The enchanted earth : numinous sacred sites

Attention is drawn to the numinous character – that is having an indwelling spirit – of sacred sites, which are found in the landscapes, or ‘spiritscapes’ of folk religion. An overview of Southeast Asian folk religions is presented, with particular focus on Thailand, drawing out key characteristics of the relationship between people and numinous sacred sites. Commonalities are identified between Southeast Asian folk religions and the pre-Christian and medieval Christian religious systems of Europe. The radical break triggered in western religious outlook by the Reformation and the scientific revolution killed the idea of a miraculous nature, substituting it with a rationalized ‘disenchanted’ nature. It is suggested that the recent interest in and appreciation of sacred natural sites by western conservation biologists and others is symptomatic of a dramatic faltering of confidence in the post-Reformation view of nature