World travelers and armchair tourists who want to explore the mythology and archaeology of the ruins, sanctuaries, mountains, lost cities, and temples of ancient civilizations will find this guide ideal. Detailed here are the monuments and sites where ancient peoples once gathered to perform sacred rituals and ceremonies to worship various gods and to achieve spiritual enlightenment. Important archaeological, historical, and geological destinations worldwide are profiled, from the Great Pyramid in Egypt and the Forbidden City in China to the Temples of Angkor in Cambodia and Mount Shasta in California. Sites are described in historical and cultural context, and practical contemporary travel information is provided, including detailed maps, drawings, photographs, and travel directions. This replaces 1888729023.

As one of the oldest inhabited areas on earth, India is a land rich with archaeological ruins, especially abandoned cities and caves. Once-mighty Hindu dynasties, Islamic sultans, and various religious sects left behind stupendous stone-cut cities and monasteries. Some of the ruins were deserted in the past few hundred years while others, like the Ajanta Caves, were abandoned for 2,000 years. Imagine the surprise of the British army officer who, in 1819, accidentally stumbled upon the Ajanta complex while hunting a panther!

The most famous cave complexes are Ellora and Ajanta in the state of Maharashtra located in central India. The Kailas Cave at Ellora is a huge, monolithic temple sculpted from the top down, right out of the living bedrock. Ellora possesses carved figures of gods, men and beasts in Michelangelo-esque realism and proportions. Nearby, Ajanta is the site of more than 20 Buddhist monasteries with five massive cathedrals. Everything in Ajanta is rock excavated, with all the ceilings supported by massive fresco-painted pillars. The rock-cut Buddhist monasteries of Ajanta are set in a remote river glen interconnected by a series of walkways. The exquisite sculptures of Ajanta are enriched by an unsurpassed display of painted walls and ceilings. Both Ellora and Ajanta are best reached from the city Aurangabad.

Fatehpur Sikri is a vast sandstone lost city located near Agra. Built by Akbar the Great in 1570, it acted as the Mogul capital for 16 years. Yet in 1586, it was suddenly and mysteriously abandoned by Akbar — leaving behind the grandiose palaces, fortifications and mosques to antiquity. Lack of a steady water supply is the likely reason Fatehpur Sikri was intentionally deserted. Akbar’s magnificent city is today a perfectly preserved example of art and architecture from India’s colorful Islamic age. The main building in the city, the Jami Masjid, is said to be modeled after the Grand Mosque at Mecca. With Islamic zeal, Akbar the Great at first violently persecuted the Hindus he had conquered. “As I grew in knowledge,” Akbar stated later in life, “I was overwhelmed with shame. Miracles occur in the temples of every creed.” Fatehpur Sikri is 25 miles (40 km) west of Agra, and is a perfect day-trip after visiting the Taj Mahal.

The ultimate lost city of India is called Hampi, the “City of Victory” located the state of Karnataka. Built during the Vijayanagar period, Hampi was a resplendent capital until 1565, when the dynasty came to an abrupt end. The Mohammadan Sultans of the north conspired to defeat the Vijayanagar kings and swooped down to sack their capital. So brutal was the Sultan invasion, few survived, and the city was left to ruin and abandonment. It is in this deserted state that we find Hampi today, a wonderful assortment of ruins scattered around a surrealistic landscape of boulders. Most fascinating are all the palaces and temples, including the stone chariot in the Vittala Temple, the Hampi Bazaar and the Purandara Desara Mandapa temple complex along the Tungabhadra River. Buses run frequently from the railroad town of Hospet to nearby Hampi.

 

Similar to the Aboriginals in Australia, the Maori continue to revere a host of natural sacred sites. Near the New Zealand capital city of Auckland rises a cone formation that can be seen for miles around. At its summit are an obelisk and one lone tree, hence the name “One Tree Hill.” The warlike Maori had a large settlement near Auckland and built a fortified settlement, called “Maori Pa” on One Tree Hill. The Maori people of today still consider this land sacred and make annual pilgrimages here to visit their ancestors’ spiritual home. Other esoteric spiritual groups, including the Druids, recognize the immense power of One Tree Hill and use the site for solstice celebrations, as well as rituals of music and dance. Sharing title with the obelisk and tree at the summit are three large, breached craters. These indented craters create nice wind shelters and natural amphitheaters. Drum circles sound especially commanding from the inside of any crater on One Tree Hill.

Three towering volcanoes, one active and two dormant, reside in the middle of the North Island. These volcanoes are especially sacred. The Maoris consider these three mountains as guardian deities. They are Mount Tongariro, Mount Ngauruhoe and Mount Taranaki (called Mount Egmont by Europeans). Taranaki rises like a perfect cone near the shores of the Tasman Sea, while the active Ngauruhoe smolders near Tongariro in the center of the North Island. Mount Ngauruhoe last erupted in 1975.

According to Maori legend, the three mountains were once grouped together, but Taranaki departed to his present position because of a domestic quarrel. Maori legend also relates the story of a high priest from Arawa who was climbing Mount Ngauruhoe when he was overtaken by a fierce blizzard. Hearing cries, his priestess sisters turned the mountain into a volcano to bring their brother warmth.

Geological activity and remnants of an old volcano are apparent near Lake Taupo, New Zealand’s largest lake. Motutaiko Island in Lake Taupo was a Maori burial place, and some of the interment caves can still be seen there. Surrounding the lake is New Zealand’s famous geyser and hot spring region. Here, fire and ice lie close together, and the steam that rises from thermal vents can often be seen from afar. Above the thermal caves at Pohutu Geyser, Maori tribe members built a sacred village where the scalding water was both worshiped and utilized. A nearby graveyard points the way to a maze of geysers and mud pools that the Maori used for cooking and washing. Also near the southern end of Lake Taupo is the enigmatic Kaimanawa Wall. The wall is composed of megalithic blocks with symmetrical corners. The level top suggests it may have been a platform pyramid, similar to those found on several islands in the South Pacific. Until the jungle is cleared and a full excavation takes place, the Kaimanawa Wall remains a mystery.

Getting to the North Island Volcanoes

New Zealand is widest on the North Island at 250 miles (400 km), and the whole country is about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) in length. Sparsely populated (3.4 million people, half Maori) and not very big, New Zealand is easy to navigate and get around. Public transportation, rental cars and hitchhiking are all easy ways to reach the North Island volcanoes. Auckland is the typical starting point, and One Tree Hill is easy to locate just outside the city. One main road travels south from Auckland and all locations are clearly marked and visible from the road.

 

Contents Forward by Mark Maxam Author’s Karma Statement Introduction to Sacred Places 108 Sacred Places North Africa and the Middle East EGYPT: Great Pyramid and the Sphinx Tell el-Amarna Thebes Mount Sinai IRAN: Persepolis IRAQ: Babylon Ur and Uruk ISRAEL: Jericho and the Dead Sea Caves Jerusalem Masada JORDAN: Petra LEBANON: Ba’albek SAUDI ARABIA: Mecca and Medina TUNISIA: Carthage The Far East CHINA: The Silk Road Xian Cave of a Thousand Buddhas Forbidden City TIBET: Potala Mount Kailas JAPAN: Mount Koya-san Mount Fuji Kyoto Nara RUSSIAN SIBERIA: Lake Baikal Indian Sub-Continent BHUTAN: The Himalayas INDIA: The River Ganges Khajuraho Sacred Caves and Lost Cities Sacred Cities of India Taj Mahal NEPAL: Kathmandu Valley PAKISTAN: Mohenjo-daro SRI LANKA: Anuradhapura Southeast Asia BURMA: Pagan CAMBODIA: Angkor Banyan INDONESIA: Borobudur Prambanan THAILAND: Sukhothai VIETNAM: Cham Towers Cao Dai Temple Australia and the Pacific AUSTRALIA: Arnhem Land Uluru (Ayers Rock) Sacred Aboriginal Sites HAWAII: City of Refuge Haleakala MICRONESIA: Nan Modal NEW ZEALAND: Mount Cook North Island Sacred Volcanoes TONGA: Mu’a Malden Island South America BOLIVIA: Tiahuanaco Lake Titicaca BRAZIL: Amazon Rain Forest CHILE: Easter Island ECUADOR: Vilcabamba PERU: Machu Picchu and Cuzco Nazca Lines Central America GUATEMALA: Tikal Piedras Negras HONDURAS: Copán MEXICO: Palenque Chichén Itzá Guadalupe La Venta Monte Albán Tenochtitlán Teotihuacán North America CANADA: Saint Joseph’s Oratory Sainte-Anne de Beaupré ARIZONA: Sedona Vortices CALIFORNIA: Mission Trail Mount Shasta FLORIDA: Coral Castle ILLINOIS: Cahokia Mounds NEW HAMPSHIRE: America’s Stonehenge NEW MEXICO: Chaco Canyon WYOMING: Bighorn Medicine Wheel Sub-Saharan Africa SAHARA DESERT: Ancient Rock Drawings Timbuktu ETHIOPIA: Axum TANZANIA: Mount Kilimanjaro Laetoli Plain Zanzibar ZIMBABWE: Great Zimbabwe The European Circuit BRITISH ISLES: Avebury Monuments Glastonbury Stone Circles of the British Isles Stonehenge FRANCE: Carnac Chartres Cathedral Lourdes Mont St. Michel and the St. Michael’s Line GREECE: Acropolis of Athens Delphi Knossos IRELAND: Newgrange ITALY: Pompeii St. Peter’s Basilica MALTA: Tarxien PORTUGAL: Fátima SPAIN: Prehistoric Caves Montserrat Santiago de Compostela TURKEY: Cappadochia (Göreme) Ephesus Hagia Sophia Conclusion Bibliography Tour Outfitters to Sacred Places Index

"Should you be inspired to make a pilgrimage of your own, you might want to pick up a copy of Brad Olsen's guide . . . [to] the world's sacred places. Olsen's marvelous drawings and mysterious maps enhance a package that is as bizarre as it is wonderfully accessible."

 

Brad Olsen is an editor for World Explorer magazine and a columnist for Heartland Healing Magazine. He is the author of In Search of Adventure, Sacred Places North America, and World Stompers.

 

Sacred Places Around the World by Brad Olsen
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