The Atlas of Holy Places & Sacred Sites

The Atlas of Holy Places and Sacred Sites is a visually a beautiful book. The author has managed to make the pictures come alive, and you feel as though you walking through the sites yourself. It is a book that I will refer to over and over again.

I wish that the author had included a discussion of the Minaret of Djam, located in Ghor Province, Afghanistan.

This book is just what is claims to be: an Atlas of Sacred Sites. It is not chock full of brilliant ideas like Wilson'e more typical books, but neither is it intended to be. It is designed for the explorer who intends to visit these sites and to show the interested where these sights are. unless you have done a great deal of reading, the book will seem woefully inadequate in explaining most of these sights as mere curiosities. So if anything here interests you, a great deal of supplementary reading will be necessary.

Human history is made up of powerful ideas and beliefs, not of economy, industry and mere survival. This should be clear to anyone who takes the time to consider the enormous energy which was naturally put into the building and ornamentation of temples and monuments of all ages and places, an energy far beyond all purely practical purposes.This atlas of holy places and sacred sites gives us a much more qualitative picture of the world than any purely geographical, statistical or political representation ever will. However, readers without some foreknowledge in world traditions, comparative religion, archaeo-astronomy and the like are unlikely to see how each site fits into a more universal whole and so might feel a bit lost in the myriad of places (and periods) the book visits. But then, of course, one can hardly pretend to be a connoisseur in a more complex thing than the history of civilization.Also, readers will inevitably think that something important was left out or that the author was either too cautious or too daring in his interpretations of the origin and use of specific sites, mainly the older ones. But, by taking on himself the impossible and thankless task of pleasing every seeker and lover of our spiritual legacy, Colin Wilson has produced a beautiful book (gorgeous pictures, layout and binding) with a very helpful gazetteer (takes more time to make than one thinks!) to which or from which each reader can add or subtract whatever he feels is incumbent.Yes, this book is "more than just another pretty coffee-table book"; in fact, there is no reason why you should not have this work of reference on your shelf - even the price is surprisingly reasonable.Jesper Sampaio.