The Promised Axis Mundi
Jonathan Ortiz
The center of the world, as described by Mircea Eliade, is the connection between the three spiritual destinations of humans: the heavens, the earth, and the underworld. Visualized by Eliade as a cosmic pillar, the axis mundi is the connection point between these three spiritual dimensions for humans.
The promised land, as told in the Bible, is where the twelve tribes of Israel traversed from the confines of Egypt under the guidance of their lord, Yahweh. The Israelites were led to this land, the land of Canaan, by Moses and his successor, Joshua. To the nomadic tribes, this sacred land was the promised gift from their lord, Yahweh, due to the extreme famine that they faced.
During the Middle Ages, many religious mapmakers believed that Jerusalem should be recognized, and it truly was the center of the earth. The Bunting Clover Leaf Map is the perfect example, as it depicts the three continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa, all leading towards the city of Jerusalem in Israel.
So by taking a step back and piecing together the different readings from our class this week, it is evident that the promised land of Jerusalem and Israel is one of the biggest examples of axis mundi. This sacred area at a point was even recognized as the center of the world, just as an axis mundi is the center point between the heavens, earth, and the underworld.
As a clear axis mundi, what does this mean? What does it mean for Jerusalem to be "one of the deepest meanings of sacred space"? Well, as Eliade describes, any place or space has the ability to be considered a sacred space. These deep understandings of the history of the land and definition of axis mundi help describe why this land is classified as a sacred space phenomenon, but they also describe why there is so much conflict in this land.
Unfortunately, as the three Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—grew in size and following, violence erupted. These three religions have a deep history of war and death due to the ownership and conquering of this land. From the First Crusade being in the year 1096 to even conflict today, these religions have been fighting for hundreds of years due to religious conflict. Each religion has deep roots and ties to the promised land, as it is recognized as an axis mundi in each. However, with this being said, each religion deeply believes that they are the people of this promised land, leading to a never-ending, deadly war lasting centuries.
You have some decent ideas in your blog post, but the formatting made it difficult to follow (e.g. paragraphs should be justified left, not center; the photos were aligned strangely). You should use the preview feature before posting to make sure that the post is formatted effectively before going live. Also, you refer to some of the readings in your post, but you didn't include parenthetical citations, which are important so your reader knows where to find the information.
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