and covers sacred numbers, sacred geometry, astronomical alignments, geomancy.

The Ancient Science of Geomancy: Living in Harmony with the Earth,, Nigel Pennick, 1979, 1988 - covers all the disciplines of geomancy: appropriate siting, definition of boundaries, correct orientation, meaningful shapes.

Earth Harmony: Siting & Protecting Your Home, a Practical and Spiritual Guide, Nigel Pennick, 1988 - harmonious placement by understanding the connection between human beings and place.

Labyrinths: Ancient Myths and Modern Uses is written by Sig Lonegren.. A refreshing look at the ancient and mythic past of this universal symbol that also offers powerful practical uses today. Lots of new material. First published 1991. Now in a new revised Edition. Glastonbury, England: Gothic Image Publications. ISBN 978 0 906362 69 3.

Spiritual Dowsing is written by Sig Lonegren. A history of the earth energies, healing and other uses of dowsing. This is a book for the spiritual pilgrim. Initially published 1986, this is now a classic in the field, and was republished in 2007 by Gothic Image Publications in Glastonbury, England. ISBN 978 0 906362 70 9

Archaeoastronomy

Living the Sky: the Cosmos of the American Indians, Ray Williamson, 1987, scientific description of American Indians astronomical knowledge combined with understanding of Indians cosmological and ritual experience.

Prehistoric Astronomy in the Southwest, J. McKim Malville & Claudia Putnam, 1989 - solar and lunar alignments of southwestern Indian sites.

Secrets of the Stones, The Story of Astro-Archaeology, John Michell, 1977 - this small book, 96 pages, is a concise survey of astronomical alignments.

Labyrinths

Walking A Sacred Path, Dr. Lauren Artress, 1995 - book on the history of labyrinths and the practice of walking labyrinths as a spiritual tool within the Christian tradition.

The Golden Age of Chartres: The Teachings of a Mystery School and the Eternal Feminine, Rene Querido, 1987 - a discussion of Chartres' history is outlined up to the Golden Age c.1000-2000 with chapters on the leading teachers of the day.

The Traveler's Key to Medieval France: A Guide to the Sacred Architecture of Medieval France, John James, 1986 - a guide book with excellent information of the sacred geometry of Chartres Cathedral and a short section on Chartres labyrinth.

Caerdroia Magazine, Jeff and Deb Saward - journal for labyrinth enthusiasts since 1980. 53 Thundersley Grove, Thundersley, Benfleet, Essex, SS7 3EB, UK.

Other Recommended Books

Buddhist Stupas in Asia: The Shape of Perfection, is a new large format hardbound book from Lonely Planet with stunning color photographs by Bill Wassman, text by Joe Cummings, and a forward by the reknown Buddhist scholar, Robert A.F. Thurman. Stupas are architectural forms built to represent mountains that connect the invisible heavenly realm with the visable earthly world. The great variety of Asian stupas play a central role in Buddhist practice as places of pilgrimage, ritual and meditation. The 173-page book thoroughly explores the evolution of the stupa throughout Asia and Southeast Asia. A unique feature of this handsomely designed volume are transparent overlays of key stupa mandalas, and other architectural stylistic elements.

Not only a survey of stupas, the book is an excellent introduction to Buddhism. Buddhist Stupas in Asia begins with the basic tennents of Buddhism, a short story of the life of Buddha, and the historic birth of the stupa in India and its formal development. The vibrant color photographs of stupas and their details such as bas-reliefs and interior altars transport the reader to these sacred sites. The book might inspire readers to further explore Buddhism through additional reading. Future editions would benefit from the inclusion of an annotated reading list, something Lonely Planet does very well in many of their travel guidebooks.

Special sections in the book are devoted to the etymology of the word stupa and its evolution within eastern and western language. Another segment focuses on the ritualistic use of stupas and how they help adherents of Buddhism on their journey of spiritual transformation; included are the acts of making offerings, circumambulation as a meditative practice and the reading of sculptural elements as religious texts. A fascinating chapter is devoted to the rare construction of a new stupa in the southern Kathmandu Valley in Godavari, Nepal. Another chapter explores the subject of the ritualized contents of Himalayan stupas.

We recommend this book; it is extremely well written in a concise manner and takes the reader on a journey to some of the world's most inspiring sacred places. Readers already familiar with Buddhist stupas will want to add this book to their library as a record of the stupas' diverse forms. The uninitiated reader will put the book down knowing that stupas are not only magnificent architectural structures, but that they stand for a higher purpose of life beyond material existence.

Stone Age Soundtracks is a new paperback book by prolific author, Paul Devereux. If you enjoyed his work on Shamanism and the Mystery Lines, reprinted in the Sacred Sites Newsletter, this is a must read. This new book explores an embryonic movement in archaeology called acoustic archaeology, whereby the living sound of ancient sites is examined. The book is available through Chrysalis Books in London: info@chrysalisbooks.co.uk.

Aboriginal Australia & the Torres Strait Islands: guide to Indigenous Australia is a new guide by Lonely Planet Publications. This extremely well done book was first conceived in 1998 and reflects the varied views of 71 authors, 51 of whom are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. The book can be enjoyed by arm-chair travelers as well as by people journeying to Australia.

The book opens with a color fold-out map of language groups depicting the great diversity of indigenous Australia. The guide, however, focuses only on areas with facilities for travelers.

Sections are included on diverse topics including food, gardening, law, and land. A 23-page color section is devoted to aboriginal art. Shorter color sections cover medicine, food, weaving, Kakadu National Park, dance and ceremony, and the sacred site, Uluru. It is also a practical guide for travelers with solid information on places to stay, things to see, tours, and shopping.

We are pleased to see a glossary and cultural advice about being sensitive to the customs of indigenous people.

Readers will be most fasinated by the first-person accounts written by aboriginals which is highlighted in boxed text throughout the guide. These short essays offer the deepest insight into indigenous culture. The guide is 445 pages long and priced at $19.95.

The book explores the repatriation of Native American remains, issues associated with museums holding sacred objects, the preservation of sacred places and sacred landscapes, and living tribal cultures. Gulliford provides an excellent overview of issues and values concerned with historic, cultural, and site preservation and it is to his credit that statements by native people, including American Indians, Alaskan Natives, and Native Hawaiians are an integral part of the text. Native people explain the relationship between place and spirituality that forms the basis of their religious practices and beliefs.

The author exposes the reader to the breadth of places considered sacred using the following categories: religious sites associated with oral traditions and origin stories; trails and pilgrimage routes; traditional gathering areas; offering areas like altars and shrines; vision quest and other individual use sites; group ceremonial sites like sweat lodges, dances and sings; ancestral habitation sites; ceremonial rock art; individual burials and massacre sites; and observatories and calendar sites. This comprehensive treatment of sacred sites goes a long way towards explaining the native thinking about what makes a place sacred.

One half of the proceeds of the sale of this book are being donated to The National Museum of the American Indian and to the Keepers of the Treasures. We highly recommend this book.

The book tells the story of Sunnie and Hart beginning in 1974 when they fell in love with a "beautiful pile of boulders" located in Carefree, Arizona. At that time, the Empies didn't know anything about sacred sites, but they knew they had a strong emotional reaction to the remarkable outcrop of rocks. The Empies, on the basis of their reaction, decided to purchase the property and build their house on the site. The book chronicles the transformation of the boulders and the transformation of the authors as they learned about the deeper significance of the beautiful pile of boulders they learned to call home.

The extraordinary home, built by architect Charles F. Johnson, a proponent of "organic architecture", uses the boulders as walls. One section of the book, "Creating Natural Architecture", outlines the creative process of the architect as he came to understand the rocks, both above and below ground, and the larger landscape which encompassed, "' contours, views, wind, sun, trees, and most of all'" he said, "'the psychological feeling.'"

After living in the home, the Empies began noticing a ray of light creeping across the floor eventually coming to rest on a spiral petroglyph. The light reached the center of the spiral exactly on the spring equinox. Thus, began their quest to understand this phenomenon. They embarked on years of research into archaeoastronomy, petroglyphs, and sacred sites. About seventy-five pages of the are devoted to these subjects. A good basic bibliography is also included.

Sunnie and Hart eventually went through the laborious process of having the site included on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. They also successfully prevented a State Farm Insurance development from being built adjacent to the Boulder House. More recently, they have fought to keep Wal Mart from building across the highway from their site.

In closing, the Empies state, "Had we known then that this is a sacred place, we would not have contemplated building the Boulder House. Only later would we learn that our emotional encounter, a moment we shall forever remember, was prompted by more than the impressive size of the boulders. Now we see them from another perspective - not just as objects in the landscape - but also as witnesses to time past, present and future."

We wonder what would have become of this sacred site if it had fallen into the hands of Wal Mart?

The Empies can be contacted at empiebillsunnie@qwest.net.

Making Spiritual Spaces
By Marc Berghaus

New Spiritual Architecture. Phyllis Richardson. New York: Abbeville Press, 2004.

Architectural writer Phyllis Richardon’s New Spiritual Architecture is a beautiful coffee-table book with dozens of wonderfully photographed contemporary religious structures from around the world, all quite innovative in some way. Many of the designs are minimal-modernist or make much use of natural materials, especially wood.

Most examples are churches, mosques, and synagogues, though Richardson also includes Buddhist temples and several multi- or non-denominational spaces. She divides the book into sections based on design approach - urban interventions, rural retreats, and so forth. She provides luscious photographs of each building, along with floor plans and elevations.

I would describe Richardson’s written descriptions of the structures as “handy” – short interpretations highlighting the experience of entering the space or otherwise encountering the structure. Accompanying each design is a brief written text, though I wish there might have been more information about the architects’ intentions. I make this criticism from the standpoint of an artist who wanted to know more about the designer’ spiritual relationships to their creation, not just their professional aims. For example:

• Was good or innovative design the only intention (besides satisfying the client)? Or did designers consider an intended spiritual experience for those the space?
• If designing a spiritual space is heightened, what psychological factors did the designer have in mind?
• How, exactly, did the designer understand “spiritual” in the first place? Mystical? Meditative? Conducive to receiving “the Word”?
• How, in turn, did the designer translate that understanding into material structure and space?
• How did the designer relate his or her work to the history of religious architecture, not only in terms of design elements but also in terms of the intended and actual environmental effects for the users of past spaces?

What I like most about the book is its service as a springboard for thought. By providing so many contemporary examples, Richardson suggests the possibilities for spiritual architecture. In alerting us to these possibilities, she gets us to ask important questions, for example:

• What other possibilities are there?
• What should be spiritual architecture be?
• What qualities of experience would I, as a user or designer, most want in such a space?
• How does a space or place become “sacred” and how does one then define sacredness?

To me, the strength of this book is its breadth. While many of the buildings have been published elsewhere, Richardson’s book is the only visual survey I’ve found of so many examples of contemporary religious structures and spaces in one volume. The book was released in England as New Sacred Architecture (Laurence King Publishing). The title change makes me wonder about marketing considerations among cultures.

Mark Berghaus is a sculptor, photographer, and sound artist living in Meade, Kansas. He has exhibited his work throughout the Midwest and western United States. His art deals with issues of chance, spirituality, nature, and human perception. Examples of his work can be seen at www.marcberghaus.com.

This review is reprinted by permission of the author from Environmental & Architectural Phenomonology, Vol. 18, No.2, Spring 2007. David Seamon, Editor.  Kansas State University Architecture Department: Manhattan.

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