Landscapes of the Sacred 2: Axiom 3

Landscapes of the Sacred 2: Axiom 3
December 10, 2017
“A place can be tread upon without being entered” (19).
This axiom stuck out to me because it describes something that happened to me this past year. I had the opportunity of visiting Rome this past spring and while I was there I visited the Sistine Chapel. I thought my experience visiting this chapel, might be beautiful and profound since it is a well-known sacred space.
I have never been more wrong!

My time at the Sistine Chapel was spent being intensely squeezed between hundreds of people. The room was packed, and there were workers who continuously told the crowd that they needed to be quieter. Little did they know, that they were just as disruptive as the crowd itself. I switched from being overwhelmed by the loudness of the crowd, to feeling stressed out by the worker’s continuous demands that everyone should remain silent.
My experience in the Sistine Chapel does not negate the fact that this space has been and will continue to be a sacred place for many. I am certain that there were people in the same room as me, who were having a deeply spiritual moment; these people truly entered this sacred place, while I only tread upon it.

It is because of this experience that I completely agree with this second axiom. It is important to keep this in mind, especially when visiting a place that is sacred to so many. If the people in the Sistine Chapel had kept in mind that it is a sacred space to many, perhaps the room would not have been so loud. What may seem like a tourist attraction to some, is a deeply spiritual place for others; thus, it is important to be respectful when visiting places such as this.

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