We talked last time about what makes a landscape “sacred” and concluded that it is a combination of the built environment and the practices of the people who use it.
We wondered, is it possible for a garden to lose its sacred nature? After all, that can happen with buildings. We have all seen former places of practice that have fallen into ruin when the original intent for the use of the space falls away.
On the other hand, there are places of continuous practice and intention that remain sacred through centuries. La Verna, in Italy, is one example; it is where St. Francis is said to have received the stigmata. He meditated under a giant stone balanced precariously on a wall to remind himself of the fleeting nature of life. This space is visited by thousands of people, but more importantly, monks still live and practice there. It remains vibrant with spirit.
Marpa has been building gardens for over four decades now, and many of them have been called “sacred spaces.” It made us think about what that means.
There are many sacred places in nature:certain mountains, hidden glens, and forest glades have been worshipped for centuries for their inherently magical properties.
But what makes a place built by humans “sacred?” Is it the surroundings? Is it the iconography? Is it the ritual that occurs in the space?
We believe that landscapes can be designed to become sacred, but that it is the people who live in and enjoy the space who also help to determine whether it becomes sacred and stays that way. If the garden is neglected, unappreciated, and has nothing in it from the owners, it is simply an expensive decoration. The places that are loved, where sitting in the garden becomes a sacrament, where the people give something of their heart and spirit to the garden, remain special and, yes, “sacred.”
Tomorrow, May 11, is “National Public Gardens Day,” when we’re all encouraged to get out and enjoy our public spaces. Public gardens play a role in educating about environmental preservation and healthy eating, and over 500 public gardens across the country are joining in to celebrate.
Marpa has built special landscapes in public gardens. We hope you can visit some of them, or get to your local botanical garden and smell the roses!
“If you have eyes you will be able to see that all existence is joyful. … Trees are happy for no reason; they aren’t going to become first ministers or presidents and they aren’t going to become rich and they will never have any bank balance. Looks at the flowers–for no reason. It’s simply unbelievable how happy flowers are.”
We just heard a new term that describes a condition we’ve seen too much of: “nature deficit disorder.” Timothy Egan wrote about it recently in the New York Times:
So many of us are raised in the cities or suburbs and have never walked in a forest, dug our toes in the mud of a natural lake, or heard an owl call. As we dive deeper into the well of technology, and surround ourselves with hard surfaces and electronic realities, we begin to lose touch with our own Earth, and with our true spirit. Egan points out the medical and health benefits of being in nature. We’d like to point out the importance to our souls of being connected to something infinitely larger than ourselves, and more varied and beautiful than can be represented on a flat screen.
WooHoo! Marpa’s work is now featured in a new book, published in China, of water gardens throughout the world. Our president, Martin Mosko, was asked to write the foreword to the entire book!
Two of Marpa’s gardens are shown, “The Dragon’s Cosmic Breath” and “The Five Realms.”
One of the truly great photographers of gardens in Japan was William Corey, who died four years ago. William used his huge, specially designed large format camera to make stunning images of the most celebrated landscapes of Japan. He was accorded the unusual honor of being permitted to shoot photographs in the Royal Gardens of the Japanese emperor.
His young widow keeps his memory alive through the William Corey gallery, where these images are available for purchase. (www.williamcorey.com)
A 3-minute film gives you a feeling for William’s photography and life:
