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Sacred geometry

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	Topics Sacred geometry Topic Home Sacred geometry is geometryGeometry Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships.... used in the design of sacred architecture and sacred artFacts About Sacred art Sacred art is =Christian European sacred art... . The basic belief is that geometry and mathematical ratios, harmonics and proportion are also found in musicMusic Music is an art, entertainment, or other human activity that involves organized and audible sounds and silence.... , lightLight Light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength that is visible to the eye or, in a technical or scientific context, e... , cosmologyCosmology Cosmology, from the Greek:??sµ?????a is the study of the Universe in its totality, and by extension, humanity's place in it... . This value systemValue system A value system refers to how an individual or a group of individuals organize their ethical or ideological values.... is seen as widespread even in prehistoryFacts About Prehistory Prehistory is a term often used to describe the period before written history became available.... , a cultural universalCultural universal A cultural universal is an element, pattern, trait, or institution that is common to all human cultures on the planet.... of the human conditionHuman condition The human condition encompasses the totality of the experience of being human and living human lives.... . It is considered foundational to building sacred structures such as templeTemple A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites .... s, mosqueMosque A mosque is a place of worship for followers of the Islamic faith.... s, megalithMegalith A megalith is a large stone which has been used to construct a structure or monument either alone or with other stones.... s, monuments and churchChurch Sorry, no overview for this topic es; sacred spaces such as altarAltar An altar is any structure upon which sacrifices or other offerings are offered for religious purposes.... s, temenoiTemenos Temenos is the Greek term in archaeology given to a piece of land which forms the enclosure of a temple, or sanctuary.... and tabernacleTabernacle The Tabernacle is known in Hebrew as the *Mishkan.... s; meeting places such as sacred groveSacred grove Sacred groves* were a feature of the mythological landscape and the cult practice of Old Europe, of the most ancient levels o... s, village greenVillage green A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement.... s and holy wellHoly well Overview A Holy Well is a spring or other body of water, revered usually in a Christian or pagan context.... s and the creation of religious art, iconographyIconography Overview *Iconography* usually refers to the design or creation of images and more specifically to the historical study of art whic... and using "divine" proportions. Alternatively, sacred geometry based arts may be ephemeral, such as visualizationVisualization Visualization can refer toin technology:... , sandpaintingFacts About Sandpainting Sandpainting is the art of painting ritual paintings for religious or healing ceremonies.... and medicine wheelMedicine wheel Medicine wheels are stone structures built by the natives of North America for various spiritual and ritual purposes.... s. As worldview Sacred geometry may be understood as a worldview of pattern recognitionPattern recognition Pattern recognition is a field within the area of machine learning.... , a complex systemComplex system There are many definitions of complexity, therefore... of religious symbols and structures involving spaceSpace Space has been an interest for philosophers and scientists for much of human history.... , timeTime Two distinct views exist on the meaning of time.... and formForm *Form, in general, refers to the external shape, appearance, configuration of an object, in contrast to the matter or con... . According to this view the basic patterns of existence are perceived as sacredSacred In various religions, sacred* or "holy", objects, places or concepts are believed by followers to be intimately connected wi... . By connecting with these, a believer contemplates the Mysterium MagnumMysterium Magnum *Mysterium Magnum* is Latin for "great mystery" and has many different associations and usages.... , and the Great DesignTeleological argument A teleological argument is an argument for the existence of God or a creator based on perceived evidence of order, purpose,... . By studying the nature of these patterns, forms and relationships and their connections, insight may be gained into the mysteries – the lawLaw Law is the set of rules or norms of conduct which forbid, permit or mandate specified actions and relationships among people... s and loreLore Overview Lore is acquired knowledge or traditional beliefs.... of the UniverseUniverse The term universe has a variety of meanings, based on the context in which it is used.... . Music The discovery of the relationship of geometry and mathematics to music within the Classical PeriodClassical period Classical period can refer to the following:... is attributed to PythagorasPythagoras Summary Pythagoras of Samos was an Ionian mathematician and philosopher, founder of the mystic, religious and scientific society c... , who found that a string stopped halfway along its length produced an octaveFacts About Octave In music, an octave is the interval between one musical note and another with half or double the frequency.... , while a ratio of 3/2 produced a fifthPerfect fifth The perfect fifth or *diapente* is a musical interval which is responsible for the most consonant, or stable, harmon... interval and 4/3 produced a fourthPerfect fourth The perfect fourth or *diatessaron, abbreviated P4, is one of two commonly occurring musical intervals that s... . Pythagoreans believed that this gave music powers of healing, as it could "harmonize" the out-of-balance body, and this belief has been revived in modern times. Hans JennyHans Jenny (cymatics) Summary Hans Jenny* was physician and natural scientist who is considered the father of cymatics, the study of wave phenomena.... , a physician who pioneered the study of geometric figures formed by wave interactions and named that study cymaticsCymatics Cymatics is the study of wave phenomena.... , is often cited in this context. However, Dr. Jenny did not make healing claims for his work. Even though Hans JennyHans Jenny Hans Jenny may refer to:Hans Jenny, soil scientist... did pioneer cymaticsCymatics Cymatics* is the study of wave phenomena.... in modern times, the study of geometric relationships to wave interaction (sound) obviously has much older roots. A work that shows ancient peoples understanding of sacred geometry can be found in ScotlandScotland Overview Scotland is a nation in northwest Europe and one of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom.... . In the Rosslyn ChapelRosslyn Chapel Rosslyn Chapel, originally named the Collegiate Chapel of St.... , Tomas J. Mitchell has found what he calls "frozen music". Apparently, there are 213 cubes with different symbols that are believed to have musical significance. After 27 years of study and research, Mitchell has found the correct pitches and tonality that matches each symbol on each cube, revealing harmonic and melodic progressions. He has fully discovered the "frozen music", which he has named the Rosslyn Motet, and is set to have it performed in the chapel on May 18th, 2007, and June 1, 2007. Cosmology See also Kepler conjectureKepler conjecture In mathematics, the Kepler conjecture is a conjecture about sphere packing in three-dimensional Euclidean space.... , Mysterium CosmographicumMysterium Cosmographicum *Mysterium Cosmographicum, is an astronomy book by the German astronomer Johannes Kepler, published at Tbingen in 1596.... , PythagoreanismPythagoreanism Pythagoreanism* is a term used for the esoteric and metaphysical beliefs held by Pythagoras and his followers, the Pythagorea... At least as late as Johannes KeplerJohannes Kepler Johannes Kepler , a key figure in the scientific revolution, was a German mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, and an earl... , a belief in the geometric underpinnings of the cosmos persisted among scientists. Kepler explored the ratios of the planetary orbits, at first in two dimensions (having spotted that the ratio of the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn approximate to the in-circle and out-circle of an equilateral triangle). When this did not give him a neat enough outcome, he tried using the Platonic solids. In fact, planetary orbits can be related using two-dimensional geometric figures, but the figures do not occur in a particularly neat order. Even in his own lifetime (with less accurate data than we now possess) Kepler could see that the fit of the Platonic solids was imperfect. However, other geometric configurations are possible. Natural forms Many forms observed in nature can be related to geometry (for sound reasons of resource optimization). For example, the chambered nautilusChambered Nautilus The Chambered Nautilus is the best known species of nautilus.... grows at a constant rate and so its shell forms a logarithmic spiralLogarithmic spiral A logarithmic spiral, equiangular spiral or growth spiral is a special kind of spiral curve which often appears ... to accommodate that growth without changing shape. Also, honeybees construct hexagonal cells to hold their honey. These and other correspondences are seen by believers in sacred geometry to be further proof of the cosmic significance of geometric forms. But some scientists see such phenomena as the logical outcome of natural principles. Art and architecture The golden ratioGolden ratio The golden ratio, usually denoted , expresses the relationship that the sum of two quantities is to the larger quantity as t... , geometric ratios, and geometric figures were often employed in the design of EgyptianAncient Egyptian architecture For at least ten thousand years, the Nile valley has been the site of one of the most influential civilizations in the world.... , ancient Indian, GreekArchitecture of Ancient Greece Architecture was extinct in Greece from the end of the Mycenaean period until the 7th century B.C., when urban life and prosperi... and RomanRoman architecture Overview The Romans adopted the external language of classical Greek architecture for their own purposes, which were so different from Gr... architectureArchitecture * Architectural history* Architectural mythology... . Medieval European cathedrals also incorporated symbolic geometry. Indian and Himalayan spiritual communities often constructed temples and fortificationFortification Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defense in warfare.... s on design plans of mandala and yantra. For examples of sacred geometry in art and architecture refer: LabyrinthLabyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth was an elaborate structure constructed for King Minos of Crete and designed by the legenda... (an Eulerian pathEulerian path In the mathematical field of graph theory, an Eulerian path is a path in a graph which visits each edge exactly once.... , as distinct from a mazeMaze A maze is a tour puzzle in the form of a complex branching passage through which the solver must find a route.... ) MandalaMandala Mandala is of Hindu origin and is also used in most Dharmic religions, such as Buddhism and Hinduism, to refer to various ta... Flower of LifeFlower of Life The Flower of Life is a geometrical figure composed of multiple evenly-spaced, overlapping circles, that are arranged so tha... ParthenonParthenon he Parthenon was a temple of Athena, built in the 5th century BC on the Acropolis of Athens.... TaijituYin and yang The concepts of Yin and Yang originate in ancient Chinese philosophy and metaphysics, which describes two primal opposing bu... (Yin-Yang) Tree of LifeTree of life (science) Charles Darwin believed that phylogeny, the ascent of all species through time, was expressible as a metaphor he termed the Tre... Rose WindowRose window Most commonly, and especially in Gothic architecture, a rose window is a circular stained glass window, with mullions and tr... Celtic artCeltic art Celtic art is art associated with various peoples known as Celts speaking the Celtic languages in Europe from pre-history th... such as the Book of KellsBook of Kells The Book of Kells is an ornately illustrated manuscript, produced by Celtic monks around AD 800.... YantraYantra Yantra literally means loom, instrument or machine.... SwastikaSwastika he swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles in either left-facing or right-facing direction.... DharmacakraDharmacakra The Dharmacakra or Dhammacakka, Tibetan chos.kyi 'khor.lo, Chinese falún ??, "Wheel of Dharma" is an auspiciou... Contemporary usage A contemporary usage of the term sacred geometry describes assertions of a mathematical order to the intrinsic nature of the universeUniverse The term universe has a variety of meanings, based on the context in which it is used.... . Scientists see the same geometric and mathematical patterns as arising directly from natural principles. Some of the most prevalent traditional geometric forms ascribed to sacred geometry include the sine waveSine wave The sine wave or sinusoid is a function that occurs often in mathematics, signal processing, alternating-current power... , the sphereSphere A sphere is a perfectly symmetrical geometrical object.... , the vesica piscisVesica piscis The vesica piscis is a symbol made from two circles of the same radius, intersecting in such a way that the center of each c... , the 5 platonic solids, the torusTorus GeometryIn geometry, a torus is a doughnut-shaped surface of revolution generated by revolving a circle in three dimensiona... (donut), the golden spiralGolden spiral In geometry, a golden spiral is a logarithmic spiral whose growth factor b is related to φ, the golden ratio.... , the tesseractTesseract In geometry, the tesseract is the 4-dimensional analog of the cube, where motion along the fourth dimension is often a repr... (4-dimensional cube), and the merkaba (2 oppositely oriented and interpenetrating tetrahedrons). See also ArabesqueArabesque An element of Islamic art usually found decorating the walls of mosques, the arabesque is an elaborate application of repeat... BinduBindu Bindu is an Indian concept that signifies action — a concept that can take the meaning of a single dot.... Sri ChakraSri Chakra The Sri Chakra or Shri Yantra of Tripura Sundari is a yantra or mandala formed by nine interlocking triangles surround... Crop circleCrop circle Crop circles are areas of cereal or similar crops that have been systematically flattened to form various geometric patterns... Ley lines FractalFractal In colloquial usage, a fractal is a shape that is recursively constructed or self-similar, that is, a shape that appears similar a... Folk mathematicsFolk mathematics As the term is understood by mathematicians, *folk mathematics* or *mathematical folklore* means theorems, definit... Proportion (architecture)Proportion (architecture) Architectural practice has often used proportional systems to generate or constrain the forms considered suitable for inclusion in... Platonic solids Golden ratioGolden ratio The golden ratio, usually denoted , expresses the relationship that the sum of two quantities is to the larger quantity as t... Golden spiralGolden spiral In geometry, a golden spiral is a logarithmic spiral whose growth factor b is related to φ, the golden ratio.... Astrological aspects Further reading BeginningsBeginnings Beginnings may refer to:**Beginnings* has been the title of several music albums:... : Geomancy, Builders' Rites and Electional Astrology in the European Tradition by Nigel PennickNigel Pennick Nigel Campbell Pennick, born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England in the United Kingdom, an author publishing on Occultism, or... Sacred Geometry: Symbolism and Purpose in Religious Structures by Nigel PennickNigel Pennick Overview Nigel Campbell Pennick, born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England in the United Kingdom, an author publishing on Occultism, or... The Ancient Science of Geomancy: Living in Harmony with the Earth by Nigel PennickNigel Pennick Nigel Campbell Pennick, born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England in the United Kingdom, an author publishing on Occultism, or... The Sacred Art of Geometry: Temples of the Phoenix by Nigel PennickNigel Pennick Nigel Campbell Pennick, born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England in the United Kingdom, an author publishing on Occultism, or... The Oracle of Geomancy by Nigel PennickNigel Pennick Nigel Campbell Pennick, born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England in the United Kingdom, an author publishing on Occultism, or... The Ancient Science of Geomancy: Man in Harmony with the Earth by Nigel PennickNigel Pennick Nigel Campbell Pennick, born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England in the United Kingdom, an author publishing on Occultism, or... George Bain. Celtic Art: The Methods of Construction. Dover, 1973. ISBN 0-486-22923-8. Robert LawlorRobert Lawlor Robert Lawlor is an anthropologist, mythographer, symbologist and author of several books.... . Sacred Geometry: Philosophy and practice (Art and Imagination). Thames & Hudson, 1989 (1st edition 1979, 1980, or 1982). ISBN 0-500-81030-3. John MichellJohn Michell (writer) John Michell, born in 1933, is a prolific English writer on subjects including the occult, Fortean phenomena, sacred sites, ... . City of Revelation. Abacus, 1972. ISBN 0-349-12320-9. Michael S. Schneider. A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Science. Harper Paperbacks, 1995. ISBN 0-06-092671-6 Lucy R Lippard: Overlay: Contemporary Art and the Art of Prehistory. Pantheon Books New York 1983 ISBN 0-394-54812-8 Anthony Johnson: Solving Stonehenge, the New Key to an Ancient Enigma. Thames & Hudson 2008 ISBN 978-0-500-05155-9 External links