3 ms·
I haven't been to Notre Dame, but there are certainly what I'd term "thin places" in the world, where the spiritual is {closer, more accessible, more present}.
by Syonyk 2y ago
I haven't been to Notre Dame, but there are certainly what I'd term "thin places" in the world, where the spiritual is {closer, more accessible, more present}. I would expect a long-lived active cathedral to be one such place. It's not just the beauty, it's something about the physical location being a focus of prayer over time. I don't have a good sense for how it works. Just that it does.
- lisper 2y agoYou would love the old city of Jerusalem.
- Syonyk 2y agoSo I hear. I would love to tour it, some day.
- ridgeguy 2y agoDefinitely, do this. When you do, take the underground Western Wall tour. The stonework just beggars the imagination. https://thekotel.org/en/tours/western-wall-tunnels/2/?srsltid=AfmBOopLd4JNa-F4fWxe7UpEhdM-46NVyWPjagFxeKTX-mFRR-BdTRWd https://thekotel.org/en/tours/western-wall-tunnels/2/?srslti...
- jajko 2y agoVaranasi in India, more specifically Manikarnika ghat in 2008 for me. I am a rational non-religious person but that place imprinted itself in my heart by exactly this... something else in the air and I mean everywhere I went in that place (apart from ashes of burnt dead which you breath in 24/7). Never felt anything similar anywhere else, not even in St. Peter's Basilica which is an engineering marvel on its own I can certainly appreciate its beauty. Which goes against whole concept of institutionalized religions and tells a lot about how humans are wired internally, and nothing (at least positive) about existence of god(s) and some made up bronze age rules accompanying those stories. BTW been to Notre dame before the fire and felt 0 nothing above usual cathedrals effect (compared to say Sagrada familia which wasn't that spiritual but wow effect definitely), but there were various parts to visit and I don't think I covered them all so maybe missed the spot that worked for you.