Exploring the Metaphysical Relationship Between the Non-Physical "Sacred Space" and the Physical "Earthly Habitation"

In order to formulate an accurate or useful mental image of Jerusalem, it is imperative that we consider the ancient text (Hebrew Bible) that formed much of the perspective and beliefs in the city. By understanding the foundation of the peoples' world perspective, we are invited to dwell and consider how these world perspectives interact with other texts such as the Koran and how these interactions bring about conflict, struggle, compromise, and ultimately, new ideas. In Genesis 1:5 "And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day", we observe that the Hebrew Bible is attempting to "divide" the whole day (the regular 24 hr day) into several subsections defined by temporal definitions. By dividing the "non-physical" concept of a "day" into several sections, the Bible has ultimately assigned roles or connotations to each section, as if each temporal section is distinct physically based on these newly drawn lines. As mentioned by Mircea Eliade in The Sacred and the Profane, it has been common for religious populations to divide (the earth, the underworld, and the heaven) concepts or realities in an attempt to define them through categorical measures. By this, I mean that if we are able to categorize certain concepts or physical realms/realities we might be able to find some meaning behind why we have chosen to divide the system this way. Eliade also mentions that it is a religious man's need to divide his sphere of existence into the "chaos" realm and the "cosmos" realm in such a way that he is able to abide by the rules of the "cosmos" realm, and thus he can have order in his lifetime. While no such realms physically exist, Eliade highlights the religious man's tendency to "divide" these "non-physical" concepts anyway to define and control his physical life and behavior. 

This concept extends to the idea of just living as well, where by abiding by the "cosmos" way of living, the religious population possesses a fool-proof way of living a full and meaningful existence. Without this connection to the "cosmos" (or the sacred/spiritual realm), the population loses its way of life, and without this non-physical mode of dictating physical behavior, "existence in the world ceases to be possible - and the Achilpa let themselves die" (Eliade 34). 

Overall, we cannot hope to understand the way physical life operates in Jerusalem as it maintains a connection with the "sacred" sphere of existence, without the assistance of the ancients spiritual texts that have defined and explored this connection. 

(I chose this image to represent how we have created this connection through church imagery and architecture - in that, I mean that the church represents the location of a sacred space where we are to explore this connection between the heavens, earth, and the underworld).

Image source: https://www.brainscape.com/blog/2015/07/afterlife-major-religions/