Keely Johnson: Landscapes of the Sacred #1

The axioms Lane presents in his book are a fascinating approach to explaining how a location can be classified as sacred. The one that stuck with me the most was his third axiom; a sacred place can be tread upon without being entered. To me, this explains why everyone has a spot in which they go when they are stressed, feeling vulnerable, or they just need a break. This place is scared to them, and an outsider may never experience the place the same way they do. Physically being in a scared place does not make it sacred for you. This ties in with the first axiom; a scared place is not chosen, it chooses. I feel these two are very closely related when discussing the sacrality of a place, more so than the other two axioms. The place chooses the individual when it deems necessary. When a person needs the spiritual feeling or support, the place makes it happen on a personal level. The theory of sacred place seems very personal to me.