Sacred Mountains
Sacred mountains are mountains sacred to certain religion. Almost all religions have some sacred mountains.
Connected Sites
| Site | Rationale | Link |
| Al-Faw | "sacred mountain of Khashm Qaryah" (AB ev) | |
| Ancient Tea Plantations of Pu'er | "Each village is guarded by a sacred mountain" (AB ev) | |
| Bahá’i Holy Places | Mount Carmel (North Slope included) | |
| Blue and John Crow Mountains | "The mountains in themselves are held sacred by the Maroons, firstly because they are the burial ground of their ancestors and, according to West African belief, their spirits live close to these sites" (AB ev) | |
| Bom Jesus do Monte | .. illustrates a European tradition of creating Sacri Monti (sacred mounts) (AB ev) | |
| Central Highlands | Adam's Peak | |
| Champaner-Pavagadh | Pavagadh Hill: "Faith based legend surrounding Pavagadh formation suggests that the right foot of Sati is believed to have fallen at Pavagadh, thus forming a deep valley and the God later on "sent a large hill as per the request of Rishi Vishwamitra to fill up this deep valley so that the sage's sacred cows do not fall into it." Thus Kalika Mata Temple at Pavagadh is one of the holiest of Shaktipeets in Indian subcontinent." (wiki) | |
| Dengfeng | Mount Song | |
| Fujisan | ||
| Garajonay | Sacred to the Guanche. At Alto Garajonay there are the remains of a Guanche sanctuary | |
| Gebel Barkal | Jebel Barkal means 'holy mountain' in Arabic, it was believed to be the home of the god Amun (Sudan Bradt Guide) | |
| Great Burkhan Khaldun Mountain | ||
| Gyeongju | "Mount Namsan, which had been venerated by the existing cults of Korea, became a Buddhist sacred mountain and attracted its adherents, who employed the most outstanding architects and craftsmen of the day to create temples, shrines, and monasteries." - AB Document | |
| Hiraizumi | Mount Kinkeisan | |
| Itsukushima Shrine | Mount Misen | |
| Jeju | "Shamanism and the traditional belief system played an important role in the daily life of Jeju people and show a strong relationship with the natural environment. Cultural resources in Mt. Hallasan include altars and shrines such as Sancheondan, providing traces of religious activities native to Jeju Island. Mt. Hallasan is also known for folk tales, such as Hojongdan and Gwangyangdang, showing that Mt. Hallasan served as a spiritual pillar for Jeju residents." - Nomination File | |
| Khangchendzonga National Park | sacred geography of the nominated property include: lakes, caves, sacred rocks, and sacred peaks (AB ev) | |
| Kii Mountain Range | Koyasan for Japanese Buddhism and Shinto | |
| Kilimanjaro National Park | "sacred to the Chaga people who believe god Ruwa resides on the top" (wiki) | |
| Kinabalu Park | Mount Kinabalu, sacred to the Dusun | |
| Lake Baikal | Shaman Rock at Olkhon is the holiest place for the Buryats, Yakuts and Altais. | |
| Laponian Area | Áhkká in the southwestern corner of Stora Sjöfallet National Park: in the Sámi tradition it is a holy mountain (wiki) | |
| Los Glaciares | "The name Chaltén is of indigenous origin; the highest peak of the area Chaltén continues to be considered a sacred mountain in indigenous cosmovision." (IUCN Outlook 2020) | |
| Machu Picchu | Huayna Picchu | |
| Mont-Saint-Michel | Described as such by Unesco | |
| Mount Athos | the sacred mountain of Athos became the principal spiritual home of the Orthodox Church in 1054 (OUV) | |
| Mount Emei, including Leshan Giant Buddha | One of the Buddhist Four Sacred Mountains in China | |
| Mount Kenya | It has been regarded as a sacred mountain by neighbouring Kikuyu and Meru people. | |
| Mount Sanqingshan | Considered a Taoism Sacred Mountain (AB ev) | |
| Mount Taishan | One of the Taoist Five Great Mountains | |
| Mount Wutai | One of the Buddhist Four Sacred Mountains in China | |
| Mount Wuyi | "With the consolidation of the Chinese Empire by the Han Dynasty (late 3rd century BC to early 3rd century AD) Wuyi was fully incorporated into the state system... It was at this time that Mount Wuyi (Wuyishan) acquired its status as a sacred mountain" (AB ev ICOMOS) | |
| Nikko | ||
| Oaxaca and Monte Alban | Monte Alban: "the terraces, dams, canals, pyramids and artificial mounds of Monte Albán were literally carved out of the mountain and are the symbols of a sacred topography." (OUV) | |
| Old City of Jerusalem | Temple Mount | |
| Pannonhalma | Sacred Mount of Pannonia | |
| Petroglyphs of the Mongolian Altai | Shiviit Khairkhan - "The mountain is still considered sacred by local people." (AB ev) | |
| Phu Phrabat | as the Thai name implies, it is sacred for locals as the place where Holy Footprints of Lord Buddha are located | |
| Querétaro | Sangremal and which was called Ynlotepeque and considered sacred in pre-Hispanic times. | |
| Risco Caido | Offical name of the site is: Risco Caido and the Sacred Mountains of Gran Canaria Cultural Landscape | |
| Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy | Christian | |
| Saint Catherine Area | "centred on the holy mountain of Mount Sinaï (Jebel Musa, Mount Horeb)" (OUV) | |
| Seokguram Grotto and Bulguksa Temple | "Mount T'oham, the first to greet the sunrise in the capital of Shilla, was one of Shilla's five major mountains, even before Buddhism was introduced, and was revered as the spiritual mountain of the Shilla people." - AB document | |
| Si Thep | "Khao Thamorrat Cave ancient monument is a monastery with Dvaravati sculptures (382.319 ha), located within a sacred mountain" (AB ev) | |
| Sintra | The sacred Mountains of Varro and Columela (AB ev) | |
| Sulaiman-Too | ||
| Taputapuātea | Tea’etapu and ‘Ōrofātiu | |
| Teide National Park | In the Guanche cosmography Teide represented the ultimate Sacred Mountain and was also a symbolic reference for the aborigines that lived on the other islands (nom file) | |
| The Royal Court of Tiébélé | located on a hill in a plain and considered sacred by the Kassena | |
| Tongariro National Park | Mounts Ruapehu, Ngaruhoe and Tongariro are sacred to the Maori | |
| Tsodilo | ||
| Uluru | ||
| Vat Phou | Phou Kao mountain | |
| Virgin Komi Forests | Yalping Nyer is sacred to the Mansi | |
| Volcanoes of Kamchatka | Klyuchevskaya Sopka: "considered sacred by some indigenous peoples, being viewed by them as the location at which the world was created" (wiki without a citation) | |
| Wudang Mountains | Taoist | |
| Yakushima | Traditionally, the Island Mountains have been considered to have a spiritual value (Unesco website) |
Suggestions?
Do you know of another WHS we could connect to Sacred Mountains?
A connection should:
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