Author(s): Philip Carr-Gomm

Religion

Journeys to sacred places or shrines undertaken as acts of religious veneration or penance have been a feature of religious observance from the earliest times.

Ancient religions had holy sites, temples and groves, such as Delphi and Dodona in Greece. On the other side of the Eurasian landmass the Buddha specifically recommended four sacred sites for his followers to visit. After Christ's crucifixion, sites connected with his birth, death and resurrection became a magnet for Christian travellers. During the medieval period Christian pilgrimage - to Jerusalem, Rome, Constantinople and Santiago de Compostela - was a sacred obligation and a trial of faith. In Islam, pilgrimage to Mecca, or hajj, is one of the Five Pillars of that faith.

Philip Carr-Gomm tells the stories of 50 sacred sites across all five continents, including sites venerated by all of the world's major religions. The sites include:

Mt Kilimanjaro; Bandiagara; Source of Blue Nile; Lake Fundudzi; Pyramids and the Sphinx; Pir-E-Sabz; Church of the Holy Sepulchre; Dome of the Rock; Mecca; The Baha'I Shrines; Temples of Malta; Oracle of Delphi; Perperikon; Tarot Garden; Temples of Humankind; The Ellora Caves; Golden Temple; Santiago de Compostella; Chauvet Cave; Gulf of Morbihan; Chartres Cathedral; Rennes-le-Chateau; The Externsteine; Stonehenge; The Cerne Abbas Giant; Glastonbury; Newgrange; Iona; Walden Pond; Denali; Mato Paha; Yosemite; Bodh Gaya; Potala Palace & Lukhang Temple; Chaco Canyon; Palenque; Wirikuta, Field of Flowers; Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta; Machu Picchu; Sillustani; Rapa Nui; Haleakala and Kaho'olawe; Tongariro and Taupo; Uluru and Kata Tjuta; Mt Fuji; Luang Prabang; Angkor; Sacred Mountains of China; Ganges; Shatrunajaya; Mt Kailash.