Outside Reading- "The Sacred and the Profane"

Ashley Smith

“When the sacred manifests itself in any hierophany, there is not only a break in homogeneity of space; there is also revelation of an absolute reality opposed to the nonreality of the vast surrounding expanse” (Eliade 21).
I came across the above quotation in a book titled, “The Sacred and the Profane,” written by Mircea Eliade. It immediately reminded me of the discussions we have had in class about hierophanies. A hierophany is a manifestation, a sacred appearance, and/or an experience with God. Hierophanies are deep studies of religion. Belden Lane asked the following in his book, "Landscapes of the Sacred." "In short, is it possible to recover the power of scared space for those today who have forgotten hierophanies and all signs of the sacred" (Lane 23)? Both Lane and Eliade wrote extensively about the concept and significance of the word "hierophany." A hierophany is a powerful experience with the divine that can be continually discussed and written about in literature; yet, one can never really appreciate and fully understand the meaning of hierophany until he has experienced it for himself.