The Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe

Home , Alka (Baltic religion), Celtic maze, Dievas, Frangokastello, Latvian name, Siida

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The Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe Inari/Aanaar 2010 The Diversity ofSacredin Europe Lands Edited by Mallarach, Josep-Maria Thymio Papayannis andRauno Väisänen the DelosInitiative 2010 –Inari/Aanaar Proceedings ofthe Third Workshop of

The Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe Proceedings of the Third Workshop of the Delos Initiative The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN, Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services, The Delos Initiative or other participating organisations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN, Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services, The Delos Initiative or other participating organisations. This publication has been made possible by funding from the Ministry of the Environment, Finland, and Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services. Published by: IUCN, Gland, Switzerland in collaboration with Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services, Vantaa, Finland. Copyright: © 2012 All authors for their respective contributions, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, and Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services. Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorised without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged. Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder. Citation: Mallarach, J.-M., Papayannis, T. and Väisänen, R. (eds) (2012). The Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe: Proceedings of the Third Workshop of the Delos Initiative – Inari/Aanaar 2010. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN and Vantaa, Finland: Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services. 292 pp. ISBN: 978-2-8317-1423-3 Cover photos: Clockwise from the top: Fadil Sarki, Mikael Hintze/Metsähallitus, Knut Helskog, G. Porter, sanniopropone.com, Heiki Maiberg, Ervin Ruci/FunkMonk, Thymio Papayannis and Sebastian Cataniou in the middle. Back: Riina Tervo/Metsähallitus. Layout by: Taittotalo PrintOne, Minna Komppa Translation: PasaNet Oy, Spencer Allman Coordinaton and Liisa Nikula, Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services text editing: Produced by: Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services Printed by: Edita Prima Oy Available from: IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Publications Services Rue Mauverney 28 1196 Gland Switzerland Tel +41 22 999 0000 Fax +41 22 999 0002 [email protected] www.iucn.org/publications Med-INA 23, Voukourestiu Street 106 71 Athens Greece Tel +30 210 360 0711 Fax +30 210 362 9338 [email protected] www.med-ina.org The text of this book is printed on Galerie Art Silk 130 gsm made from wood fibre from well-managed forests certified in accordance with the rules of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). The Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe Proceedings of the Third Workshop of the Delos Initiative

Inari/Aanaar, Finland, 1-3 July 2010

Edited by Jose-Maria Mallarach, Thymio Papayannis and Rauno Väisänen table of contents

7 All creation groans and sighs… Kari Mäkinen 15 Introduction to the proceedings of the third workshop of the Delos Initiative in Inari/Aanaar, Lapland, Finland Josep-Maria Mallarach, Thymio Papayannis and Rauno Väisänen

25 Part One: The Sámi people and their relation to nature 27 Greetings from the Saami Parliament Juvvá Lemet – Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi 33 Words of welcome Tarmo Jomppanen 37 Indigenous Sámi religion: General considerations about relationships Jelena Porsanger 47 Archaeology of sieidi stones. Excavating sacred places Tiina Äikäs

59 Part Two: Ancient, indigenous and minority sacred natural sites 61 Conserving sacred natural sites in Estonia Ahto Kaasik 75 Use and reuse of ancient sacred places in Mikytai, Žemaitija National Park, NW Lithuania Vykintas Vaitkevicˇius 85 Zilais kalns – Blue Hill in Latvia Juris Urtaˉns 95 Alevi-Bektashi communities in south-eastern Europe: spiritual heritage and environmental consciousness Irini Lyratzaki

109 Part Three: Managing lands of mainstream religions 111 The cultural and spiritual sites of the Parco Nazionale della Majella, Italy Vita de Waal 125 Holy Island of Lindisfarne and the modern relevance of Celtic ‘Nature Saints’. Robert Wild 139 Landscape linkages between cultural and spiritual values. The wetland of Colfiorito and the Lauretana pilgrimage route in the Plestian Plateaus. Chiara Serenelli

155 Part Four: Managing lands of monastic communities 157 Monastic communities and nature conservation: Overview of positive trends and best practices in Europe and the Middle East Josep-Maria Mallarach 175 Managing the heritage of Mt Athos Thymio Papayannis 189 Special Nature Reserve Milesevka and the Mileseva Monastery Nadezda Pesic, Svetlana Dingarac and Dimitrije Pesic

203 Part Five: Europe: a wealth of sacred natural sites 205 Diversity of sacred lands and meanings in Northern Europe: Challenges for the managers of protected areas Rauno Väisänen 217 The Carpathian Mountains, a realm of Sacred Natural Sites Sebastian Ca˘ta˘noiu 231 The ‘sacredness’ of natural sites and their recovery: Iona, Harris and Govan in Scotland Alastair McIntosh 245 Synergies between spiritual and natural heritage for habitat conservation in the Barents Euro-Arctic Region Alexander N. Davydov

259 Part Six: Other related issues 260 Applicability of the IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines for Protected Area Managers on Sacred Natural Sites: first assessment Josep-Maria Mallarach 271 Inputs and comments from the workshop 275 Conclusions 285 Appendices 291 The ecological footprint of the Delos Proceedings

All creation groans and sighs... Humanity and borders

In the Finnish language, the early semantic strata associated with the concept of pyhä (’holy’) relate to a place on the landscape. The reference is to a border. Many place names, such as Pyhäjärvi or Pyhäjoki, bear this out. These are particular places in the wild, as far as which people have been permitted to travel, though no further. Holy outlines an area belonging to man – demarcates it. The word in this sense is still valid today, although it is no longer literally associated with a place on the landscape. When we speak of the ‘holy’ we are still expressing the idea of the borders of human existence. A holy day (for example Sun- day) or holy object signifies a spiritual terrain isolated from others that speaks of somewhere beyond, a place that does not belong to man. It is a border which demands that we step back – we have to pause, just as we do at a geographical one. It requires our humility, sensitivity and respect.

A sense of the holy and its protection are essential if people are to understand who they are. To be human is to stand before what is holy and to relate to it. That is the only way we can identify the borders of humanity and human activity.

Holy spaces are the doors to the meaning of everything The Christian interpretation of life is not detached from these archaic, distant meanings of the Finnish word pyhä - holy – but actually relates to them. This is the case with the stories of creation in the beginning of the Bible, which are basic de- pictions of human existence. They even use imagery that recalls the ancient meanings of the word.

In the beginning, according to the stories, man is part of the same reality in which God is walking in cool of the afternoon. The holy is not somewhere on the outside. The world does not exist by chance but by the will of God. All creation is holy, because it reflects the holiness of its Creator. But man’s tragic destiny is to become separated from this, to be expelled from God’s garden. As is well known, it happens in the account of the Fall, the apple and the serpent acting as its agents. Its core meaning is that man will rise to the position of God and above everything else. The stories describe the basis of existence. Man is totally dependent on his Creator and creation, and his relationship with these is the most fundamental of all. It is a relationship with what is holy. The relationship is not simple or calm; it is contradictory, broken.

7 It is for this very reason - because of the hubris that shatters the basic relationship - that man needs to be able to identify and interpret the holy and those symbols that denote its reality: there is something more, something beyond our reality.

The separately defined spaces, times and places that are recognised as holy are those that allow people, and the whole of creation, to breathe out, groan and sigh and create something new. They are doors to the deep meaning of life.

Does the holy have a place in modern-day living? From the perspective of those first stories, we might ask how in today’s western culture a person can understand his or her existence in relation to what is holy.

As the foundations of the ecological system shake, there are good arguments for saying that God plays no part in our culture. The basic dimension of human existence, a sense of the holy, is absent, and in its place are merciless consumerism and the logic of exploitation. Where God is absent, people and nature only have a utility value, and no other.

Nevertheless, we should not succumb to romantic ideas about history and claim that people used to have a sense of what was holy but now God is conspicuous by his absence. The modernisation of western culture has not buried the holy, but its place has changed.

In the western process of modernisation, what was understood as holy broke loose from the authoritative power structure. Gradually, one had to get used to the notion that the holy was worshipped totally differently from the way in which power was worshipped. It was a liberating process. For the Christian Church, this legacy means that, living amidst the social and economic powers that are destroying mankind, we are called on to question radically what is going on and boldly stand up for human life itself.

In the same process of modernisation, culture and society also became differenti- ated and fragmented. Politics, art, science, economics, business, education, religion all became their own separate areas of life. The area of religion became the reservation in which God was given a place to live. Talk of God and the holy was restricted to that place only. When religious life came to have a monopoly on the holy, as it were, other aspects of life could carry on as if they had no relationship to the holy or as if the borders of the existence of what was holy and of human activity did not concern them.

8 The borders of science In two areas of life, this has been particularly clear to see. One is the scientific/ technological domain. Within its framework, western man has approached life as if there were no borders on the landscape, thus permitting him to go as far as his knowledge and ability allow.

In the areas of biomedicine, genetic engineering and virtual technology, we are at present in unknown territory. Here for once we have to ask whether there is a sacred border beyond which we may not go. The old maps provide no help. It is for this very reason that we need humility, sensitivity and respect so much, and they stem from an awareness of human borders and what is holy.

This is a special challenge for Christian theology of creation. The challenge is on an altogether different scale compared to the conflicts between Christian belief and the natural sciences that date back to the 19th century. Now it is of fundamental importance to ask whether the borders of mankind are marked by anything more than intelligence and ambition. Should we be going on a voyage of discov- ery in all areas, or are there borders that cannot be crossed from the perspective of humanity and life, borders at which we have to stop, just like we do when we en- counter the holy?

The borders of economics, business and consumerism The other area is economics and business. They now dominate our culture. It is on their terms that we decide what is important and what is not.

Within this sphere of influence, the basic relations of human existence are shaped in a whole new way. How someone relates to economic activity is crucial. People are seen to be fundamentally dependent on it. It has a surplus value, with some features of the holy, but it does not point beyond mankind. One’s relationship with it is not the same as that with the holy or God, which indicates something outside man. There is of course room for God, but the limits of human activity or existence are not seen through Him, but through the economy.

In the current climate, there is a danger that the holy, and symbols denoting the holy, will simply become a commodity, like everything else. There will be products that people acquire in order to experience what is holy. There is some demand for this, because a need for the sacred lies deep within a person, just like the desire to live. But, at the same time, the holy ceases to be holy. It becomes banal and metamorphoses into a momentary experience. It no longer allows us to identify human borders and territory.

If people are primarily understood in relation to economic activity, the whole field of human endeavour is in danger of being perceived as one of market relations, pro-

9 duction, consumption, buying and selling. Then a person also comes to be seen as a product in the social and financial markets. Man, like creation, ceases to be valuable in himself, as something created, in a relationship with his Creator. The borders of humanity are then those of the market, and there is nothing beyond them.

If the sense of what is holy disappears from our culture, so does the perspective from which human endeavour, mankind’s own territory, can be examined. This is the danger of a culture ruled by market ideology and consumerism. The consequences could be fateful. They are already visible in the area of global environmental issues as well as in the shape of the growing worldwide gap between the survivors and those who are left to rely on their own luck. This affects the poorest part of the world the hardest, although those who brought about the situation are the rich industrialised countries.

Where the holy places and spaces are It is in this western world, absorbed as it is by scientific/technological culture and consumerism, that we have a need for holy areas, a need to raise their profile and protect them, and not just have them safely placed within religion’s conventional realm.

Holy places and spaces are places to stop at. They are places for calm and silence. Silence is the domain of the holy; it is God’s domain. When you can use words to sell anything and they lose their meaning, there is a need to turn to silence, to arrive at the real borders of human existence. The holy shuns the lime- light, words and communication: it lives beyond them, where things are left unsaid - there are no words.

Silence and stillness are the key ingredients of the Christian tradition, when everything stops before God. They are the essence of prayer. Finns get very close to this when they feel like turning their backs on everything that seems fulfilling in their daily lives but appears to conceal what is fundamentally true, and so they retreat to the seashore or the depths of the forest. There where you believe that you can breathe the presence of God. It is a genuine desire to acknowledge those fundamental relationships that have been put in place for man, the created being, and to see mankind’s place from the most basic of perspectives.

The legacy of taking one’s time, silence and stopping represents an attitude to life of someone that is calm, takes deep breaths and submits to prayer. Thus, like other religions, the Christian Church takes on the task of maintaining a counterculture, amid all the efficiency, speed and cost-effectiveness of the modern world.

In the silence, we also need to listen carefully to the voices of the limnologists, me- teorologists and many other natural scientists, as well as the environmental move-

10 ment. Their intention is the same as that of the prophets in the Old Testament, who reminded us of our basic relationship with the reality of God and its distortion. Those voices radically compel us to confront the fact that there are limits beyond which mankind should not pass. They call for humility when contemplating creation; they tell us to stop at the border of the holy.

On the European scene, where creation groans under the burden of weighty tar- mac, there are signs that what is holy has not vanished. Even in the midst of everything, there is a constant dialogue with God. We have church buildings as a sign of this.

Inside the churches, such pointless and unproductive activities as religious services go on. They do not have any particular appeal, and are given no public attention. The markets ignore them. Nonetheless, perhaps precisely because of them, a cultural place on the landscape remains open, somewhere people take stock of the fundamental relationships associated with their existence and want to bow their heads, as they do when they are before something holy.

When people bow their heads before God in church, this is also a matter of con- fession: admitting that we cannot listen to the tragic sigh of creation as outside ob- servers. We are deeply involved, even the Christian Church. As human beings, we are part of the consumer culture that contaminates everything, and, as Christians, we have interpreted our faith in such a manner that it has made way for the arro- gant exploitation of creation.

The Church cannot, and is unwilling to, dictate from on high how people should behave: instead, it invites them to common self-reflection, humility and the courage to change. In the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church’s Climate Programme, this invitation can be summarised in just three words: gratitude, respect and moderation.

Courage The Church’s approach derives from those fundamental stories about what is holy that are told in church services. Alongside the first stories in the Bible, another tale is told, one that gives another view of what is holy. It is the story of Christ, the central theme of the New Testament. It highlights the fact that the sacred, the reality of God, is not just beyond this reality, beyond the gates in God’s own domain, but is also fragmented radically amid humanity as a whole.

The holy is not encountered solely in something that reflects the identity of something from the outside, something else that is purer and more whole. It can also be found wherever people have suffered loss, been victims, lost their way, lost their identity or been broken.

11 That is why this is not just about awareness and identification of the holy depending on humility and respect amid the reality that surrounds us. They also form a basis for the courage to stand up for all life at its weakest and most fractured points.

¤ ¤ ¤

The articles in this book highlight the notion of creation groaning, something that comes from different parts of Europe, their nature conservation sites, sacred areas and the life of prayer pursued in monasteries. It is the sound of an awareness of what is holy, inviting us to act with humility before creation and, at the same time, boldly resist the greedy world of business economy and the consumer culture. The articles, written by specialists, give a picture of a world we all share, where man is bound to creation, inseparably and fatefully. The worlds of different cultures and faiths have not shown a desire to withdraw or stay silent when it comes to acknowledging the responsibility we all have for creation. Europe’s holy places and traditions of prayer are powerful voices that call on us all to be determined and un- yielding in our defence of what is holy in life. To this groan, this call, and on behalf of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Fin- land, I would like to add these words from Psalm 104: “When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.”

Kari Mäkinen

Archbishop

Pielpajärvi Wilderness Church in Inari. >

12 13 14 Introduction to the proceedings of the third workshop of the Delos Initiative in Inari/Aanaar, Lapland, Finland Josep-Maria Mallarach, Thymio Papayannis and Rauno Väisänen

In order to provide to the reader with itual values, the Delos Initiative was an introduction to the Proceedings of launched in 2004 in the framework of the third workshop of the Delos Initia- the Task Force on Cultural and Spiritual tive, it seems fitting, first, to present a Values of Protected Areas of IUCN short overview of what this Initiative is World Commission of Protected Areas. about, its goals, approach and accom- The Initiative was named after the Ae- plishments, and next, to discuss the gean island of Delos, a sacred site for purpose of the workshop, the reason both Greeks and Romans, dedicated for holding it in Northern Lapland, its to Apollo, the god of light, which was development and programme. the centre of a long lasting Athenian Alliance. In ancient Greek the name Delos means ‘towards the light’. Delos The Delos Initiative: purpose, Island has no links to any single living approach and accomplishments faith.

To contribute to improve the conserva- The purpose of the Delos Initiative is to tion of sacred natural sites (SNS) in de- identify the pertinence and meaning of veloped countries and thus to assist in sacred natural sites and to investigate maintaining both their natural and spir- how spiritual values can contribute to

< Dwarf Cornel (Cornus suecica)

15 the conservation and wise use of natu- ties for improvement. The draft diag- ral areas in developed countries. The nose is discussed with various local sacred natural sites in developing stakeholders, so that a deeper com- countries have received relatively prehension of the issues could be much less public and scientific atten- achieved. Then, a certain number of tion, e.g. by the IUCN/WCPA Task recommendations is proposed to over- Force on Cultural and Spiritual Values come the main issues identified, hope- of Protected Areas (Wild and McLeod, fully after discussion and consensus 2008). The Delos Initiative was born to with the main stakeholders again. The remind and recognise that such sa- results of this process are presented to cred natural sites exist also in many a peer group and debated among its protected areas of the technologically members, so that lessons of general developed countries, though often ne- interest can be extracted from them. glected or overlooked, and that they are facing specific challenges and In parallel, theoretical work is carried need action, if we are to conserve their out to understand the basic principles heritage for the future. that the spiritual tradition has about the symbolic character of nature and in the The Delos Initiative approach is mainly sacredness of natural spiritual mani- based on the standardised analysis of festations. At this level, the Delos Initia- specific sites, chosen based on the tive attempts to assess their relevance criteria of relevance and representa- and influence in various contexts and tiveness. The idea is that if best prac- to propose and validate analogies and tices can be identified and developed potential relationships. in highly significant sacred natural sites, these practices will easily spread These two approaches and the imple- to other sites by means of their differ- mentation of the lessons they provide ent layers of radiance. The case stud- have brought forward positive results ies chosen may either be important for for the conservation of sacred natural world religions, the local or folk varia- sites, in particular, as well as for nature tions of them, or for the spiritual tradi- in general in several countries. tions of indigenous people or local Current case studies of the Delos communities. Initiative include protected areas from Case studies are carefully analysed, virtually all IUCN management catego- usually by local experts, with the ob- ries of protected areas. They are found jective to assess their natural, cultural in Europe, North America, Africa, Asia and spiritual values, to understand and Oceania, and related to the larg- their specificities, how they are related est world religions and several primal to each other, what are their main spiritual traditions and folk religions. stakeholders, often different for the dif- Most of these cases combine out- ferent dimensions of the heritage, and standing natural, cultural and spiritual also to identify threats and opportuni- values. All these sacred natural sites

16 have preceded the establishment of for Protected Area Managers on Sacred protected areas, often by several cen- Natural Sites (Wild and McLeod, 2008), turies, sometimes by thousands of given that the existing guidelines focus years, and many of them have tradi- on the sacred natural sites of indigenous tional custodians or guardians. Some and local communities. are known by small communities, and Until the present day, most of the work have restrictions for access to outsid- of the Delos Initiative has been devel- ers, whilst others receive large num- oped in Europe, either at bioregional or bers of pilgrims or visitors, numbering national levels, together with organisa- several million per year. tions such as the IUCN Landscape The Delos Initiative has previously held Task Force, the EUROPARC Federation, two workshops, the first one at the holy Eurosite, the Convention of the Car- mountain of Montserrat, Catalonia, pathian Protected Areas, Mediterrane- Spain in 2006, and the second at an Ramsar sites, and the Protected Ouranoupolis, next to the monastic re- Area Unit of the Romanian National For- public of Mount Athos, Greece, in est Administration (Romsilva). For in- 2007. The work carried out during the stance, the Spanish Section of Euro- first years was compiled in the pro- parc agreed to integrate the cultural ceedings of both workshops (Mal- and spiritual values in the planning and larach and Papayannis, 2007; Papay- management of protected areas in the annis and Mallarach eds, 2010) and Programme of Work for. Protected encapsulated in the Montserrat (2006) Areas of Spain 2009-13 (EUROPARC and Ouranoupolis Statements (2007). España, 2009), and currently specific Thus, the purpose of organising the guidance is being develop at the na- third Delos workshop in Inari in Finnish tional level. Another example was the Lapland, in the Sámi homeland, was to first Conference of the Carpathian Con- bring in the Northern European dimen- vention on Protected Areas in Romania sion and, especially, and to familiarise in 2008, which approved the identifica- with the culture of the indigenous Sámi tion and characterisation of the Car- people. pathian cultural identity in the protected areas, including spiritual, cultural and The conclusions of the work that has natural values, in the Programme of been done are being further evaluated Work, and established a working group and refined, so that guidance can be for the tangible and intangible cultural provided, initially to the managers of pro- heritage of protected areas. tected natural areas that include sacred sites, but which can also be of use to the custodians of these sites, and other con- The Inari workshop cerned stakeholders. Specific Guide- lines for sacred natural sites related to The third workshop of the Delos Initia- mainstream religions is a need recog- tive was held in Inari, Lapland, Finland, nised in the IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines from 30 June to 4 July 2010. The theme

17 of the workshop was: Diversity of sa- name in Swedish, Finland’s second of- cred lands in Europe. The workshop ficial national language is Enare. was organised and supported by the Inari is a Finnish Sámi village and the Natural Heritage Services of Metsähal- Sámi administrative centre that has litus, the Ministry of the Environment roughly the same area of the old siida, and the IUCN National Committee of located at the shores of Lake Inari. The Finland. word siida, meaning Lapp village, was The workshop was attended by 30 par- the basic unit of the Sámi community, ticipants from 14 countries: Estonia, Fin- consisting of single family units or ex- land, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Greece, tended families. Each siida had a Norway, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Spain, clearly defined area. (Näkkäläjärvi, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Unit- 2002). Inari is situated some 300 kilo- ed Kingdom, including both expert metres of north of the Arctic Circle, in members of the Delos Initiative and ob- the northern part of Lapland. servers from Finland and Russia. This Traditionally, the Inari Sámi have been third workshop featured a higher num- fishermen, hunters and gatherers (Leh- ber of case studies than the two previ- tola, 2000). Nowadays, the traditional ous workshops, including many that livelihoods are still important, but the were highly significant themselves and/ Inari Sámi are mainly employed in simi- or to widen the representativeness. lar occupations as the Finns. The location The significance of Inari is multiple for A short explanation of the place names the Sámi people. For many centuries is also in place. The venue of the work- this was the ‘land of the three kings’ of shop is Inari in Finnish. Inari is called Sweden, Norway and Russia, an im- Aanaar in Inari Sámi, Anár in North portant trade post located at the cross- Sámi and Aanar in Skolt Sámi. Inari’s roads (Lehtola, 2000). It is for this

Participants of the Delos3 Workshop visiting the outdoor section of the Sámi Museum.

18 unique position in Northern Lapland attitude in cultures with consistent sha- that Inari is the only village of Finland manistic backgrounds, which are mainly where three Sámi languages coexist, based on experiences, supported by i.e. North Sámi, Inari Sámi and Skolt oral tradition, and have little, if any, writ- Sámi. Significant efforts are being ten records, and very limited develop- done both by the Sámi communities ment of theology and philosophy. and authorities and by the Finnish gov- Studies conducted during the last few ernment to preserve this rich heritage years showed that most visitors are at- in face of the pressures of standardisa- tracted to protected areas of Finland, tion and globalisation (Aikio, 2000). and also to other Scandinavian coun- Moreover, Inari is the closest village to tries, not only to view or observe nature one of the most important ancient Sámi (plants, animals, landscapes), but also sacred natural sites: Ukonsaari, i.e. the to have an experience of peace, har- island of Ukko/Äijih, the ancient divinity mony, grandeur, etc. showing that, of the thunder. This relevant sacred nat- even in those highly secularised coun- ural site was presented as a case study tries, the immaterial values of nature at the workshop held in Montserrat, continue to be highly significant for Spain, in 2006 (Norokorpi and Ojanlat- modern societies. va, 2007). It is possible that this kind of attitude is The venue of the workshop was the au- also hidden in the spiritual motivation ditorium of Siida - The Sámi Museum of many nature conservationists, al- and Nature Centre which is the inter- though it may be covered by the sci- pretation centre for the culture and the ence language and piles of technical environment in Northern Lapland. This data. remarkable facility opened its doors in 1998, after long years of preparation The programme involving numerous Sámi researchers. The workshop began on Thursday with It was a milestone for the Sámi people, the welcoming speeches of Rauno and their self-esteem, as well as an Väisänen, Director of Metsähallitus outstanding facility that provides one Natural Heritage Services of Finland; of the best exhibitions about the Sámi Tarmo Jomppanen, Director of the life and its relations to nature and the Sámi Museum; and Klemetti Näk- northern environment. käläjärvi, President of the Saami Parlia- The Northern countries ment. These initial speeches were not polite formalities, but conveyed impor- Many people of the North, including the tant political and ethical messages, Sámi are not very willing to speak about and for this reason they have been in- spiritual matters, not because they are cluded verbatim. not significant to them, but because they are considered very personal, pri- This was followed by a session devot- vate and sacred. This is a quite common ed to the Sámi people and their rela-

19 tion to nature. Jelena Porsanger began Kalns (Blue hill) in the context of other with an exploration about the Sámi reli- ancient cult sites of Semigallia, Latvia, gion and concept of nature; Tiina Äikäs featuring a remarkable ancient holy explained the results of the excava- natural site which is considered a nations conducted in sacred sites of Lap- tional symbol by Latvian people, with a land (sieidi), raising a significant dis- relevant record of actions for conser- cussion about the ethical implications vation, despite many pressures and and the ways how the ethical princi- impacts, and also a recent complex ples were taken into consideration dur- used for the rituals of followers of old ing the research and afterwards. Latvian traditions and neo-pagans.

The afternoon session was devoted to The second session focussed on the native and indigenous sacred lands. It management of sacred lands by main- featured three presentations. The first, stream churches. It featured three by Ahto Kaasik, talked about the Estoni- presentations. First, Vita de Waal pre- an national strategy for SNS protection sented an overview of the extraordi- and the challenges for conserving the nary number and diversity of sacred sacred hill of Hiiemägi. Next, Vykintas natural sites at the Parco Nazionale Vaitkevicˇius presented the Žemaitija della Majella, Italy, from prehistoric National Park and the ancient sacred times to the present. Next, Rob Wild places of Mikytai, Lithuania. The last presented the case study of the Holy presentation, the only one from over- Island of Lindisfarne, one of Britain’s seas, was about the Mayo Lands and in- foremost Christian Sacred Natural digenous communities, Mexico, by Bas Sites, the only one where national eco- Verschuuren. logical values overlap with national religious and historical values, discuss- On Friday, the first session was devot- ing the revival of the Celtic Christian ed to minority faiths in European coun- spirituality and the role of nature saints tries and safeguarding natural and in it. Finally, Chiara Serenelli presented spiritual heritage. It featured a presen- a landscape approach to the wetland tation about the little known Alevi-Bek- of Colfiorito, a Ramsar site connected tashi Muslim communities found in with the Via Lauretana, an old pilgrim- Greece, Albania, Bulgaria and Turkey, age trail in Italy discussing the role that by Irini Lyratzaki. The next presenta- landscape planning has and may have tion, on Uvac-Milesevka Special Na- on the conservation and restoration of ture Reserve and Mileseva Monastery, the key heritage elements that make Serbia, by Svetlana Dindarac, dis- this site precious. cussed the rich and complex reality of an outstanding sacred natural site lo- The third session focussed on the man- cated in the holy region of Raska, the agement of monastic communities. Thy- heart of old Serbia, and the current re- mio Papayannis presented an update vival of its religious significance. Third- about the preparation of an integrated ly, Juris Urtaˉns, presented the Zilais management study for Mount Athos,

20 Greece, the only monastic republic of ed Area Managers of Sacred Natural the world, in accordance with World Sites. This exercise allowed the active Heritage Site Committee requirements. engagement of all the participants be- Next, Josep-Maria Mallarach made an fore and during the workshop. In the overview presentation on the best prac- first session the work was carried in tices and new trends on the manage- three parallel working groups, whilst in ment of monastic lands in Europe and the second one the results of the three Middle Eastern countries, summarizing groups were presented and dis- a sixteen-century-old experience of cussed, allowing the drawing of joint community management which is still conclusions. Despite its limitations, alive and vibrant in many countries. this first attempt of assessing the ap- On Saturday, the first session was de- plicability of the existing Guidelines for voted to explore the diversity of sacred Sacred Natural Sites was an interest- natural sites in Europe, including three ing learning exercise. presentations. The first dealt with the The concluding session was a lively amazing diversity and number of sa- discussion in order to identify the key cred natural sites found in the Car- points that were to be included in the pathian Mountains, Romania, Poland, Inari/Aanaar Statement, which was re- Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Serbia, fined during the next few days, until it by Sebastian Catanoiu. The second, reached consensus. with the recovery of sacred sites in Scotland, by Alastair McIntosh, where The workshop included a guided visit the author, through personal eloquent to Siida - The Sámi Museum and Na- histories stressed the need to enter ture Centre, which features the evolu- into a dynamic relationship with Sa- tion of the Sámi communities in this cred Natural Sites to become more ful- harsh but beautiful environment, their ly alive, participating in the responsi- crafts and tools. In one of the rooms bility to conserve and reactivate them, there was a temporary display of tradi- as part of spirituality of resurrection; of tional Sámi drums, painted with sym- that which gives life as love made bolic designs and motives. There was manifest. The last presentation, by Al- also a visit to the open air museum, exander Davydov, was also an over- which features a good sample of differ- view of a variety of Orthodox Christian ent types of log homes and buildings and indigenous sacred sites in the that have been used in the Sámi area. Barents Euro-Arctic Region, including In addition, an interesting field visit the most northern regions of Russia, was organised, with two parts, enjoy- Finland, Sweden and Norway. ing a sunny afternoon. The first part, The two last sessions were not devot- by boat, took the participants to Lake ed to more case studies but to discuss Inari, sailing to the Ukonsaari/Äijih Is- and assess the validation of the 2008 land, where there were some interest- IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines for Protect- ing discussions about the need to set

21 limits to accessibility. The uniqueness and to the Natural Heritage Services of of this ancient sacred natural site was Metsähallitus for hosting the Workshop made more apparent, as it were, in Inari, with the support of the Ministry thanks to the beautiful afternoon light of Environment and the IUCN National and gorgeous views of the lake shores. Committee of Finland, and contributing The second part of the field trip, in- with the Delos co-ordination to the or- cluded a lovely walk through a wilder- ganisation of the workshop. In particu- ness area, from Pielpavuono Fjord to lar, they are especially pleased by the Pielpajärvi Wilderness Church, follow- excellent involvement of the Natural ing a fairy-tale landscape of ancient Heritage Services, the national agency forests, scattered with different types in charge of protected areas, including of wetlands. Once at the wilderness the participation of the Director of the church, a wooden building dating from Natural Heritage Services to the entire 1760, Vicar Arto Seppänen gave a workshop, as well as to the editing of speech to the participants on the rela- the proceedings. tion of the Sámi and the Lutheran Finally, the three editors want to thank Church. Finally, after the last dinner in for the effective coordination and the the Hotel Inarin Kultahovi a local cul- careful linguistic review done by Liisa tural programme, including traditional Nikula, Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Sámi yoik singing was offered to the Services, which succeeded in produc- participants. ing a good quality English publication The co-ordinators of the Delos Initiative from manuscripts of very diverse want to express their profound grati- quality. tude to the Finnish Saami Parliament

Rock on the path to Pielpajärvi Wilderness Church

22 References Aikio, A. (2000). The geographical and sociolinguistic situation, pp. 34-40, in J. Pennanen and K. Näkkäläjärvi (Editors) (2003) SIIDDASTALLAN - From Lapp Communities to Modern Sámi Life. Siida Sámi Museum (Inari).

EUROPARC España (2009). Programa de trabajo para las Áreas Protegidas 2009- 2013. Ed. Fungobe, Madrid. Lehtola, T. (2000). The history of the Sámi of Inari, pp.122-137, in J. Pennanen and K. Nakkäläjärvi (Editors) (2003) SIIDDASTALLAN -From Lapp Communities to Modern Sámi Life. Siida Sámi Museum (Inari).

Mallarach, J.-M. and Papayannis, T. (2007). Nature and spirituality in protected areas: Proceedings of the 1st Workshop of the Delos Initiative. Mallarach, T. Sant Joan les Fonts, Spain: Abadia de Montserrat and IUCN.

Näkkäläjärvi, K. (2003). The siida, or Sámi village, as the basis of community life. pp. 114-121, in J. Pennanen and K. Näkkäläjärvi (Editors) (2003) SIIDDASTALLAN - From Lapp Communities to Modern Sámi Life. Siida Sámi Museum (Inari).

Papayannis, T. & Mallarach, J-M, eds. (2009). The Sacred Dimension of Protected Areas: Proceedings of the Second Workshop of the Delos Initiative - Ouranoupolis 2007 IUCN; Athens, Greece: Med-INA.

Verschuuren, B; Wild, R; McNeely, J & Oviedo, G. (2010). Sacred Natural sites. Conserving Nature and Culture. Earthscan, London And New York.

Wild, R. & McLeod, C. (Editors). (2008). Sacred Natural Sites: Guidelines for Pro- tected Area Managers. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN; Paris, France: UNESCO, Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines Series, 16.

Part One: The Sámi people and their relation to nature

25 26 Greetings from the Saami Parliament Juvvá Lemet – Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi

The Constitution of Finland guarantees in Inari municipality. There are around for the Saami the status of an indige- 9300 Saamis living in Finland. There nous people, the right to their own lan- are also Saami people living in Norway, guage and culture. The constitution Sweden and Russia and all together grants Saami people cultural autono- there are ca. 70 000 – 100 000 Saamis. my in Northern Finland in their home- The traditional Saami livelihoods are land, which covers the municipalities reindeer herding, fishing, hunting, of Enontekiö, Inari and Utsjoki and the gathering and Saami handicrafts, Sámi northern part of Sodankylä. Duodji. The only viable traditional live- The Saami Language Act protects the lihood is reindeer herding. Hunting and language, and the responsibilities of fishing have become secondary liveli- the Saami Parliament are specially set hoods. An important part of the Saami by law. The Saami are the only indige- culture is the knowledge embedded in nous people in European Union. In Fin- the language on places, nature, flora land there are three Saami languages and fauna and the community’s history. spoken: the North, Inari and Skolt The Saami musical tradition, yoik, is an Saami. All of the languages are spoken important part of our culture and the

< The President of the Saami Parliament participated in the Seminar and wished all the participants welcome to Sápmi.

27 yoik transmits the oral tradition to fu- tre is under construction in Inari. It is ture generations. Although all the called Sajos and it should be complet- Saami people live in villages, attend ed in 2012. The building will also house Finnish schools and many are occu- the Saami Parliament and offer other pied outside traditional Saami liveli- services as well. hoods, the Saami culture’s traditions The Saami Parliament was very happy are still very much alive. that the third Delos Workshop was or- The Saami society is facing threats. ganised in the Saami homeland and es- Over sixty percent of the Saami in Fin- pecially in Inari, which is a home of the land are living outside the traditional three Saami cultures. The Áddjá, Ukko Saami homeland and as many as 70% in Finnish, is probably the most well- of the Saami children are living outside known Saami sieidi in Finland. The siei- the Saami homeland. For the future of di is a sacred place for the Saami peo- the Saami culture the situation is ple. A sieidi is usually a natural object threatening. The Saami living outside that is usually of stone and unshaped the Saami homeland do not get educa- by human. Sacred sites and the mean- tion in the Saami language and culture ings associated with them are a part of with a few exceptions. The connection the ethnic identity of the Saami, and to the Saami traditions and the tradi- they have played a role in the creation tional Saami livelihoods weaken when of the Saami environmental relationship. living outside the Saami homeland. Sieidis are evidence of social organisation and of a process of getting a grip of The Finnish Saami Parliament was es- the environment of the surrounding real- tablished in 1995. There are Saami Par- ity. Sieidis have functioned as part of liaments in Norway and Sweden as the Saami people’s environmental rela- well. The Saami Parliament is a political tionship. When asking the sieidi, for ex- organ. Every four year 21 Saami are ample, for help in hunting or fishing, it is elected to the Saami Parliament. The important that the sieidi as well will be Saami Parliament mainly works by giv- offered respect and benefit through ing statements, and by negotiating with sacrifice. The people and the Gods had officials. All the time the Parliament is mutual respect; and the Saami people trying to improve the legal status of the would not try to control the force of na- Saami. It also provides funding for ser- ture or Gods at all. The Saami have of- vices provided in the Saami language fered usually meat, fish, antlers, metal in the social and health sector, to Saami and coins to the sieidi. organisations and culture, and for the production of learning materials in the Áddjá has been a sacred place for the Saami language. The Saami Parliament Aanaar Saami people during centu- has an office in Inari and side offices in ries. Àddjá is a perfect Delos case Enontekiö and Utsjoki. There are study site. Inari municipality is plan- around 30 people working in the Saami ning on having a lot of tourist attrac- Parliament. A new Saami Cultural Cen- tions and resort villages built around

28 Lake Inari. Some of them are planned keep the knowledge private, and the to be built near Áddjá. For the Saami privacy of the Saami people’s spiritual people this development is unwel- beliefs has to be respected. In recent come. It’s important that the religious years there has been quite a lot of dis- site and its surrounding environment cussion on who can study sacred sites are protected from mass tourism. of the indigenous people, who should benefit from the studies and how the The Saami traditional religion, shaman- research should be conducted. ism has evolved together with the Saami culture and livelihoods. Nature The approval of the UN Declaration on is an important part of the Saami sha- the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in manistic religion. The Saami attitude 2007 is meaningful when considering towards nature can be described as guidance on how to conduct research an attitude of unity, in other words, man in sacred sites. The Declaration states is seen as a part of nature, not as hold- in article 11 that ‘indigenous peoples ing power over it. have the right to practice and revitalise their cultural traditions and customs. It The Saami religion that has helped the includes the right to maintain, protect Saami people to survive in nature has and develop the past, present and fu- almost disappeared. When the coloni- ture manifestations of their cultures, alists came to the Saami area, the such as archaeological and historical Saami religion was rapidly forbidden sites, artifacts, designs, ceremonies, and also the traditions linked to sha- technologies and visual and perform- manism disappeared. The Saami peo- ing arts and literature’. Furthermore, ple were forced to abandon their reli- article 12 states that ‘indigenous peo- gion and convert to Christianity. Our ples have the right to manifest, prac- knowledge of the Saami religion is thin, tice, develop and teach their spiritual because the oral tradition was lost. and religious traditions, customs and And, that is something that no science ceremonies; the right to maintain, pro- can bring back. Luckily, at least sieidis tect, and have access in privacy to and their meaning have survived their religious and cultural sites; the through the assimilation process. right to the use and control of their cer- Although shamanism was replaced by emonial objects; and the right to the repatriation of their human remains’. Christianity, the sieidis continue to be an important part of the Saami cultural The UN Declaration on the Rights of In- heritage, and knowledge of the sieidis digenous Peoples is a powerful docu- has been passed on from one genera- ment and it obligates different stake- tion to the other. Many of the Saami holders to respect the spiritual beliefs sieidis are well known. However, there and places of indigenous peoples. are still many sieidis that are only I hope that the Declaration will be im- known by members of the community. plemented in Finland and in other The Saami people have wanted to countries as well.

29 For researchers and indigenous peo- to the Convention on Biological Diver- ple, it is important that common guide- sity in autumn 2010. The code gives lines are set on how sacred sites of in- guidance when working in areas where digenous people should be studied. indigenous people are inhabited, Finland, like all of the other European where their traditional areas are locat- Union Countries, has ratified the UN ed or in connection to their sacred Convention on Biological Diversity. For sites. When studying indigenous cul- indigenous people the Convention is tures and their heritage, it is important highly important. Article 8(j) of the Con- to take the research ethics into serious vention protects the traditional know consideration. For indigenous people it ledge of Saami linked in natural re- is especially important that they can sources. Finland has begun the imple- approve the research methods and mentation of Article 8(j) of the Conven- aims, and be aware of the research re- tion on Biological Diversity. The pur- sults. The code of ethical conduct pose of the work is to secure the safe- states that the information obtained guarding of the traditional Saami knowl- from the research with indigenous peo- edge. The working group will complete ple should be shared with them in units work in summer 2011. The Saami ex- derstandable and culturally appropri- pect that the proposals to be made by ate formats, with a view to promote in- the working group will help safeguard ter-cultural exchanges, knowledge and the traditional Saami knowledge. technology transfer. Perhaps in future the Delos Initiative should consider A code of ethical conduct was ap- these aspects as well. proved in the Conference of the Parties

Drum at Sámi Museum. >

30 31 32 Words of welcome Tarmo Jomppanen

The Sámi Museum Siida was founded 12 years, the museum assumed an in- as early as in 1959, and it opened for creasing number of new and diversified the public for the first time on Midsum- tasks. The Sámi Museum has launched mer Day in 1963. For more than three regional activities in the Sámi Area: in decades, the Museum was a facility Western Lapland in Hetta in the munici- that stayed open only during the sum- pality of Enontekiö and in Eastern Lap- mer. Today, the Open-Air Museum land in Sevettijärvi, which is the centre of hosts almost 50 original Sámi buildings the Skolt Sámi culture. Our third regional and constructions, as well as relevant office will be established in a few years reconstructions, and it still constitutes time at the Ailigas Institute in Utsjoki in a popular part of the exhibitions that the northern part of the Sámi Area. Siida provides to the public on the The Sámi Museum Siida aims at devel- Sámi culture and northern nature. oping the activities of the museum so In 1998, when the new Siida Building that it will take care of the tasks deal- was completed, the Sámi Museum being with the Sámi in the museum field. came a facility that was able to run pro- As the cultural institutions of the Sámi fessionally. At the beginning of 1999, the are very young, this will, in practice, re- Finnish Ministry of Education granted the quire a redistribution of the resources Sámi Museum Siida the status of a na- and the recording and documentation tional special museum. During the past responsibilities.

33 At present, the Sámi Museum Siida is scape’ are understood more compre- already responsible for collecting and hensively than in the case of traditional recording the material cultural heritage cultural landscapes. The cultural land- of the Sámi related to historic times. scape of the Sámi consists of an envi- The National Museum of Finland does ronment built by people, but also of im- not expand its Sámi collections any- material, symbolic culture created by more, and there has been an agree- people. Such a cultural environment ment with the Provincial Museum of includes, for example, the communal Lapland that the Sámi Museum bears knowledge of the right to use certain the main responsibility in this sphere. areas and routes, place names, stories, yoiking, beliefs and narratives – At the moment, the Sámi Museum has and a vocabulary in the native lan- not reached a final solution on how to guage which makes communication on divide the responsibilities of managing these issues possible. the prehistoric cultural heritage and cultural landscapes, but it is proceed- Understanding this necessity is ex- ing towards an agreement. tremely important, especially when the management and protection of the cul- The entire Sámi Area, or Sámi Home- tural environment and heritage of the land, can be considered a Sámi cultur- Sámi are concerned. It is also crucial al landscape. This wide region still has to remember that, in terms of culture, a great number of areas that have not the Sámi Area is not homogenous. been surveyed, as well as many cultur- From the point of view of cultural envi- al monuments and sites that have not ronments, there are differences in nat- been registered yet. The number of ar- ural conditions and sources of liveli- chaeological inventory surveys con- hood; the Sámi groups are also differ- ducted in the Sámi Area is small when ent in terms of their visual cultures, cul- compared to the number of such sur- tural contacts, belief traditions, cus- veys carried out elsewhere in Finland. toms and languages. As a result of mining, the infrastructure necessitated by tourism and the eco- Until now, tasks that deal with Sámi nomic use of forests, the pressures on cultural environments have mainly land use in Lapland have increased. been taken care of through relevant To survey the area archaeologically, projects. During the inventory project, we need both expertise and more re- a clear need for a permanent Sámi cul- sources than we have now. tural environment unit became evident.

What is a Sámi cultural The mapping of the Sámi cultural heritage and the cultural environments re- environment? lated to it must be an ongoing process. In the Sámi community, the terms ‘cul- There are a great number of cultural tural environment’ and ‘cultural land- environments in our area that are

34 threatened. It is extremely important to istry of Education, the project will also locate the sites which no longer show engage an archaeologist. any visual signs of use, but which we The Cultural Environment Unit will op- know that are still there according to erate under the auspices of the Sámi narrative tradition. One of the charac- Museum Siida. It has already been teristics of the Sámi cultural environ- agreed that during the pilot project, the ments is that the old way of living and National Board of Antiquities will dele- moving did not necessary leave traces gate tasks concerning the manage- in nature – therefore, the natural sur- ment and protection of cultural envi- roundings of many cultural sites look ronments to this office. In Finland, the completely untouched. National Board of Antiquities has so far For years, the founding of a Sámi Cul- made similar agreements with a num- tural Environment Unit has been one of ber of provincial museums. the most important goals of the Sámi Another objective of the pilot project is Museum. The Finnish Sámi Parliament, to draw up an operations model for the too, has been very active in this re- Sámi Cultural Environment Unit togeth- gard, supporting the establishment of er with the Sámi Parliament, the Na- such a unit in its statements to different tional Board of Antiquities, the Ministry authorities. We have now taken a step of Education and the Centre for Eco- forward in this matter, as a three-year nomic Development, Transport and the pilot project called Sámi Cultural Envi- Environment (ELY) in Lapland. ronments will be launched at the beginning of 2011. As the name sug- Our goal is to ensure permanent fund- gests, the project will carry out activi- ing for the Cultural Environment Unit so ties that deal with Sámi cultural that its activities will be carried out on environments. a permanent basis from the beginning of 2014 onwards. The Sámi Museum Foundation has been granted EU funding for 2.5 years I would like to welcome the Delos by the Regional Council of Lapland for Workshop here in the midst of a Sámi a project called Ealli biras – Elävä cultural landscape, which has been in- ympäristö (‘Living Environment’). One fluenced by all the three different Sámi of the objectives of the project is to cultures and ways of life that coexist in draw up a Sámi Cultural Environment the municipality of Inari: the Inari Sámi, Programme for the Sámi Area. The pro- the Skolt Sámi and the North Sámi ject will employ a coordinator with ex- cultures. pertise in Sámi cultural environments. Through special funding from the Min-

35 36 Indigenous Sámi religion: General considerations about relationships Jelena Porsanger

The indigenous religion of the Sámi do not belong to any of the so-called people displays the relationship be- revivalist movements. tween humans and everything in crea- The concept of indigenous religion tion, which can be called by the con- points to the original starting point of a cept of ‘Nature’. This close relationship religion, its persistent nature and a dis- has traditionally been reciprocal, and tinctive tradition which is characteristic can be considered as the very basis of for a particular people, alongside an the indigenous Sámi religion. ongoing process of change. In the history of research, terms and concepts Indigenous Sámi religion like ‘the historical religions of literary cultures’ (Pentikäinen 1998) or ‘literary Indigenous religion is a frequently religions’ have been used to describe used concept in the history of religion the world religions, while the concept nowadays (see Harvey, 2000, 2002; of ‘indigenous religions’ represents re- Olupona, 2004). The concept includes ligions which have been practiced by religions that do not have a historical peoples mostly without a tradition of origin, such as Christianity, Islam, Bud- writing, e.g. Rydving (1993, 1995) and dhism or other world religions, and that Braun and McCutcheon, 2000).

< Drum at Sámi Museum.

37 The concept of indigenous religions is and the ongoing process of change in used in Asia, America, Africa, Ocean- the spiritual life of the Sámi people, the ia, Australia and other parts of the central importance of the elders and world, where indigenous people are ancestors as the carriers and teachers found practicing their own religion. The of the Sámi traditions, as well as em- first part of the term ‘indigenous reli- bodying an inseparable unification of gion’ points to the original belonging of people and nature. a religion. ‘Home’ or ‘belonging to a home place’ are connotations for the term indigenous. This concept leads The concept of nature to the notion of being produced or liv- The Sámi have traditionally had a dif- ing naturally in a particular region in ferent notion of nature than, for exam- geographical, ethnic, or religious ple, urban people. The Sámi concept sense (Long 2004, 89). of nature implies relationships, reci- Present day researchers of religions procity, and a notion of power, both for have abandoned such terms as ‘primi- humans and for the whole surrounding tive’, ‘pre-Christian’, ‘heathen’, ‘illiter- world. There is no one single Sámi ate’ and ‘oral’. Academic religious re- word, which is equivalent to the West- search has traditionally focussed on is- ern concept of nature. Instead, there is sues that were quite distant from those a variety of terms for what the Sámi that indigenous peoples themselves considered as nature. That is why the considered as indigenous religion. In term nature is used in this text in quo- connection with the Sámi indigenous tation marks. For nature one can find, religion, a sample of abandoned de- for example, in North Sámi, the term of scriptive terms would include the fol- luondu, which implies the character of lowing terms: ‘the Lapps’ idolarity’, somebody or something, like beatnaga ‘witchcraft and superstitions’, ‘the luondu ‘the nature of a dog’, olbmo Lapps’ religion’, ‘the earlier Sámi hea- luondu ‘character of a human’, luond- then belief and superstitions’, ‘the orig- dubiras ‘surrounding environment’ etc. inal or ‘primitive’ heathen religion of the The term meahcci implies territories and recourses outside peoples’ per- Lapps’ or ‘Sámi Pre-Christian Religion’ manent living places, but there is a di- (Rydving (1993, 1995). These con- versity of meanings of this concept cepts are no longer in use. For the (Schanche, 2002). study of the Sámi spiritual culture in the Sámi language, using a Sámi ap- Nature traditionally has been for the proach, a new Sámi term has been Sámi both a physical and spiritual en- proposed - sámi eamioskkoldat (in the tity, and humans are a natural part of it. North Sámi language, see Porsanger For the Sámi, nature represents at the 2007). The concept of the Sámi indig- same time a home, a way of life, the enous religion emphasises the con- source of survival, continuity and oral nection between the spiritual heritage history, the present and the future. Tra-

38 ditionally, the aim of the Sámi people Reciprocity and dialogue has not been to make the most efficient The traditional Sámi outlook on life is use of the natural resources as a based on notions that reflect the rela- source of income, but rather to use tionship between humans, animals, them rationally in a sustainable way, as non-human beings, nature, gods and survival in the North depends on the other powers. In this relationship hu- renewal of the riches of nature. mans and nature are not opposed to The values and norms regarding nature each other. Rather, humans are an inte- that the Sámi learn already as children gral part of nature. On the other hand, nature – both physically and spiritually are especially crucial today both for the – is a part of the nature of humans and Sámi themselves and for the world, in a source of strength for humans. The general. Many indigenous peoples now- weakening of this reciprocal relation- adays bring forward their values and ship and disruption of this balance may understandings of their relationships decrease the strength of humans. with the natural environment. They emphasise that holistic understanding of On an individual and collective level, the relationships practised by many in- the relationship to the internal and external world is maintained through ritu- digenous peoples can teach the world a als. These rituals keep the order of life lesson about sustainability, balance and in balance, which is very important for respect in the time of climate change the survival of the community. Balance and environmental problems. has been traditionally maintained by the The Sámi have traditionally had a holis- Sámi people through rituals, by follow- tic understanding of relationships with ing normative patterns of behaviour, nature. This can be exemplified by the and established practices, by showing concept of ‘maintenance of life’, used respect, and through a dialogue on in the daily language by the North Sámi both an individual and collective level. nowadays. This is a concept of birgeju- By following rules and normative patterns of behaviour people function, pmi, which is associated with people Sámi think and feel that they can (both individuals and collectives), natu- achieve something. Especially in the ral resources, physical, spiritual and worldview of the northern people, the psychical health, and implies a close well-being of both humans and nature connection between the landscape, depends on the balance between them. environment, and ecosystems and the In Sámi spirituality and tradition both social and spiritual healthy develop- humans and nature are living and ac- ment and identity, belonging. Birgejup- tive interdependent beings. That is why mi for a person or community means a constant dialogue between these ways to manage and to have good life parts is necessary. Nature and every- socially, economically, spiritually and in thing that is part of it can be spoken to respect to health. directly or indirectly. For example, in the

39 Kola Sámi oral tradition it is natural to reach the Elk, which is constantly mov- say ‘You, my grandmother River’, ‘Thank ing away from them. These movements you, old woman Lake’ etc. The relation- and happenings are a part of the cycle ship between humans and everything of the universe. in creation is not only personal, but also Sámi people are aware of natural spir- has a moral meaning – the world around its and the realms that they control us is ethical and just. (see for example Bäckman, 1975; Por- sanger, 1997a). In the names of natural Natural phenomena and spirits spirits we find a reflection of the Sámi of nature philosophy: one of the North Sámi terms for spirit vuoigŋa is connected to In Sámi cosmology, many natural phe- the verb vuoiŋŋat ’breathe’, as it is in nomena were considered universal, in- many other cultures and languages. In dependent of people. These included, the eastern Sámi languages names of for example, the Midnight Sun, the natural spirits are compounds in which Northern lights (aurora borealis), and the world for ‘natural spirit’ can be the thunder rumbling during short translated as living being, creature, summer. In Sámi cosmography, each dweller, and inhabitant. The first part of of these had a role in explaining the or- the compound comes from the place igin and structure of the universe and where the spirit lives: for example, ‘wa- the concept of time. It is worth men- ter creature’ or ‘mountain dweller’. tioning that the traditional Sámi con- Natural spirits are not considered to be cept of time is not linear, but circular. supernatural, physically invisible spir- For example, according to oral tradi- its or masters; they are creatures that tion, cosmic hunting of a wild reindeer or elk has happened since the begin- live in the surrounding area; they are a ning of the world and will never end. part of living nature. Nature follows its The hunters – in some stories the thun- own laws, and people need to know its der god, in others the Sámi forefathers way of life. The natural spirits must be who invented skis and became stars taken into consideration when one set- (Gállá bártnit ‘sons of Gállá’ in North tles on a new place, starts to fish, goes Sámi, three stars in the star constella- to hunt, or lives on a lake or a river. tion known as the Orion Belt) – can People need to follow certain rules to never reach the animal. That is why the maintain the balance of nature in their thunder god is shooting his arrows nearest environment. The natural spir- (lightning, tiirmes tool ‘fire of thunder its control the way humans use nature. god’ in Kildin Sámi) from year to year. The constellation of Gállá bártnit never Offerings comes closer to the constellation of the Elk on the northern sky, but the hunters The relationship with nature and its arise to the sky each evening trying to forces is not submissive but active.

40 Humans can, when necessary, influ- fishing and hunting, to protect reindeer ence the powers of nature by giving, herds, to bring good weather, to en- offering, sharing, asking, promising, sure good health, to ask a certain natu- taking care of, showing respect to, or ral power to help people achieve what assuming the shapes of animals. the people want.

Offerings were made to the natural The significance of sacred places is spirits only when necessary: for exam- not found in the spirit or god control- ple, when a spirit was known to be an- ling the place or the livelihood, nor in gry because people had broken some the offering or worship itself, but in the rule. One did not ask spirits for help, power of the thing worshipped. People but for goodwill and patience while one live through the powers or nature, but stayed in their area. Every geographi- they also live within these natural pow- cal place was considered an entity in ers, as they do not separate them- which the physical dimension was in selves from nature and its powers. The balance with the spiritual one. Both as- aim of offering is to maintain the inter- pects needed to be taken into consid- nal reciprocal relationship between na- eration when making a living. There- ture and the people by seeking mutual fore, the ideas about natural spirits are benefit. When asking for goodwill or closely linked to the Sámi way of life. help of the natural powers, one must remember to strengthen the power Human beings know that natural pow- through offerings and tokens of re- ers influence their success in hunting spect. Thus, the power of human be- and fishing, and they must therefore ings and the power of nature are seen ask these powers to be kind and help- as interdependent. ful. That is why individuals, families and communities found places to worship these powers. Experts

The term bassebáiki ’sacred place’ in The establishment of a contact with the North Sámi is often used in literature powers of nature can require special and means a place reserved for wor- expertise. For this purpose there are ship or considered sacred. These experts who can act on behalf of a places are meant for the establishment person, a family or a whole community. and maintenance of a connection be- Instead of the term of shamanism, tween humans, the natural environ- which has been used in the study of ment and the powers of nature. The religions, the Sámi term of noaide- term bálvvošbáiki can be translated as vuohta was introduced in the 1990s to ‘a place for offering’. The term sieidi the study of indigenous Sámi religion (North Sámi, but known in all Sámi lan- by Professor Håkan Rydving (1993, guages) designates the object of wor- 1995). Noaidevuohta (‘shamanism’) is ship, especially a rock. In sacred plac- not considered a form of religion or a es, offerings were made to enhance practical aspect of a special naturalis-

41 tic religion today; it is thought to be yond, inquired about secret things, linked with the way of life and culture of and were healers. a people. The Sámi noaidevuohta is The strength of the Sámi noaidi tradi- based on the worldview of a people tionally lay in the fact that they had to who are dependent upon nature, and it master the laws of natural powers. is in harmony with the environment, They had to understand how the sur- and the economic and social struc- rounding forces and the internal power tures. The Sámi noaidevuohta is not of people influence each other, so that just a collection of rites and practices they could use these forces for the and folklore that explains these struc- good of their community, while at the tures, but a way of perceiving the same time insuring that powers of na- world around oneself and acting in it. ture were not depleted. The term of shaman is not suitable for the Sámi tradition, since there are own indigenous terms for spiritual experts Holistic understanding and leaders. In North Sámi, is a noaidi The definition of religion can be con- term for spiritual experts, men and nected to a clarification of how individ- women, who are better than others at uals and societies define their place in contacting the powers of nature and respect to the power or powers which the world beyond. There are also dif- decide the fate and destinies of people ferent kinds of spiritual ‘experts’, ‘those (Rydving (1993, 1995). For more schol- who can see’, ‘those who know’, medi- arly discussions about definitions of re- cine men etc., and there is a variety of ligion, see Platvoet and Molendijk terms for different spiritual experts. (1999), Braun and McCutcheon The Sámi noaidi was the most impor- (2000). In the indigenous Sámi reli- tant member of the community. Noaidis gion, a close and reciprocal relation- were the ones who maintained the ship to the powers of nature plays a world order among the people – in the central role. Everything in the world life of the community and individuals. has been seen as interrelated. The They were in contact with the world be- main idea of the Sámi philosophy and yond through their ecstatic experienc- worldview comes clearly from the Sámi es. In the Sámi tradition, as in the sha- religious tradition connected to offer- manistic tradition of many other north- ings, sacrificial places, sacred moun- ern peoples, the noaidi acted on be- tains, waters, natural phenomena and half of the community in order to guar- spirits, world of animals, spiritual ex- antee good luck in hunting and fishing, perts and their activities. The sur- to protect the community’s lands and rounding forces of nature and the inter- waters, and to enhance the well-being nal power of individuals and communi- of the community. They foretold the fu- ties influence each other. Individuals ture, made contact with the world be- and communities need to maintain bal-

42 ance in order to make their living and For a more complete explanation of the to ensure their well-being. This presup- indigenous Sámi religion the author poses that people think about the suggests the following articles: Kulo- world and themselves in a holistic and nen et al. (2005), Rydving (2003, 2004, reciprocal way. This understanding is and 2010), Pentikäinen (1997 and found in the present-day language 2002) and Porsanger (1997b, 1999, use. The above mentioned concept of 2000a, and 2000b). birgejupmi, ‘maintenance of life’, describes a holistic Sámi understanding of well-being and survival and interde- pendence of everything in the world.

43 References

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44 of time: the seasons and the names of months]. – Almanakk for Norge 2000: jubi- leumsutgave. Universitetet i Oslo. Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag, pp. 167–177. (2000a), Noen samiske stjernebilder: et jaktfolks forestillinger om stjernehimmelen [Traditional explanations of some Sámi star constellations]. – Almanakk for Norge 2001. Universitetet i Oslo. Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag.

(2000b), The Sun as Father of the Universe in the Kola and Skolt Sami Tradition. Pp. 233–253 in Pentikäinen, J. & H. Gaski & V. Hirvonen & J. Sergejeva (eds.) Sami Folkloristics. (NNF Publications 6, Nordic Network of Folklore). Åbo.

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45 46 Archaeology of sieidi stones. Excavating sacred places Tiina Äikäs

Introduction place, since Sámi sacred places are still important for different groups of The sacred places of the Sámi indige- people. This raises questions about the nous people take myriad forms. They use and protection of these places. include sacred mountains and fells, lakes, and islands. The most well known phenomena are the offering stones Sieidi – an offering stone of the called sieidi (in North Sámi). Offerings Sámi connected to livelihoods, such as fishing, hunting, and reindeer herding have This paper offers an archaeological been left to these stones. Archaeologi- perspective on the study of the sacred cal research at sieidi sites has revealed sites. The author is an archaeologist a continuum of a living and changing writing her dissertation on the sacred offering tradition. Nevertheless, while landscape of the Sámi. As a part of the excavating sacred sites, certain things project, fieldwork has been conducted need to be taken into consideration. in Northern Finland excavating Sámi of- These include the possible reburial of fering places. This has led the author to finds, the returning of knowledge, and reflect on the ethical issues concerning respect to the places. Discretion is in archaeology of the sacred places.

< Researcher at the Sieddesaiva sieidi.

47 A map of the distribution on Sámi sacred sites in Northern Finland and the present Sámi area, Sápmi.

The Sámi are the indigenous people of ligion, but it has connotations to a stat- northern Finland, Sweden, Norway, ic belief system that could not have and the Kola Peninsula in Russia. Tra- been preceded by another. There are ditionally, they have subsided on hunt- also problems concerning the term re- ing, fishing, gathering food from na- ligion itself. It is a theoretical concept ture, and later, reindeer herding. The given from outside the culture by re- ethnic religion of the Sámi was, in gen- searchers and might not be the best eral terms, characterised by personal term to describe the Sámi worldview. as well as communal spirituality and its interconnectivity with one’s own daily The Sámi ethnic religion was visible in life, and a deep connection between the landscape in myriad ways, and sa- the natural and spiritual worlds. The cred and profane activities were inter- term ethnic religion is used since it de- twined (Äikäs et al., 2009). Carpelan scribes best the worldview that was (2003: 77–78) has divided Sámi sa- not pre-Christian, but survived also af- cred sites broadly into three classes: ter contacts with Christianity. Another terrain formation, natural objects, and possible term would be indigenous re- structures. The first group consists of

48 fell tops, rock formations, islands, lakes, and headlands. Natural objects are stones, springs, and small caves or clefts. The third group includes carved stubs, erected stones, wooden poles, and stone circles. The latter are an exception since Sámi sacred places usually have not been modified by human hand, as the Sámi saw sacredness in the landscape as it was.

The feature that has raised most interest in the Sámi sacred landscape are the offering stones called sieidi. They consist of wooden poles or more often of stones unshaped by human hand. The stones could vary in size and form. They could be ten metres high rock formations or less than a metre high small stones. Sometimes they were anthropomorphic or took other peculiar A wooden pole on top of Kussuolinkivaara in forms. Sieidi stones were often situat- Sodankylä. ed on the slopes of fells or by the shores of lakes (Äikäs, 2011). Sacri- if the trip was successful, the offerings fices atsieidi places were strongly were taken to the sieidi. But if the trip connected to the livelihood of the Sámi was not successful, the sieidi could be (Mebius, 2003: 11–12). Fish was sacri- destroyed (Paulaharju, 1932: passim). ficed before fishing expeditions, game The archaeological material that is left meat before hunting, and reindeer from the ritual activities at a sieidi usu- meat was offered by reindeer herders. ally consists of animal bones mainly In addition, cheese, porridge, alcohol, from the same animals that were also and metal objects were offered and important for livelihood. In the material sacrifices also took place when help from Finland e.g. reindeer (Rangifer was asked, for example, during sick- tarandus), sheep (Ovis aries) or goat ness or pregnancy (Äimä, 1903: 115; (Capra hircus), capercaillie (Tetrao Itkonen, 1948: 312; Manker, 1957: 88; urogallus), and fish bones, including Rydving, 1993: 104–106; Sköld, 1999: pike (Esox lucius), trout (Salmo trutta) 66; Mebius, 2003: 141). The relation- and perch (Perca fluviatilis) were found ship between a sieidi and a human (Äikäs, 2011; Salmi et al., 2011). In was reciprocal (Schanche, 2004: 5). Sweden and Norway metal objects, in- Hence sacrifices were usually prom- cluding jewellery and coins can also ised before the hunt or fishing trip, and be found, but in Finland there are only

49 A sieidi stone with anthropomorphic features in Porviniemi, Muonio. rare examples of metal finds fromsiei - Ethical consideration on the dis (Hedman, 2003: passim; Fossum, studies of sacred places 2006: passim; Okkonen, 2007). The only metal finds from Finland come Even though sacred places are not al- from the Inari area. There are also in- ways strictly set apart from, in Western stances when ritual activities leave no terms, profane activities (Äikäs, in traces in the archaeological material press A), sacredness is usually some- (Salmi et al., 2011). thing that demands special rules and ways of behaviour. The use of sacred During the period 2008–2010 excava- places can be controlled by norms tions were carried out at seven sieidi and rules. For example, for the Austral- sites as a part of the project Human- ian aboriginals some places are so sa- animal relationships among Finland’s cred, powerful, and dangerous that Sámi 1000–1800 A.D. (Academy of people should not visit them. Hence, Finland:1122623). The sites excavated in 2008 were Sieiddakeädgi in Utsjoki, archaeologists may give offence just Näkkälä in Enontekiö, and Taatsi in Kit- by wandering around them. Even more tilä; in 2009 Koskikaltiojoen suu in Inari disturbing are excavations, where and Porviniemi and Kirkkopahta in Mu- earth is removed and hidden objects onio, and in 2010 Dierpmesvárri in are revealed. (Colley, 2002: 75.) This Enontekiö. In addition, a survey was raises the question whether archaeolo- conducted around a sacred lake or gists can do research on sacred sites sáiva called Äkässaivo in Muonio. on an ethically sound basis. Nevertheless, not in all cases do the locals want to ban archaeologists from sacred sites. Sometimes people are keen

50 to know more about the way their ances- most often placed (Salmi et al., 2011). tors have used the offering places and Written sources give information about welcome the information that archaeo- the removal of the bones, for example, logical research can provide. There can in cases where there was no more be different opinions about how accept- room for new offerings. But there are able archaeological research is, even also examples of misfortunes that fol- within the same community. This is why lowed those who had removed offer- it is important that archaeologists take a ings from sieidis. (e.g. Paulaharju, moment to consider the ethical frame- 1932: passim.) In the case of archaeo- work of their research before they logical research, the returning of the charge to study sacred sites. bones was seen proper. An osteologist participated in all excavations, and the Before the fieldwork of the above-men- identification of archaeological animal tioned project started, the Saami Par- bone material was conducted in the liament (Sámediggi) was consulted. It field, aided by the osteology atlases was agreed that the local media should and a photograph reference collection. be primarily informed about the results Then, some bones were left at the sites, and that all bones were to be returned but when the number of finds was big, to the sieidis after the project. The re- all the bones were taken and samples burial of the bones has been much de- for further analyses were selected at a bated especially where human remains later time. The bones that were re- were concerned (e.g. Ubelaker & Gut- tenplan Grant, 1989; Goldstein & Kin- tigh, 1990). The cultural context is also A concentration of bones and the sieidi vital regarding sacrificed objects which stone in Sieiddakeädgi, Utsjoki. are left at sacred sites. For example, the Zunis of Pueblo tribes, USA, de- manded the returning of their sacred objects called Ahayu from museums to their sanctuaries, for they believed that the turmoil of the world was due to the removal of the Ahayu from their place (Ladd, 2001). In the case of the sieidi sites, the attitude towards sacrificial remains might have been more situation- al. There are examples of sieidi stones from which the offered bones have been cleared away. For example, in Sieiddakeädgi the majority of the bones were found downhill further away from the sieidi and not directly by the stone where the offerings were

51 spect to these places. During the excavations, the local media was informed of the interesting findings. The results of the fieldwork were also shared with locals in public seminars. However, still more could be done to reach the locals more effectively, also in the Sámi language. Informing the local population of the results of a research is an important aspect when studying indigenous cultural heritage. Otherwise scientific colonialism may be considered as another form of colo- nialist practices (Kupiainen, 1997: passim; Nicholas & Hollowell, 2007: passim).

Osteologist Anna-Kaisa Salmi identifying the bones with archaeologist Eeva Miettinen pho- Different visitors at sieidi sites tographing them in Koskikaltiojoen suu, Inari. Sieidi sites are of interest also to other groups than the local Sámi. During the moved from the sites will be returned to excavations many marks were found, a the sieidis when fieldwork comes to an sign of recent visits to these sites. The end in the summer of 2011. bone finds evidence ceased in the sev- During the excavations, the work was enteenth century (Äikäs, 2011; Salmi et aimed at preserving as much of the al., 2011) but the sites were not aban- site as possible intact. The interven- doned by that time. The written sources tions were limited to small areas of ap- indicate that people left, for example, proximately one square metre. While coins to the sieidis even in the twenti- studying the area of the ritual practices eth century (Paulaharju, 1932: passim; in Sieiddakeädgi, 30x30 cm test pits Kjellström, 1987: 24–33). There are no were made around the stone. The ex- finds from Finland indicating the use of cavations were stopped whenever the sieidi sites during the eighteenth centu- researchers came across a bone. In ry, but from the nineteenth century on- this way the project researchers ob- wards the finds appear again. The tained the information about the loca- green bottle glass from Sieiddakeädgi tion of the bones without moving them. and four coins from the end of the nine- Prior to the excavations, students par- teenth century indicate that these sites ticipating in the fieldwork were advised were used during that time. The more to behave appropriately at the sites. recent, post-1950s, finds are more var- The project team wanted to show re- ied. They include coins, personal ob-

52 jects, cigarettes, alcohol, candles, and leave coins as a part of touristic civic quartzite. These modern finds can ritual to fountains and other special broadly be divided into two groups: places. Among tourists that go fishing some of them continue the old offering it is not unusual to make alcohol offer- tradition and others seem to mark new ings (http://www.eralehti.fi/keskustelu/ practices (Äikäs, 2011; Äikäs, in press t4986). Additionally, fishing lures that B). are left to some sieidi stones are most likely left by fishermen – either tourists The modern finds were left for different or locals (Hirvonen, 2007: 85). Pieces purposes. Some of the finds including of Thermos flask and remains of ener- coins, alcohol, personal objects, and meat are related to the old offering tra- gy drink bottles at sieidi sites on fell re- ditions (cf. Paulaharju, 1932: 14; Sköld, gion tell about visits during hiking trips. 1999: passim; Wallerström, 2000: 18; There are also finds that might imply Fossum, 2006: passim). In some cas- new offering traditions. Three of the es, the locals might want to respect the most well marked and most easily ac- old ways of leaving offerings. On the cessible sacred places, Äkässaivo, other hand, for example, coins and al- Taatsi and Kirkkopahta, revealed finds cohol could also have been left by that can have similarities with neo-pa- tourists. There is a common habit to gan customs. These discoveries include cones, a quill, a tied bunch of A slice of cold smoked reindeer meat from spray, candles, and quartzite that Äkässaivo, Muonio could be considered as a local version of rock crystal. Finds are similar with those that are used by neo-pagans in Britain (Wallis 2003: passim; Blain & Wallis 2007: passim). Neo-pagans are known to give similar offerings also in Finland and to visit the well known sieidi sites (Informant 2009, pers. comm.).

Whose heritage?

The fact that sieidi sites have been and still are important for a number of different people raises the question of access: who is allowed to use them and how. As archaeological sites, they are protected by law and this might be seen as contradictory to their modern use. Are the new offerings that locals and tourists leave at the sites rubbish

53 The participants of the Delos3 Workshop and the wooden constructions in Ukonsaari/Äijih Is- land, Inari.

destroying the sacred site (cf. Wallis, in certain conditions they can also give 2003: 170) or a vital part of the site’s new meanings to a place. Visits to sa- biography? cred sites can also increase the knowledge of the local culture and lead to According to tradition, at some sites more effective protection. Tourism can there might also be limitations concerning who is allowed to visit the siei- be seen as part of ethnographic exploi- di. Written sources mention sacred tation of the local culture (Ruotsala, sites where access to women is forbid- 1998: 95) or as something that should den and others that were only used by be encouraged but only on the condi- certain individuals (Paulaharju, 1932; tion that the locals consent and in co- Itkonen, 1948). Should modern visitors operation with them (Magga, 2007: 14). still obey these rules or should they be The use of sacred places evokes only applied to traditional custodians strong emotions. It leads to a situation of sacred sites? In some cases visitors where certain meanings attached to can also damage the environment at these places are considered to be the sites. In Ukonsaari (Äijih in Inari more valuable than others, and then Sámi), the erosion brought about by the value of other meanings is denied the groups of tourists has been pre- all together. Modern meanings attribut- vented by constructing wooden steps ed to sacred sites should not be con- and platforms. On the other hand, tested, because then the sites might these might also be seen as unneces- be ‘protected’, not just from ‘outsiders’, sary additions to a sacred site. but also from local people (cf. Byrne, Tourists and other visitors can advance 2009: 68). When protecting sacred the destruction of a sacred place, but sites, the rights of the locals to use the

54 place have been considered impor- were only used by certain families or tant. For example, in Kakadu National individuals. Should the traditional cus- Park in Australia the traditional owners todians in these cases be seen as have been given a right to re-work on even a more limited group? Consider- the rock paintings (Mercer, 1995: 136). ing the multiple meanings attached to In the case of sieidi sites, the local the Sámi sacred places by Sámi and people do not consist of a heterogene- non-Sámi people perhaps also the ous group. Finns might also value right of other groups to use these sites these places, but they could have dif- might be taken into account. Sámi sa- ferent meanings for them than for the cred places have a long history and traditional custodians, the Sámi. On they continue to be alive and the other hand, some sieidi places meaningful.

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55 Carpelan, C. (2003). Inarilaisten arkeologiset vaiheet [The archaeological phases of people in Inari], in Inari – Aanaar. Inarin historia jääkaudesta nykypäivään, ed. V-P Lehtola, Oulu: Painotalo Suomenmaa, pp. 28–95.

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Magga, P. (2007), Rakennuksia, kotasijoja, muistoja. Saamelaista kulttuuri- ympäristöä inventoimassa [Buildings, goahti places, memories. Surveying Sámi cultural landscape], in Eletty, koettu maisema. Näkökulmia saamelaiseen kulttuuri- maisemaan, eds. T. Elo & P. Magga, Suomen ympäristö 34/2007, pp.11–24.

56 Manker, E. (1957), Lapparnas heliga ställen. Kultplatser och offerkult i belysning av nordiska museets och landsantikvariernas fältundersökningar [The sacred places of the Lapps. Cult places and offering cult in the light of the fieldwork of the nordiska museet and landsantikvarier], Acta Lapponica XIII.

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Sköld, P. (1999), Seime staembe. Brännvinet i den samiska religionen [Spirits in the Sámi religion], Oknytt, 20(1–4), 63–84. Ubelaker, D. H. & Guttenplan Grant, L. (1989), Human skeletal remains: Preserva- tion or reburial? American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Vol. 32(S10), 249–87.

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57 58 Part Two: Ancient, indigenous and minority sacred natural sites

59 60 Conserving sacred natural sites in Estonia Ahto Kaasik

Introduction are sacred groves (hiis) covering larger areas. According to regional fieldwork In 2008, the Estonian Ministry of Culture data gathered so far, the total number approved the national conservation of SNSs is likely to be as high as 7000. plan ‘Sacred Natural Sites in Estonia: This is heritage of great significance, Study and Maintenance 2008 – 2012’. helping to maintain both biological and The conservation plan indicates that spiritual diversity in Estonia. nowhere else in Western Europe have sacred natural sites (SNSs) and the traditions associated with them been pre- Sacred natural sites in Estonia served so well and vividly as in Estonia. Even though the total area of Estonia is SNSs are a distinguishing and valuable only 47 000 square kilometres, it in- part of Estonian native culture, forming cludes a number of unique native lin- a part of Estonians’ national identity. guistic and cultural regions. There are According to mainly historical data, regional differences also in the types there are approximately 2500 SNSs of SNSs. For example, stones and known in Estonia. Of these, about 500 trees that have been used for healing

< A grove-basswood, West-Viru county. When praying or thanking gods, healing or asking blessing for marriage a ribbon or yarn is given as an oblation to the sacred trees.

61 purposes are more common in western ries, such as sacred springs and trees, Estonia, and groves for communal funeral places, fireplaces, grove sau- prayers are more common in northern nas, dance places etc. and western parts of the country. The Owing to traditional customs, the eco- unique funeral tradition of cross-trees systems of sacred groves have had has only survived in southeast the possibility to develop quite freely Estonia. during centuries or even millennia. Sacred groves (hiied; hiis) are proba- Nowadays, being often situated in cul- bly the best known and popular of the tural landscapes, the groves have be- SNSs in Estonia. The users of a sacred come stores of biodiversity. grove have historically been the inhab- Sacred stones have been brought to itants of a village, sometimes of a par- Estonia during the Weichsel glaciations ish or county. There can be found by glaciers arriving from Scandinavia. many different traditions, beliefs and Currently around 500 historical sacred folklore that are connected to the sa- stones are known, which can range cred groves. Till nowadays a warm at- from ten centimetres to ten or more me- titude towards the sacred groves has tres. On rare occasions cup-marks been preserved as well as the knowl- made by humans can be found in edge that looking at a sacred grove or them. Even though around 1700 cup- praying to it gives support. marked stones are known, less than 20 of them have been considered sacred. According to historical data, about 500 sacred groves are known in Estonia. Sacred trees are most often oaks The area of a grove can reach from 1 (Quercus robur), lime trees (Tilia cor- to 100 hectares and several significant data), pines (Pinus sylvestris), birches spots can be found within its bounda- (Betula pendula) and spruces (Picea

The eye-curing spring of Üügu, Saare county, Muhu isle. Healers and other visitors have trod a path leading to the spring. This is a place of habitation for many orchid species.

62 abies), but they can also be from other the most common in Estonia, but other indigenous tree species. Choice of types are found as well. For example species shows considerable regional sacrificial sites, sliding stones to aid in variation. For example, in Põlva parish, fertility, and sometimes old trees that most of the known historical sacred grow on stone graves. trees have been junipers (Juniperus communis). Historical and religious Cross-trees are considered an excep- background tional type of historical SNS. The tradition to cut a cross on a tree that grows In Estonia, unlike in many other techno- on the way to cemetery used to be logically developed countries, the tradi- widespread in Estonia as well as other tions connected to nature religion are still parts of Europe. Today, this tradition has being followed today. People leave offer- only been maintained in four counties of ings to and gather health and power of Estonia: Põlva, Võru, Tartu and Valga. mind from tens, even hundreds of sacred Even though the cross that is carved in sites. The native SNSs of Estonia enrich the tree has the shape of a Latin cross, Estonian society owing to the fact that the church does not recognise this tradi- they have not been demonised under the tion as its own. A cross-tree becomes influence of Christianity as they were in the soul-tree of the deceased one and other countries, such as Finland. also a kind of bulwark which protects Estonians’ religious beliefs that are the living from visits of the souls, except connected to valuing SNSs stand out for the specific folk calendar events in the European context. Several when spirits are welcome. proofs for it can be found from socio- Sacred waters can be marine areas, logical studies named below. lakes, rivers, creeks, yet most often According to an Eurobarometer survey they are springs. People go to the ‘Social Values, Science and Technolo- springs mainly for healing or for soul re- gy’ conducted in 2005, Estonia has the freshing purposes, but also to pledge lowest rate of people believing there is ones faithfulness, ask blessing for mar- a single God (16%) and the highest rate riage, to tell fortunes and give name to of people believing that there are differ- babies. Nearby a sacred spring, a sa- ent spiritual forces (54%) in Europe cred tree or stone is often found. Peo- (http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/ ple use to take holy spring water home archives/ebs/ebs_225_report_en.pdf). for drinking and healing purposes. In A public opinion poll financed and or- return for the water people throw coins dered by the Parliament of Estonia in into the spring or scratch silver dust 2002 showed that 11% of Estonian pop- from objects made of silver. ulation consider the Estonian native re- Other sacred natural sites. The ligion and Taara faith nearest to their above-mentioned types of SNSs are heart (Lepane, 2002).

63 There are more studies affirming Esto- ans consider ’maausk’ (Estonian native nians’ deep conviction for nature reli- religion) as the true religion of the Esto- gion. In 1994, the Estonian University nian people (A Conference of Sociolo- of Life Science made a sociological gy of Religion ’Elust, usust ja usuelust survey which showed that 65% of peo- 2010’, Lea Altnurme’s presentation ple living in South-Estonia believe that ’What should church know about the trees have souls (Moor, 1998). In 2002, individual religiousness of Estonians’). Tallinn University carried out an all-Es- Ensuring consistency of following the tonian study ‘Environment and us’ ac- traditions of native people and free- cording to which 82% of Estonian in- dom of religion has direct connection habitants find nature to be holy and with Estonian SNSs. The followers of animate (Raudsepp, 2005). Estonian native religion can practice Another public opinion poll ordered in certain customs only in historical sa- 2010 by the Estonian Council of cred sites where a perceptible bond Churches showed that 20% of Estoni- with ancestors exists.

The sacred hill of Kunda Hiiemägi, West-Viru county. Women are singing folksongs and cooking a holy porrige for the prayer held for the souls of the anchestors.

64 Sacred natural sites and customs brate folk calendar events, perform magical practices and make offerings. In Estonian native religion, nature’s Sometimes the ash of the deceased is sanctity is tied to its animism. Just like scattered there. Offerings and objects human beings, also plants, animals and used for healing give evidence that sa- landscape objects have soul or spiritual cred sites are in use. dimension. In old Estonian creation songs, man and everything else in the Not all of the practices associated with world is born from the eggs of first bird the sacred sites are easily defined as (swallow). In addition, the Earth is per- religious. These include staying in a ceived as a life-giving mother (Maaema sacred site, being connected with an- – Mother Earth) who is thus source of cestors, contemplation and gathering both biological and, through human spiritual strength. mediation, cultural diversity. Man is not A significant practice that must be em- the ruler of nature but a mere part of it. phasised when talking about spiritual Likewise, fairies and gods form part of heritage is maintaining a spiritual con- nature. Perception of the sanctity of na- nection with a SNS. As a result of urban- ture is characterised by intimacy and isation, most of Estonian native people cordiality. For instance when referring to have moved to towns. Staying spiritually the gods, diminutive form is often used connected with the SNS of one’s birth- to convey endearment (the suffix kene- place over the distance offers important being added to the name of a god: spiritual support and confidence. Maaemakene, Veeemakene, Äikene, jumalukene). During the past few decades, attempts have been made to restore the com- The traditions connected to sacred munal customs connected to SNSs. To groves (hiis) and other sites of this kind celebrate certain folk calendar events, have been quite similar over Estonia members of a community gather in from the first written records up to their sacred grove to jointly pray to modern times - one cannot break gods and ancestors, bring offerings branches, mow lawn, dig earth or herd and follow other traditional customs. cattle there and has to keep spiritual From time to time, communal prayers and physical purity. There are many are organised together with other cases known where those who have Finno-Ugrian nature worshippers. damaged SNSs get punished with a severe illness or even death. Sacred natural sites in change For historical reasons, Estonian native religion (maausk) has developed The beliefs and customs of Estonian largely into a familial, personal and se- nature religion are an inseparable part cret belief. People go to SNSs to pray, of the Estonian contemporary culture, heal, get blessing for marriage, give yet it has not significantly touched ei- name to a baby, hold meetings, cele- ther Estonian higher culture or the

65 state institutions. Till recently the val- are of important natural, cultural and ues and customs connected to SNSs social value, on the other hand they where not taught in the official educa- are very scarcely researched and un- tion system. Therefore, it is not surpris- derprotected on national level. Estonia ing that appropriate terminology is is lacking a thorough overview on the missing from legal acts. locations of most of our SNSs and their situation. Established in 1918 and suffered for 50 years under the Soviet occupation, Native local communities have been young Estonia is still recovering from weakened during the occupation times mentalities that were forcibly brought in and have not yet gathered their powers by the Christian and Communist re- enough to assemble. That is also a rea- gimes of the foreign occupants. We are son why sacred sites get damaged or relearning to recognise our SNSs and destroyed by different agricultural, tour- the rights of native people for them. Till istic and other development activities. recently the state has not seen SNSs as holy sites, but has only handled the natural or archaeological aspects of New era them. For example, in 2005 the Nation- In 1995 the followers of Estonian native al Heritage Board approved a project religion officially formed their religious to build a wind mill park to the sacred associations. A new period of legal ac- hill of Kunda Hiiemägi, which had been ceptance began for Estonian native taken under protection as cultural mon- people and SNSs. ument many years earlier. The Estonian House of Taara and Na- In Estonia, 450 SNSs have been desig- tive Religions (Taarausuliste ja Maaval- nated as cultural monuments. The ex- la koda; MK) started to bring together act number of sacred sites under na- historians, natural scientists and folk- ture protection is not known, because lorists who are interested in studying they have not been mapped. During SNSs. The aim of Maavalla koda is to the last decades, a number of smaller bring the research of SNSs to a new regional fieldwork projects have been modern level, ensure complex and in- carried out, which have shown that terdisciplinary scientific treatment of most of SNSs placed under state pro- SNSs and, through this, direct the state tection are in a poor state. At the same to recognise the importance of SNSs. time it has been proved that many pro- For the followers of maausk SNSs are tected species and other natural val- important as intact and unfragmented ues can be found at those sacred cultural and natural areas. sites, which have preserved at least in In a few years the research and man- a satisfactory state. agement situation of SNSs was Thus on one hand, the SNSs and the mapped, a research methodology was spiritual traditions preserved in Estonia compiled and several pilot projects

66 were carried out. It was concluded that consists of a historical overview of SNSs a national conservation plan was need- in Estonia, an analysis of the current situ- ed in order to organise emergency res- ation, and also presents several con- cue works as quickly as possible. crete conservation measures and in- structions on how to apply them.

National conservation plan for sacred natural sites Conservation measures

As a result of thorough explanations The conservation plan aims to retain all from the followers of maausk, the Minis- extant SNSs under national protection, try of Culture formed in 2005 an inter- as well as change the protection man- disciplinary working group with the aim agement in order to cover all the val- to prepare a national conservation plan ues of the sacred sites: intangible and for SNSs. The working group was put tangible cultural heritage, natural val- together by representatives of different ues and freedom of religion. As the sa- ministries, universities, scientific re- cred sites help to maintain the tradi- search institutions and Maavalla koda. tions of local people (and some tradi- While taking part in the preparation of tions can only be performed in the sa- the conservation plan, Maavalla koda cred sites), they are also important in was collaborating with other scientific enriching the living environment and organisations to improve the study supporting local development. methodology of sacred sites, perform field works on the pilot areas and intro- The coordinating steering committee of duce this topic in the media. A first the Conservation Plan consists of repre- comprehensive overview of the Estoni- sentatives of the Ministries of the Environ- an SNSs was published in the form of a ment, Agriculture, Internal Affairs, and compilation of articles (Kaasik, 2007). Education and Research; the National Followers of maausk also organised Heritage Board and Maavalla koda. The protection of several SNSs which re- University of Tartu is the implementing ceived quite a lot of media attention: agency. Measures of the Conservation Tammealuse grove, sacred grove hills Plan are designed to handle all aspects of Kunda Hiiemägi and Ebavere Hiie of SNSs and the associated values. mägi in Lääne-Viru County, Purtse Hiie As SNSs are one of the most endan- mägi in Ida-Viru county, sacred grove gered features among Estonian cultural hill of Paluküla Hiiemägi in Rapla Coun- heritage, it is essential to study and ty and Panga grove in Saare County. save them. SNSs as historical objects On 1 April 2008, as a result of years of are endangered by perishing of the liv- preparation, the Estonian Ministry of Cul- ing lore, on one hand, and by lack of in- ture approved the national conservation formation on their existence, on the oth- plan ‘Sacred Natural Sites in Estonia: er. Often only a few old people remem- Study and Conservation 2008–2012’. It ber the locations or existence of sacred

67 sites. Unless researchers interview tonian legislation not only lacks direct these people in the forthcoming years, regulation of SNSs, but does not even many significant and valuable sites will mention their existence. Consideration disappear from the heritage landscape should be given to defining SNSs as a and be forever lost for society. separate category of monuments.

The Conservation Plan foresees creat- Yet, effective legal regulation and pro- ing a database which supports re- tection measures are not sufficient searching and managing SNSs. The when society in general does not value database would consist of folkloric, ar- sacred sites. The plan foresees to chaeological, natural, historical and launch media projects, disseminate in- other data on SNSs and provide infor- formation on the television and radio, mation on the exact location, condition books, exhibitions, lectures and other and form of ownership of each site. activities. It also proposes to supple- ment school curricula with relevant in- In the first phase of fieldwork, the reformation about the SNSs. searchers will make interviews with local inhabitants to specify the locations and borders of SNSs. The second Recent advances phase would ideally take place in the landscape where SNSs are situated. It The financial help from the state has so focuses on details and the personal far been 197 000 euros, forming 11,6% bond of the interviewees with SNSs. from the general budget of the Conser- The following phases comprise taking vation Plan. With this financing the co- the GPS coordinates, first demarca- ordinators of the Conservation Plan tion, and its natural scientific, archaeo- have been hired and they have so far logical and ethnographic description. led the following works. A research methodology has been compiled and The received audio and video record- the methodology for demarcation and ings, and pictures (photos, drawings, conservation are being prepared. The schemes, maps) will be systematised, database project is ready. An expert analysed and archived. Subsequently group has been put together to raise suggestions on demarcation, protec- the necessary competence in the Na- tion and management of the SNSs tional Heritage Board. found will be made. In order to safeguard confidential information on sa- The first fieldwork studies have been cred sites the information about en- performed so far in Muhu parish on the dangered SNSs will not be disclosed. West coast of Estonia and a partial inventory in Juuru and Kuusalu parishes The Conservation Plan foresees to per- of North Estonia. Altogether there are form a revision of the Estonian legal 102 parishes in Estonia. regulations and to formulate suggestions of amendments or prepare a new A total of 21 researchers participated in legal act about SNSs. Currently, the Es- Muhu fieldwork. The local community

68 The sacred grove (hiis) of Tammealuse, West-Viru county. A ribbon is tyed as offering in a sacred natural site forming a bond between generations and this way keeping spiritual consistency with anchestors. network helped to organise the work. share their knowledge with strangers During the research period more than whom they do not trust. Historical ex- 200 inhabitants were interviewed, 120 perience has taught local people that if hours of interviews were recorded and strangers knew about your sacred more than 3000 photos were taken. Be- place, it would be destroyed or inter- fore starting the fieldwork, according to fered. People also believe that when the collected historical and folkloristic strangers know about your sacred data the researchers were aware of 28 place, its powers weaken. SNSs in this area, and 11 of them placed under national protection. During the fieldwork, participants had collected in- Values and knowledge formation about 81 historical sacred sites and additionally about 30 potential Since 2008, Maavalla koda has organ- sacred sites. They managed to find and ised campaigns (Hiie sõber) to find perform an inventory of 67 sacred sites. people or organisations who are dedi- Most of the previously unknown sacred cated to protecting the SNSs. This also sites were healing stones and springs. serves an educational purpose: the best practices of sacred natural site The greatest surprise that came up as management and the good individual a result of the Muhu project was the examples are shown to the public. understanding that researchers are still unaware of a considerable number Annual photo contest, organised by of sacred sites. The reason for that is Maavalla koda, aims to document the that bearers of the living traditions, the current situation of Estonian SNSs and users of sacred sites, do not want to draw public attention to this topic.

69 A photo exhibition on Estonian SNSs government plans to build a recrea- has been made with explanatory texts. tional sports and tourist centre on the This has been already shown in 16 site. Despite the fact that the site is un- towns and villages. der nature protection, followers of maausk have done serious efforts dur- More than a 100 articles have been ing the past ten years to protect the published in the media and many lec- spiritual and cultural values connected tures have been delivered addressed to the sacred hill of Hiiemägi. This is to Estonian officials, school children one of the most long-lasting conflicts and other interest groups. connected with conservation of SNSs For the first time in history, the Estonian in Estonia and has gained lots of me- University of Life Sciences and Univer- dia attention. Unfortunately no satis- sity of Tartu offer elective courses on factory solution has been found so far. SNS. Sets of lectures addressed to officials who are daily dealing with the questions connected to SNS manage- Natural and spiritual values ment will be delivered in the next few Hiiemägi (sacred grove hill) is located years aiming to raise their competence in Paluküla, Kehtna parish, Rapla and, through this, help to ameliorate county, Estonia within a National Land- the situation of SNS conservation. scape Protection Area (IUCN category V), which protects landforms from the Case study: The sacred hill of glaciations period and wild species. Its total surface encompasses 5713 ha, of Hiiemägi in Paluküla which the sacred hill covers only 25 The case discusses a SNS in a situa- hectares. The area has been included tion of conflicting interests. The local in the Natura 2000 network, as a spe-

A signboard in front of sacred hill of Paluküla Hiiemägi, Rapla county. Often natural and spiritual values suffer the pressures of economic interests.Ahto Kaasik cial conservation area (IUCN Category machines. That is also the reason why V), (Dudley, 2008). the frequency of visitors to the sacred hill has gone up and the biodiversity of In the area of Hiiemägi a Natura 2000 this place has significantly decreased. natural habitat type of Community interest has been inventoried. It is com- Moreover, next to Hiiemägi and on its posed of ‘Semi-natural dry grasslands hillside the local government plans to and scrubland facies on calcareous construct a sports and recreation cen- substrates (Festuco-Brometalia) *im- tre with stadiums, ski lifts, motels etc. portant orchid sites’. It is also regis- Hand in hand with the impoverishing tered as the location of a large popula- conditions of the environment, the pos- tion (around 50 nests) of a protected sibilities to follow spiritual traditions on ant species Formica polyctena. Hiiemägi have substantially worsened. The spiritual and cultural values of Hiie Followers of maausk feel that their sa- mägi form an inseparable part of its cred object has been attacked and natural environment. During its long their right of freedom of religion is history this place has developed into violated. what it is today due to having been The National Heritage and Environ- used and regarded as a sacred site. mental Boards, which are directly in Followers of maausk use Hiiemägi even charge of managing this protected today as a natural sanctuary as much area, have given permissions to the as the worsening conditions allow. recreation centre projects, refusing to Regular communal and individual discuss the questions connected to prayers and rituals are being held there spiritual aspects of Hiiemägi. and people leave offerings on the hill. Native people and followers of maausk According to the expert opinions of ac- and Maavalla koda find it essential to knowledged Estonian folklorists, the conserve the spiritual and cultural val- sacred hill of Hiiemägi in Paluküla is a ues of Hiiemägi and keep it as a natu- SNS, which must be conserved and ral sanctuary. They have cleaned gar- protected as a whole. bage from the hill, informed the public, carried out supervision and used all court and administrative means and Pressures and impacts even physical intervention to obstruct The landowner, the local government, the construction activities on the sa- sees mostly the economic potential of cred hill. The local groups have also Hiiemägi, which should be used to de- participated in the implementation of velop forest, sports and tourist busi- the development plans of the sacred nesses. Approximately one third of the hill, carried out monitoring, negotiated sacred hill of Hiiemägi has already with the landowner and developers, been turned into ski trails and grass- National Heritage and Environmental lands that are maintained with different Boards, conducted research and hired

71 researchers, organised a public col- Perspectives lection of signatures and media cam- The protectors of the Hiiemägi sacred paigns. Many folklorists, historians, hill have repeatedly suggested several conservationists and cultural celebri- compromise solutions according to ties have supported these activities. which the hill could be used both for One of the most dramatic events took recreational sports and ecotourism. place on 8 November 2004, when The protectors cannot accept the con- Maavalla koda called people to gather struction of buildings, vehicular traffic to Hiiemägi for a protest meeting with a and mass events taking place in this purpose to barricade the tractors mov- sacred site. The local government has ing up the hill. Probably it was the out- offered, from their side, to leave a come of intensive media attention that small reservation area for the followers prevented the conflict. As a result of of maausk. negotiation, both the machines and It seems so far that no satisfactory police forces left the sacred hill. compromise can be found through ne- After the incident, the protectors of the gotiation. A solution could lie in imple- grove hill filed a court suit, went menting the Conservation Plan. Ac- through all Estonian court instances cording to the Conservation Plan, the and lost in the Supreme Court. Cur- whole sacred hill of Hiiemägi should rently they are expecting an answer be placed under heritage protection to from the European Court of Human ensure constitutional freedom of reli- Rights about the case of the sacred hill gion and possibility to perform histori- of Paluküla Hiiemägi as violation of cal customs. The IUCN-UNESCO freedom of religion. Guidelines for Managing Sacred Natu- ral Sites (Wild and McLeod, 2008) will hopefully be of help as well.

Websites Estonian House of Taara and Native Religions, http://www.maavald.ee/eng/

Website of the sacred hill of Palukyla Hiiemägi, http://palukyla.maavald.ee/

Conservation plan ‘Sacred Natural Sites in Estonia: Study and Maintenance 2008 – 2012’ (English version), http://hiis.ee/sacred-sites/sns_devplan

72 Glossary Looduslik pühapaik - a SNS, a site associated with sacrifice, worship, healing, prayer or other religious or ritual activities according to folkloric, archaeological, historical, ethnological or other data which dates back before the 20th century.

Loodus – ‘nature’ in written Estonian. For the followers of maausk the word loodus has a shade of meaning referring that nature is a product or outcome, with a concrete creator, giving the word a monotheistic connotation

Loond – a term that was used in ancient Estonian to signify ‘nature’. It harmonises better with Estonian myth of creation, according to which the world was born from bird’s eggs and is a self-creating, constantly changing living being

Hiis – sacred grove, a SNS in communal use, comprising a larger and complex area. People intervene in its natural succession as little as possible

Maausk – Estonian native religion, based on nature worship

Maarahvas – historical ethnonym for the Estonians

Taarausk – Taara religion, a monotheistic belief, created in 1930s, banned and vanished during Soviet occupation

References

Dudley, N. (editor) (2008) Guidelines for Applying Protected Area Management Categories. Gland, Switzerland, IUCN.

Kaasik, A. and Valk, H. (eds.) (2007) Looduslikud pühapaigad, väärtused ja kaitse [Sacred natural sites. Values and protection]. Commentationes Litterarum Socien- tatis Esthonicae XXXVI. Tartu: Maavalla koda, Tartu Ülikool, Õpetatud Eesti Selts, http://maavald.ee/hiis/raamat2007/hiiekogumik.pdf, English abstracts, http://hiis. ee/sacred-sites/sns2007

Lepane, L. (2002) Avaliku arvamuse uuringu tulemused [Results of a public survey]. Tallinn: Riigikogu and Ariko Marketing, pp. 18, 58, 59 http://www.riigikogu.ee/doc.php?46237

Moor, A (1998) Hingepuu, vanade müütide jälgedes [Soul tree in ancient myths]. Tartu: Elmatar, p. 104.

Raudsepp, M. (2005) Eestlaste loodusesuhe keskkonnapsühholoogia vaatenur- gast [Estonians’ relationship to nature from the viewpoint of environmental psychology]. In Eesti Looduskultuur, ed. T. Maran and K. Tüür. Tartu: Eesti Kultuuriloo ja Folkloristika Keskus, Eesti Kirjandusmuuseum, pp. 379–420.

73 74 Use and reuse of ancient sacred places in Mikytai, Žemaitija National Park, NW Lithuania Vykintas Vaitkevicˇius

Introduction Ancient sacred places are a highly characteristic type of monuments in The study of the ancient sacred places Lithuania’s protected areas, which cov- in Lithuania was a rather slow process er the most natural lands. Usually sa- in the twentieth century. Many ideologi- cred places located in protected areas cal and methodological controversies are well preserved, and therefore they surrounded the subject. The multidisci- deserve special consideration. plinary character of the ancient sacred places and ambivalent ideological atti- The complex of ancient sacred places tudes towards them were the factors of Mikytai is located in North-western that affected the issue greatly. Lithuania, within Žemaitija National Park. As many other protected areas of Nowadays nearly 2500 ancient sacred the country, this national park was places have been recorded in Lithuania. founded in 1991, soon after the inde- This figure includes hills, arable fields and pendence of Lithuania was declared. meadows, groves and trees, rivers and springs, lakes and wetlands, stones, hol- The core of the Žemaitija National Park lows. There are also some known caves is Lake Plateliai, located in the middle located in exposures on riverbanks. of the site, although numerous other

< An oak with holes and two trunks grown together on the north-eastern slope of the Alka Hill.

75 The location of the Mikytai Site in the Baltic Sea Region. places of interest are located in its pe- the religion of the Žemaitija region. It is riphery. Žemaitija (Samogitia – in Latin) sometimes described by the term ‘Folk is a renown region for its history and Christianity’ that includes ancient sa- cultural heritage. cred places: sacred trees, sacred springs, and sacred stones being in Although Christianity has been official- passive or active use today. Especially ly introduced into Žemaitija in the early the votive treatment and offerings of fifteenth century (Jucas, 2007: 31-38), this kind are prevalent and practised in real changes in the worldview of the lo- Žemaitija. Small wooden chapels, cal population took place only in the crosses of different size, figurines of late sixteenth century, during the Ref- the Saints as well as numerous other ormation and the reaction against it. offerings are brought to the ancient sa- Syncretism of inherited Baltic (and also cred places. Indo-European) spiritual traditions and Christianity is highly characteristic of

76 Mikytai sacred places and the In historical times, at least for four or Alka Hill five centuries, the Mikytai village aka( - lica – in Polish) at the roads crossing The case of the ancient sacred places in was a settlement inhabited by noble- Mikytai is quite different from other Lithu- men. For this reason there were no anian sacred sites. The Devil’s name that regulations indicating that the villages appears in some of the place names of were the property of the State (e.g. Mikytai as well as in the local legends re- Grand Duchy of Lithuania). The repre- ferring to the Alka Hill does indicate that sentatives of the noblemen were the the original sacredness of the pre-Chris- keepers of old customs in some cases. tian site has been transformed into fear This might be supported by recent re- and fright a long time ago. The name of search carried out in Lithuania and the village ‘Mikytai’ might have derived Latvia. In both cases a kind of religious from a surname, but at the same time, independence of the noblemen related folk etymology draws attention to the to the ancient sacred places was dis- meaning of the Lithuanian word mikyta cussed, and buildings of sacred plac- ‘the goat’, because the ghost of the goat es next to the villages that were inhab- plays the central role in the numerous place legends related to the Mikytai Alka ited by the noblemen were presented Hill (Vaitkevicˇius, 1998: 22). (Vaitkevicˇius 2008; Laime 2009).

From an archaeological point of view, the Alka Hill (whose literal translation hill fort in-between the sites Mikytai and would be ‘hill of the Alka’) is the most Šliktine is a significant mark in the prehis- significant landmark in the surround- toric landscape dating back to the first ings of Mikytai and it possesses the millennium – early second millennium AD common Lithuanian name alka (femi- (Baubonis and Zabiela, 2005: 372-373). nine). For a long time Alka was widely Couronian settlements covered a huge accepted as the name for ‘a sacred area from North-western Lithuania to grove’, ‘a place where sacrifices were South-western Latvia (Žulkus, 2004: 41). burnt’, or ‘sacrifice’ itself (Vaitkevicˇius, There is no information about a burial site 2004: 7). It is worth mentioning that in Mikytai. However, several findings Alka is one of the few Baltic religious were discovered during the reclamation terms of the pre-Christian period. Nu- of the Šata River valley in 1938 and 1970 merous ‘hills of Alka’ are highly charac- (arms, jewellery, pieces of rider’s equip- teristic of the Žemaitija region in Lithu- ment, etc.) and their appearance is char- ania and the Couronia region in Latvia acteristic of the sacrificial sites all around (Vaitkevicˇius 2004: 9-10). Usually they Northern Europe. In a marshy area locat- belong to archaeological complexes ed to the north of the hill fort some hun- dated from the early fourteenth to the dreds of items from the ninth to eleventh early fifteenth century, the same period centuries AD have been found in two when the Northern Crusades and Con- compact concentrations (Rimantiene, version ends. Evidently, the Mikytai 1977: 132-133). Alka Hill was somehow connected with

77 The Mikytai Alka Hill in the landscape (view from the west). the Mikytai hill fort, at least in a visual well-known feature in the area of the way, but the key point is the location of Mikytai Alka Hill, is placed on the east- the complex of the ancient sacred ern side. Currently, the dry 0.6 m deep places in the watershed area. hollow that has a diameter of 2.2 m and is paved with stones, is regarded The Mikytai Alka Hill (184 m above sea to be the former place of the sacred level) is located in a woody and marshy spring (Vaitkevicˇius, 1998: 225-227). watershed area in-between the basins of the Rivers Minija, Bartuva, and Var- Apart from the Devil’s Stone and Prayer’s duva. It has a shape of a large irregular Well mentioned in the place-legends, cone, and it represents the ground mo- some other elements of the site should raines – the gently rolling hills. All these be mentioned. Namely, an oval-shaped are related to the glaciers which have pond full of water (10 x 25 m in size); a disappeared some thirteen thousands formation of two stones (of unknown ori- years ago in Žemaitija. gin), one on top of the other, both of remarkable shape and appearance as The slopes stretching from 28 to 32 m well as a table-shaped stone (1.4 x 1.6 are particularly important features of m, 0.1 m high) surrounded by a circle of the site; the southern slope rises grad- fourteen other stones. ually, while the northern one is extremely steep. The Devil’s Stone (red Recently other new discoveries were granite, 3.6 m in length, and 3 m in made during the field-survey that took width) is located in the middle of the place in April 2011. Attention was northern slope. On the top of the boul- drawn to certain trees bearing holes. der there is a depression of 7–16 cm x Holes of different size and form were 34 cm in size, the so-called Devil’s shaped in many trunks and (or) footprint. The Prayer’s Well, the second branches grown together. The species

78 of the trees varied, and included an collection of narrations, place legends oak, a bird cherry, two spruces, two and beliefs which were compiled dur- maples, a pair consisting pine tree and ing the twentieth century. In 1926 Juo- a maple; they were recorded mostly in zas Mickevicius (1900–1984) authored the north – north-western side of the the first publication on the subject Alka Hill. Those trees were used in (Mickevicius, 1926). Later on he was special healing rituals and are known followed by Jurgis Dovydaitis (1907– in Lithuania, the former territory of 2001), Juozas Šliavas (1930–1979), Prussia, as well as in Belarus, Russia and Antanas Šleinys (1897–?). The lat- and other countries. The holes in the ter is a story teller and folklore collector, trees represent gates in which the inhabitant of the Kruopiai village, and clothes of patients or sometimes sick deserves special attention. His place legends are famous in Lithuania and children were put. are characterised by the author’s very Finally, some other landmarks, such as individual style, uncommon among the earth mounds and a particular kind of other story tellers. At the same time, ditch discovered within the area of the however, his stories have a traditional Alka Hill, might be regarded as a result form and character. of human activity during the late nine- Generally there are a number of mo- teenth and the beginning of the twenti- tives behind place legends. For in- eth century. stance, the Mikytai Alka Hill is considered the dwelling place of a particular goat that is usually depicted as a ghost Legends and beliefs that misleads local peasants, and An important part of the intangible cul- frightens them. By bleating, the goat tural heritage of the Mikytai Alka Hill is a stays in a kind of active communica-

An indirect illumination of the northern slope of the Mikytai Alka Hill as well as the Devil’s Stone in the evening sunshine

79 The topography of sacred places in Mikytai: (1) the Devil’s Stone on the northern slope of the Alka Hill, (2) the Prayer’s Well on the eastern foot. The scheme on the right implicates the mythological model of the complex of sacred places in Mikytai referring to the general meaning of the world’s directions in the Baltic religion. tion with the residents of the Mikytai vil- salt is very characteristic of the Lithu- lage. This is a reciprocal relation. It is anian tales; people are looking for salt known that men used to produce a in heaven, because salt resources are drone while blowing the boss of the under control by God (Dievas) or Thun- wheel in a particular way, inviting the der (Perkunas) (Vaitkevicˇiene, 2001: goat to the village (Šliavas, 1978: 74). 77-81). But in relation to ancient sa- Another significant concept related to cred places, salt is known to be found the Alka Hill concerns the mist. It is on the most remarkable sacred hills broadly believed that the Alka Hill pro- only. duces smoke. This phenomenon is not In the Mikytai Alka Hill not much em- related to a specific time of the year; phasis is placed on the period and rit- the key point is that smoke over the uals of the pre-Christian religion. Alka Hill always predicts considerable Sometimes place legends do mention weather changes – the rainy weather offerings sacrificed to the Prayer’s Well will change into sunny, the coolness (Vaitkevicˇius, 1998: 226-227) and into warmness, and so on (Vaitkevicˇius, washing of the dead at the well before 1998: 224). cremation (the well was sometimes The extraction of salt on the Mikytai called the Death’s Well – Šliavas, 1978: Alka Hill is discussed in numerous nar- 73-74). The latter subject is unique rations as well (Vaitkevicˇius, 1998: and needs to be thoroughly examined 222-223). The motif of the extraction of in the future. Archaeological excava-

80 tions (precisely test pits) took place in that, very likely, east was connected to Mikytai Alka Hill in 1971 under the life and west was connected to death. leadership of Vytautas Urbanavicius. Water flowing to the east has a special Neither structures nor artefacts refer- positive impact on people; according ring to ancient rituals were revealed to the Baltic religion such water brings (Urbanavicius, 1972: 15-17). life, health, and beauty (Vaitkevicˇius, 2004: 45-46). In a particular way the One very important factor for the myth- trees bearing holes in the north-west- ological interpretation of the complex ern area of the Alka Hill do represent a of ancient sacred places in Mikytai is connection with the otherworld – during the morphology of the Alka Hill itself. the rituals the holes of the trees used to The geographical position, topogra- play the role of a gate; while crossing phy, and shape are as important for the line between the two worlds every our examination as all material evi- expected change is possible. dences. Surprisingly, the shape of the Alka Hill, and its north-south direction, fits exactly the model of the Baltic A complex of ancient sacred worldview: the northern slope is as sites dark, cold, and wet as the southern is bright, warm, and dry (cf. To sum up, the features included Vaitkevicˇiene, 2001: 120-130). Taking around the hill, its location in relation to into account the accessibility of the the watershed area, its topography Alka Hill (none of the old paths lead to and morphology, the place legends re- the northern side) it might be reasona- lated to the mist and the extraction of bly stated that the northern slope and salt indicate that the complex of an- the marshy foot look eerie and un- cient sacred places in Mikytai, al- worldly, in comparison to the southern though not thoroughly investigated yet, area which was the main arena for eve- was used during the Iron Age and the ry kind of action and activity. Middle Ages as a sacred place of interregional character, one of the cen- The preliminary analysis of the road tral places in the Couronian region (cf. network around the Alka Hill proves Vaitkevicˇius, 2004: 51-52). The prehis- what was just stated; the main road toric sacred site lost its sacredness (also designed for transport) leads to with the arrival of Christianity, most the hill’s top from the southern side, likely in the late sixteenth or seven- and the main path (designed for walk- teenth century – in course of the reac- ing only) stretches from the west to the tion against the Reformation as well as east approaching the Prayer’s Well all pagan elements led by the Jesuits. (again a symbolic expression). Another turning point in the history of The opposition east-west is slightly ex- the Žemaitija region is the decimation pressed but the Prayer’s Well, the for- of the local population during several mer site of the sacred spring, indicates outbreaks of plague in the period from

81 the mid-seventeenth to the first half of The Mikytai Alka Hill was an attractive the eighteenth century (its last occur- ancient sacred place without any reli- rence in 1709–1711). gious connotations, which is characteristic of the dissemination of ancient Indications of the former sacredness of cultural heritage in Lithuania. Two fac- the Alka Hill in Mikytai can be found in tors, however, are positively affecting the origins of its – name composed of the perception of this ancient sacred the archaic religious term alka, a col- place in Mikytai. Firstly, the Alka Hill is lection of place legends, and some easily accessed by car, because it is particular features like the Devil’s located only some hundred metres Stone and the Prayer’s Well, which be- from the parking area. Secondly, the long to the same complex. The cultural cognitive path established by the man- activities promoted by the managers of agers of the National Park is equipped the national park have already with the necessary infrastructure: spe- changed the social attitudes towards cial props mark the path course, infor- the Alka Hill. The passive approach mation for the public is provided in (general knowledge without further Lithuanian and English, and sightsee- particular interest) became an active ing points are located on the top of the one. In the last decade, a Mikytai cog- hill. In this way the fear and scare relat- nitive path (approximately 1 km in ed to the Alka Hill in Mikytai have been length including the wooden tower de- transformed into tourist interest and signed for sightseeing) became one of education opportunities, creating an- the most favoured trails inside the pro- other natural and cultural attraction tected area. Žemaitija National Park within the national park. It is one of the hosts approximately 60 000 visitors few examples of this kind in modern every year, of which probably 1000 vis- Lithuania. it the Mikytai Alka Hill, too (Mrs. A. Ku- prelyte, personal communication).

82 References

Baubonis, Z. and Zabiela, G. (2005), Atlasas. Lietuvos piliakalniai [The Atlas of Lithuanian Hillforts], 2, Vilnius: Krašto apsaugos ministerija. Juђas, M. (2004), Lietuvos parapijos XV–XVIII a. [The Lithuanian Parishes in the 15th–18th cc.], Vilnius: Aidai.

Laime, S. (2009), The Sacred Groves of the Curonian K¸onin¸i: Past and Present, Folklore. Electronic Journal of Folklore, 42, 67-80.

Mickevicˇius, J. (1926), Alkos kalnas [The Alka Hill], Trimitas, 44, 1376-1377.

Rimantiene˙, R., ed. (1977), Lietuvos archeologijos atlasas. I–XIII a. pilkapynai ir senkapiai [The Atlas of Lithuanian Archaeology. Barrows and Burial Grounds of the 1st–13th cc. AD], 3, Vilnius: Mokslas.

Šliavas, J. (1978), Žeme˙ ir žmogus [The Earth and the Man], Žeimelis. The manuscript stored at Vilnius University Library (Department of Manuscripts, No 152-15).

Urbanavicˇius, V. (1972), Senove˙s lietuviu˛ spe˙jamu˛ kulto vietu˛ kasine˙jimai [Exami- nation of the Possible Cult Sites Used by Old Lithuanians], Vilnius. Excavation report stored at Institute of Lithuanian History (Department of Manuscripts, No 1-351).

Vaitkevicˇiene˙, D. (2001), Ugnies metaforos. Lietuviu˛ ir latviu˛ mitologijos studija [Metaphors of Fire. A Study of Lithuanian and Latvian Mythology], Vilnius: Lietuviu˛ literatuˉros ir tautosakos institutas.

Vaitkevicˇius, V. (1998), Senosios Lietuvos šventviete˙s. Žemaitija [Ancient Sacred Places of Lithuania. The Samogitia Region], Vilnius: Diemedžio leidykla.

Vaitkevicˇius, V. (2004), Studies into the Balts’ Sacred Places, BAR International Se- ries, 1228, Oxford: John and Erica Hedges Ltd. Vaitkevicˇius, V. (2008), Perkuˉnakiemio mitu˛ pe˙dsakais [On the Traces of the Myths of Perkuˉnakiemis Site], Tautosakos darbai, 36, 51-63.

Žulkus, V. (2004), Kuršiai Baltijos juˉros erdve˙je [Couronians in the Baltic Sea Re- gion], Vilnius: Versus Aureus.

83 84 Zilais kalns – Blue Hill in Latvia Juris Urtaˉns

Introduction The Latvian name Zilais kalns means Blue Hill. Blue colour in place names is Zilais kalns, Valmiera municipality, is very often one of the marks to identify the highest point of NW Vidzeme, Lat- a place as holy, not only in Latvia, but via. Geologically it has formed as the also in many other parts of Northern result of the movements of the glacier Europe (Kursīte, 2008). The blue col- and under-ice streams. The top of our was associated with sky, holiness, Zilais kalns rises 127 m above the sea nobleness, etc. In Baltic German litera- level. The relative height of the hill is 66 ture Zilais kalns has been mentioned m, which is significant for the topogra- since the end of the eighteenth century phy of Latvia. The hill is surrounded by (Börger, 1778; Hupel, 1782). boggy areas. Zilais kalns by itself is a block of hills, which extends ca. 1.6 km in W–E direction, and about 2 km in Folklore and written records on N–S direction. The top of the hill is Zilais kalns plain. The northern side of the hill is very steep and 36 m high, whilst the Several hundreds of folklore records other sides are gently sloping. about Zilais kalns have been collected

< Upurkalns (Offering Hill) on the top of Zilais kalns.

85 in the Archive of Folklore of Latvia. The close to Zilais kalns, which go back to main motifs in folklore are connected medieval times or even earlier. Those with the hill as an ancient holy place. markets were connected with orphans, Very often a holy spring was men- who came to this holy place from very tioned, which was used in folk medi- distant places. The rule was that the cine. When the spring dried up, the visitors of the market had to give dona- people continued to use the sand from tions to the orphans (Abbuls, 1921; Ru- the spot of the spring for healing. See berte, 1991, etc.). Those folklore texts folklore collections in German and Lat- have been partly influenced by the so- vian languages (Balodis, 1909; Hunni- called folk Christianity. Perhaps the ex- us, 1912; Ancelaˉne, 1988; Ruberte, istence of a medieval chapel on Zilais 1999) and numerous folklore reviews kalns has also provided basis for the (Ašmanis, 1930; Cukurs, 1930; Cukurs, existence of folk Christian tradition. 1936; Meisters, 1971; etc.). There are a lot of folklore records tell- The Blue Hill as the unofficial cemetery ing about several objects with sacral of local peasants was mentioned in the meaning, like Upurkalns (Offering Hill), seventeenth century written records. In Sveˉtavots (Holy Spring), stones, trees, this cemetery the local people have etc. on Zilais kalns. There are folklore been buried without acceptance of the records telling that the local people Church (Bregžis, 1931). This cemetery used mud from the bogs close to Zilais was situated on the top of the hill, kalns for healing purposes (Ruberte, where archaeological findings and hu- 1999). Unfortunately those places in man bones have been discovered the bogs have not been localised. since 1874 (Grewingk, 1876). In 1973, Part of folklore is connected with the during trial archaeological excavations stories about witches, who used Zilais conducted in the place of forthcoming kalns as an assembling place (Šmits, tower, 28 burials from sixteenth to sev- 1937, 263; Ancelaˉne, 1988, 102; enteenth centuries were unearthed Ancelaˉne, 1991; Ruberte, 1999; etc.). (Cimermane, 1974). There are written Perhaps it may not be a coincidence records of the seventeenth century that in the 1960–1980s not far from mentioning the hill as a meeting place Zilais kalns lived a woman who prac- of witches (Straubergs, 1992). The ticed healing and was famous all over same was evidenced also in folklore Latvia. Her nickname was Zilaˉ kalna records (Šmits, 1937; Ruberte, 1999). Marta (Marta of Blue Hill). Her memory It is quite possible that a Christian is living in present day folklore and chapel or cross once stood on the hill also in literature (Zaˉliˉtis, 2001; Plaudis, (see Kurtz, 1924; Bregžis, 1931; Man- 2002; Plaudis, 2008; Plaudis, 2011), nhardt, 1936). This was the praxis for exhibitions and theatre performances. Christianising an ancient ‘pagan’ holy place throughout Europe. In folklore Since the end of the nineteenth centu- big and regular markets are described ry Baltic German and Latvian investi-

86 gators in many publications have been accepting the general opinion that BALTIC Zilais kalns is one of the holy places of SEA Gulf of Riga Valmiera ancient Latgalians with more central Zilais kalns significance, the place for different folk RIGA assemblages, which dates back to the Liepaja Late Iron Age, i.e. to the first centuries Latvia of II M AD (Olavs, 1892; Ballod, 1910; Balodis, 1911; Balodis, 1936; Adamovicˇs, 1937; Malvess, 1937; Bal- odis, Tentelis, 1938,; Latvijas PSR A map of Zilais kalns. arheolog’ija, 1974; Johansons, 1975; Urtaˉns, 1993, ; Latvijas senaˉkaˉ veˉsture 9. g. t. pr. Kr. – 1200. g., 2001, 363; it usually reflects the ideas of national Skutaˉns, 2010, 14; etc.). Unfortunately romanticists (Laime, 2011). On the ba- this has not been proved by any ar- sis of folklore, written records, records chaeological or historical material. It is about the archaeological findings and quite possible that the role and mean- results of archaeological excavation, ing of Zilais kalns was enlarged only in Zilais kalns has been included in the the nineteenth century, under the influ- list of Protected Archaeological Monu- ence of romanticism literature, but in ments of Latvia. fact Zilais kalns was an important holy site only for the surrounding parishes Zilais kalns as the ancient holy place (Laime, 2011, 14). Despite of that the has been widely accepted by Latvian magnificent hill Zilais kalns, which is people in all times. In Soviet time, dur- dominating over the extended plain ing the 1950s, close to Zilais kalns, a and its surroundings, has been dis- Soviet village was built for the migrants cussed as a sacral landscape (Kursiˉte, used as a labour force in peat bogs, 2001). which degraded and diminished the significance of the holy place. The Lat- vian people justifiably felt that this was A national symbol an action by Soviet regime to under- mine the perception of the holy place. Zilais kalns has the role of a national Later, at the end of 1990s, the authori- symbol or even cliché. From the begin- ties planned to build a big rubbish land- ning of the nineteenth century Zilais fill close to Zilais kalns, but this project kalns, as a direct and well-known sym- faced big protests from Latvian people bol of freedom, was used in Latvian lit- and therefore was discarded (Jakovicˇs, erature (see Jansons, 1972; Laime, 1999). Later on voices rose suggesting 2011; etc.). Folklore about Zilais kalns that Zilais kalns should be denominated has been collected not only in the vi- a national holy place like famous Catho- cinity of the hill, but all over Latvia, and lic basilica in Aglona (Dzeˉrve, 2006).

87 thorities and the followers of neo-pagan beliefs. This conflict exists also in the neighbouring countries of Lithuania and Estonia.

On the other hand, Zilais kalns as a popular place and symbol obtains also commercial value and the image of the old sacred hill has also been used on labels, names of companies, etc.

Natural heritage

Zilais kalns is also one of the first listed nature reserves of Latvia. The status of Zilais kalns as Nature Reserve was adopted on 14 November 1924, for an

The label on a liquor bottle. area of 85 ha. At the present the Na- ture Reserve covers 118 ha and has been declared a Natura 2000 site. It Religious activities and conflicts contains different forest types, including protected habitats defined in Euro- The first ideas about the significance pean Union Habitat Directive 92/43/ of Zilais kalns as a holy place in re- EEC as Western taiga (9010) and Tilio- newed folk religion appeared already Acerion forests of slopes, screes and after World War I (Brastin¸š, 1986. From ravines (9118). Zilais kalns has been the beginning of 1990s to the present, Zilais kalns has been increasingly investigated geologically to establish used for the rituals of followers of old the process of its geological develop- Latvian traditions, dievturisms or ment (Markots, Zelcˇs, 2005). neo-pagans. Zilais kalns is rich in biodiversity. There Unfortunately the religious activities are records of a number of protected have resulted in unauthorised moving flora species of the Republic of Latvia, of the Offering stone from its previous consisting of lycopsids (Huperzia sel- place, and erecting it in a new place. ago, Lycopodium clavatum), mosses In addition, several stone structures, (Anastrophyllum hellerianum, Geocalyx like stone circles and stone settings, graveolens, Lejeunea cavifolia, Neck- have been built, and a number of era pennata), lichens (Arthonia byssa- stones have been unearthed from their cea, Arthonia leucopellea, Arthonia original spots and gained a new visual spadicea, Arthonia vinosa, Chaenothe- image. This is what has caused a con- ca chlorella, Lobaria pulmonaria), and flict between heritage protection au- vascular plants (Lathyrus niger).

88 It is worth to mention that the richness to repair the tower, change its use for and diversity of plant species is one of sightseeing and open it to the visitors. the significant marks of ancient holy places in Latvia. According to old folk songs and sayings, some of these Conclusions plants were used in folk medicine. For Zilais kalns, an ancient holy place example, in 1866 A. Bielenstein noted probably since prehistoric times, has the great variety of plants and the become a national symbol, and a living great fertility on the other old sanctuary and significant place in present day particularly on the hill Elku kalns (Idol Latvia. Zilais kalns includes historical Hill) in Central Latvia. The local farm- values, e.g. ancient traditions and ar- ers used the plants collected in Mid- chaeological sites; significant natural summer as medicinal herbs. They con- heritage values, e.g. geological fea- sidered the hill a natural pharmacy tures, rich and rare plant species and (Bielenstein, 1866). Scientific study a beautiful landscape, as well as newly has been made of the plants growing established and developing traditions, on Idol Hill and their medicinal value which are claimed to be related with has been confirmed by botanical re- the old pre-Christian religion. These search (Ledus, 1938). values have been carefully studied and are fully acknowledged, and have prompted the government to adapt Management several legal norms for protecting the From a management viewpoint, the na- integrity of the holy hill, like Nature Re- ture reserve of Zilais kalns needed to serve, Nature 2000 site. Some of the limit the stream of the visitors, therefore challenges for conserving the rich her- at the foot of the hill a parking place for itage of Zilais kalns in front of increas- cars has been established. The parking visitor pressures have been solved ing place is provided with toilets and by adequate management measures, information signs. The landscape of but others, especially those related Zilais kalns was partly destroyed by a with ceremonial uses, pose new concrete tower built in the 1970s as threats, ironically coming from emerg- the watchtower for fire guarding. Re- ing social attitudes related to the im- cently, a project has been elaborated memorial holiness of this site.

89 References Abbuls, P. (1921). Imeras upe un apgabals. [River Imera and its surroundings] Izglītības Ministrijas Meˉnešraksts. 3. 1921, pp. 255–267. Adamovicˇs, L. (1937). Senlatviešu relig’ija veˉlajaˉ dzelzs laikmetaˉ. [Old Latvian religion in Late Iron Age] Veˉstures atzin¸as un teˉ lojumi. Rīga: Izglītības ministrija, pp. 45–115.

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Ancelaˉne, A. (1991). Latviešu tautas teikas. Izcelšanaˉs teikas. [Latvian folk tales; tales of origin] Rīga: Zinaˉtne.

Ašmanis, K. (1930). Gauja. [The Gauja River] Rīga.

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Balodis, F. (1936). 9.–12. gadsimten¸u Latvija. [Latvia in the 9 – 12 C] Senatne un Maˉksla. II, pp. 5–15.

Balodis, F., Tentelis, A. (1938). Latviešu veˉsture. [Latvian history] I, 2. Rīga: Valtera un Rapas akc. sab. apgaˉds.

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90 Cukurs, R. (1936). Valmiera – Burtnieki – Mazsalaca. Rīga.

Dzeˉrve, L. (2006). Grib pielīdzinaˉt Aglonai. [Wanted to equal to Aglona] Diena. 23.04.

Grewingk, K. (1876). Sitzungsberichte der gelehrten estnischen Gesellschaft zu Dorpat. 1875. Dorpat, pp. 142–143. Hunnius, C. (1912). Schloss Burtneck am See und der Blauberg. [The castle Burt- neck at the lake and Zilais kalns] Heimatstimmen. V. Reval – Leipzig.

Hupel, A. W. Topographische Nachrichten von Lief= und Ehstland, [Topographic description of Livonia and Estonia] 3. Riga.

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Jansons, A. (1972). Piezīmes par Garlība Merk.el.a ‘Vanema Imantas’ avotiem. [Re- marks about the sources of Garlib Merkel’s ‘Vanems Imanta’] LPSR Zinaˉtn¸u Akadeˉmijas Veˉstis. 10.

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Kursīte, J. (2008). Sfumato nesfumato. Ekspedīciju cel.i un necel.i. [Sfumato non- sfumato. The roads and non-roads of expeditions] Rīga: Madris. Kurtz, E. (1924). Verzeichnis alter Kultstätten in Lettland. [List of ancient cult sites in Latvia] Mitteilungen aus der livländischen Geschichte. Bd. 22. H. 2. Riga. pp. 17–119.

Laime, S. (2011). Centrality of Zilais kalns in Northern Latvia reconsidered. Loca- tion and Relations of Natural Holy Places in the Baltic Sea Region. 5th conference of the Natural Holy Places in the Baltic Sea Region, Ke¸trzyn, May 5–8, 2011. pp. 13–14.

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91 Mannhardt, W. (1936). Letto–preussische Götterlehre. [Latvian – Prussian mythology] Magazin der Lettisch – literärischen Gesellschaft. Bd. p. 21. Riga. Markots, A., Zelcˇs, V. (2005). Aizsargaˉjamo dabas teritoriju g’eolog’iski g’eomorfolog’iskaˉs sadal.as saturs un nodrošinaˉjums: Zilaˉ kalna dabas lieguma piemeˉrs. [The content and safeguarding of the geological-geomorphological division of protected areas. Example of Zilais kalns nature reserve] g’eolog’ija, g’eograˉfija, vides zinaˉtnes. Referaˉtu teˉzes. LU Akadeˉmiskais apgaˉds. pp. 189–190.

Meisters, J. (1971). Zilais kalns. Dabas un veˉstures kalendaˉrs 1972. Rīga: Zinaˉtne. pp. 267–268.

Olavs, V. (1892). Latvju tauta. [Latvian folk] Enciklopeˉdisku rakstu virkne. I, 1. Jelgava.

Plaudis, A. J. (2008). Zilaˉkalna Marta. [Marta of Zilais kalns] Rīga: Jumava.

Plaudis, A. J. (2011). Ar mīlestību, Juˉsu Zilaˉkalna Marta. [With love, yours Marta of Zilais kalns] Rīga: Ameija SIA.

Plaudis, A.J. (2002). Leg’endaˉraˉ Zilaˉkalna Marta. [Legendary Marta of Zilais kalns] Rīga: Aplis.

Ruberte, I. (1999). Valmieras novada teikas. [Tales of Valmiera district] Valmiera: Valmieras skolu paˉrvalde.

Skutaˉns, G. (2010). Hills with Sacred Springs in Middle Latvia (Vidzeme) and East Baltic. Water, Borders and Boundaries. 4th Conference on Holy Places in the Bal- tic Sea Region. May 6th–8th 2010. Abstracts. Ed. R. Ruohonen. Turku, pp. 14–15.

Straubergs, K. (1992). Raganu praˉvas. [Witch trials] Tem īda. Nr. 3/4.

Šmits, P. (1937). Latviešu tautas pasakas un teikas. [Latvian folk tales and legends] 15. seˉj. Rīga: Valters un Rapa.

Urtaˉns, J. (1993). Latvijas senaˉs sveˉtnīcas. [Ancient sanctuaries of Latvia] Rīga: Latvijas enciklopeˉdija.

Z aˉ l ītis, J. (2001). Zilaˉkalna Marta. [Marta of Zilais kalns] Rīga: Nordik. Баллод, Ф. В. (1910). Некоторые материалы по истории латышского племени с IX по XIII столетие. Записки Московского археологического института. [Some materials on the history of the tribe of Latvians from the ninth to the thirteenth century] Т. p. 8. Москва.

Lobaria pulmonaria is one of the protected species in Latvia. >

94 Alevi-Bektashi communities in south- eastern Europe: spiritual heritage and environmental consciousness Irini Lyratzaki

Introduction decades they have started to play a crucial role in the emergence of environ- Alevi and Bektashi are Sufi, non-Sunni mental movements. Islamic orders that originate from the Middle East and Anatolia. From the thir- In the seventeenth century, Ottoman teenth century and onwards they spread traveller Evliya Çelebi witnessed some- to Asia Minor and the Balkans, incorpo- thing unexpected while visiting the rating a wide array of elements from the Turkmen nomads of the Karakoyunlu many beliefs and religious practices tribe: Muslims worshipping trees, light- they encountered, acquiring a syncretis- ing candles next to them and placing tic character. Defying ‘orthodox’ Muslim pieces of iron as offerings on their religious practices and reflecting their barks. Two centuries later, one of Ab- tribal system of social organisation, dul Hamid II’s agents reported nomad what differentiates them from the main- peoples from Anatolia worshipping ‘the stream Muslim doctrine and practices is great trees and monumental rocks that a deep respect and love of nature. They are touched by the first rays of the ris- number many millions mainly in Turkey ing sun’. Ethnologists in the twentieth and the Balkans, and during the last century discovered the same phenom-

< Bektashi Tekke on the Kuz-Baba Hill, Vlore, Albania.

95 ena in Anatolia and the Balkans and even invented the term ‘dendrolatry’ (tree worship) to describe this practice (Zarcone, 2005).

What those people witnessed was a special relationship of these Muslim populations with nature, which does not exist among other Muslim believers in the Middle East and North Africa. This relation was the outcome of a cross-fer- tilisation of beliefs and practices inspired, on the one hand, by Islam (and especially the Arab-Muslim philosophy and Ibn Sina and al-Farabi) and Sufism Allah’s name by 17th century Ottoman artist Hâfız Osman. and, on the other, by animism, shamanism and Buddhism (Zarcone, 2005). no distinction in Islam between things profane and things sacred. Everything a Islam and the natural Muslim does is to please God, so all his environment good actions are being seen as worship. Therefore, all social, political, legal, ad- The Alevi-Bektashi religious traditions, ministrative and economic activities in although ‘heterodox’ (i.e. non-Sunni or the Islamic society are as sacred as orthodox Shi’a), are Islamic. Hence, it praying in the Mosque (Norcliffe, 1999). would be useful to review the positions of the Islamic faith regarding nature In addition, man’s position in the world and its protection. is twofold: he is at the same time ‘abd – slave, or even better abd-Allah – the Islam is the easiest religion to under- slave of God, and also khalifah – vice stand, yet imperfectly understood by regent, or representative, which ele- non Muslims. It is the faith of one God, vates humans above all other crea- whose will was revealed to Muhammad tures of the Creation (NasseJ, 1986). and was included in the sacred book, the Holy Qur’an. It is not well understood Prophet Muhammad taught ‘The world because in the West its name is associ- is green and beautiful, and God (Allah) ated with terrorism and intolerance. In has appointed you his guardian over it’. Arabic it means peace through surren- Muslims believe that Allah created hu- der or submission to the will of God, and mans to be the khalifah, the vice re- Muslim, is the one who is at peace gents of the creation. By that, it is stated through submission to God. Islam is a that nature is not ours and we can not Dîn (Tradition) embracing all aspects of do with it as we please. Instead, we life (as in the case of Hinduism). There is must act as its protectors (ARC, 2011).

96 Additionally, the central concept of Is- example set by the Prophet Muham- lam is tawheed, which means One- mad, compiled in his Hadith (sayings). ness of God. Everything that exists For example, there are laws in the comes from and depends on the one Shari’ah mandating animal’s protection and only Creator. One of the names of and avoiding all form of cruelty, as well God in the Qur’an is Al-Haqq, which as the conservation of forests. The means both Truth and Reality. Allah is prophet Muhammad established large unity and this unity should be mirrored reserves around Mecca and Medina in the relation between humans and where all living beings are protected. the natural world. It is the duty of hu- According to his saying: ‘Whosoever mans to safeguard this unity, by pro- plants a tree and diligently looks after it tecting the integrity of the Earth, its flo- until it matures and bears fruit is re- ra and fauna, its wildlife and environ- warded’ and ‘If a Muslim plants a tree ment. It is their duty to preserve the or sows a field and men and beasts balance and harmony in Allah’s crea- and birds eat from it, all of it is a charity tion (Norcliffe, 1999). on his part’ (Norcliffe, 1999).

Given that humans are khalifah-guardians, they are also accountable for Origins of the Alevi-Bektashi their actions and their omissions – as orders responsibility is a direct consequence of this status. On the Day of Reckon- The ‘Alevi-Bektashi’ is a term used for ing, Islam teaches that everyone creat- a large number of different heterodox ed by Allah will return to Allah for Judg- communities, spread in the Anatolia re- ment and humans will be judged for gion, the Balkans and other parts of the way they treated what was entrust- the world. In Turkey alone, where they ed to them. This concept is called akh- number at least 15 million, they are di- irah – the Hereafter and describes the vided by ethnicity (Kurdish, Turkic and accountability of the khalifah. Moreo- Arabic Alevis) and language (speaking ver, it is clearly stated in the Qur’an Turkish, Kurdish, Kurmanji, Zaza and that Allah invites everyone to enjoy the Arabic) (Ignatov, 2008). fruits of the earth, but to avoid excess Although some Bektashi scholars and leading to waste, ‘for Allah does not Alevis believe that there are certain dif- love wasters’ (ARC, 2011). ferences and variances, they have The concepts of trusteeship, unity, ac- been generally regarded as parts of an countability and the avoidance of integrated Alevi-Bektashi culture (Mav- wastefulness are the main principles of rommatis, 2008; Kressing, 2002; Doja, the environmental ethics of Islam. They 2006a, Melikoff, 1998). In the past, are not abstract values, but they are all Alevis lived in rural or more isolated ar- translated in practical directions on eas, while the Bektashis lived in urban how to live, included in Shari’ah, the centres. Today the name ‘Alevi’ is usu- sacred law of Islam, and the Sunna, the ally used in Turkey, and the name ‘Bek-

97 tashi’ in the Balkans. What characteris- cial, political and military crisis, Otto- es these orders is their deep respect mans were not themselves identified and love for nature and beauty, which with Sunni Islam doctrine, but went is evident in their dances, music and through a period of assimilation with poetry. the heterodox Islam (Doja, 2006a). Common ground must have been Both the Alevi and Bektashi orders found those times between them and consider as their founder Haji Bektash the Alevi-Bektashi followers. Veli, an Islamic mystic and philosopher from Khorasan province who lived in The Alevists in particular, allied with 1209–1271 in North-eastern Iran, in Kizilbash – partisans of the Safavids, Anatolia (Karamustafa, 1994). His one of the most important ruling dy- name can be translated as ‘The Pilgrim nasties of Iran, responsible for the Saint Bektash’ and was probably not spread of Shi’a Islam in Iran as well as the actual founder of the orders but a major localities of the Caucasus and patron-saint, selected at a later time Indian subcontinent – and expressed (Doja, 2006a). The Khorassan prov- the resistance of Turcoman chiefs ince was home to Turkic tribes, and el- against the Ottoman State. Bektashism ements of their religious tradition that integrated the Kizilbash ideology, included pre-Islamic and non-Islamic which reflected their tribal system of elements that originated in shaman- social organisation, and later trans- ism, Buddhism, Manichaeism, Christi- formed the Bektashi order to a dervish anity and other antique religions were one (Doja, 2006a). The Kizilbash-Ale- incorporated in the Bektashi practices. vists were isolated mostly in Anatolia, As they spread towards the Balkans, in an attempt of the State to suppress they additionally incorporated Neo- Turkey’s ethnic heterogeneity (Ignatow, Platonist, Christian and Nestorian influ- 2008), and preserved rituals and prac- ence (Kressing, 2002). tices that distinguished them from other religious communities. The Bektashi Being influenced by Sufi approaches, resided mostly in urban centres and they sought direct religious experienc- were characterised by a more organ- es as opposed to mainstream Islamic ised structure, although both orders practices originating from prophetic consider their beliefs identical (Me- revelations. Although they did not ob- likoff, 1998). ject to the mediating role of earthly representatives of God, in practice As the Ottoman Empire spread, so did they defied Shiite hierarchies and per- the Alevi-Bektashi orders and they formed rituals without intermediaries were even associated with the Janis- (Doja, 2006b). Before the establish- saries troops (Melikoff, 1998). This ment of their Empire (the Sunni tri- spread was supported by the Byzan- umphs over Shiite dynasties, which co- tine emperors in the fourteenth centu- incided with the foundation of the Otto- ry, who used Ottoman troops during man Empire), and during times of so- the civil wars that menaced the Byzan-

98 tine state. By the eighteenth century, The beliefs of the Alevis and Bektashis Bektashi numbers in the Balkans had are syncretic and received influences risen considerably, and a large num- from the people they were in contact ber of tekkes (buildings designed spe- with. These religious cultures share a cifically for prayer gatherings of Sufi lot in common with other Islamic mysti- brotherhoods) was functioning (Zegi- cal movements, such as the need for nis, 2001). an experienced spiritual guide called a baba as well as the doctrine of the four Starting from the sixteenth century, gates that must be traversed: Shari’ah their beliefs were considered radical (sacred law), Tariqah (the spiritual and clashed with the ‘orthodox’ Sunni path), Ma’rifah (true Knowledge) and and Shia Islam. In 1826 the Jannisaries Haqiqah (Divine Reality) (Kressing, troops were dismissed and the Bek- 2002). Their key characteristics tashis were driven to the periphery of include: the Empire (Kressing, 2002). In 1925, • love and respect for all people during the revolution led by Mustafa • tolerance towards other religions and Kemal Atatürk - the founder of the sec- ethnic groups ular Republic of Turkey, that put an end • respect for working people to the Ottoman Caliphate - the Sufi or- • equality of men and women who pray ders were officially banned. The Bek- side by side, and the practice of mo- tashi tekkes were closed and their der- nogamy (Leaman and Nasr, 2001). vishes were exiled. The Bektashi community’s headquarters were then The Alevi-Bektashi worship takes moved from Hacıbektas¸ in central Ana- place in tekkes, not mosques. The hi- tolia to Tirana, Albania (Kressing, erarchical structure of the orders con- 2002). sists of the grades of ashik, muhip (novice), dervish, baba (similar to a guru) and dede. Since the order is Alevi-Bektashi doctrine mystic, only initiated members are allowed to participate in the ceremonies Both orders are Sufi or otherwise (Zeginis, 2001). called Dervishes. Their primary differ- ence to Sunni Muslims is the fact that In the sixteenth century, an emblematic the latter believe that during their lives personality and great reformer of the they are on their pathway to God and Bektashi order, Balim Sultan, initiated a that after the ‘Final Judgment’ they will series of reformations that further fa- finally be closer to Him, while Sufis be- voured syncretism. In an attempt to sur- lieve that it is possible to be close to vive and spread, Bektashism incorpo- God and to fully embrace the Divine rated a number of Christian influences, Presence in this life, living a primarily such as the conception of the triadic ascetic life (analogously to monastic God-Muhammad-Ali that is non-existent orders of Christianity and Buddhism). in the Qur’an, the prohibition of divorce,

99 the correlation of the worship of the 12 It is considered by many scholars that imams with the worship of the 12 Disci- this approach is generally supplemen- ples, the use of wine and bread, as in tary, and does not come close to the the Christian holy communion and appreciation and esteem most Asian many others (Zeginis, 2001). Turkish religions show towards nature, whose scholars, however, have heavily criti- views are basically influenced by ani- cised the influences between the two mism and shamanism (Zarcone, 2005). faiths and support the Turkish origins of In the framework of animism, and as it Bektashism (Doja, 2006b). is also mentioned in the theory of ‘Su- pernature’, all natural beings have a Veneration and protection of soul similar to that of humans. In sim- nature in the Alevi-Bektashi ple words, all beings in nature have the religious tradition same worth and status among them and none is superior to the other. The While many references are mentioned doctrine of the ‘Oneness of Being’ – in the Qur’an about the protection of that is the belief that everything is in nature, they are at the same time dic- God, even space and the whole uni- tated separately and not in a unified verse –, central to the Neoplatonic phi- manner. Just like in Christianity and losophy but also seen under the per- other faiths, people tend to interpret spective of Islam and Sufism, comes the guardianship of the natural world – close to the concept of the tawheed, entrusted as a sacred duty to humans the unity the Qur’an teaches, and by God – as their right to dominate and stresses the importance of the sense over-exploit natural resources. As a re- of community among all things in na- sult, they have separated themselves ture (Doja, 2006b). from the natural world, breaking a powerful bond. The doctrine of the Oneness of Being is symbolically depicted in the chore- The need of humans to keep a strong ography of the whirling dance of the connection with nature was fulfilled by Mevlevi dervishes (evleviye), repre- the approaches of Bektashism and senting the descent and return of Alevism. They responded to the desire things that went through all the phases expressed by many for a pantheistic of existence. These doctrines strongly faith, a faith of the heart more than a connect to the reincarnationism, an in- faith of the book and a faith of collec- fluence directly derived from Bud- tivity (Ignatow, 2008). dhism. The Bektashis believe that Although according to the teachings of when people die, if they lived doing many religions, nature should be re- good deeds, they will take a human spected, it is usually treated as ordi- form in their next life, and if they did nary, a place where humans, the only the opposite, they will reincarnate as species worthy of salvation, are living. animals (Zarcone, 2005).

100 The most venerated natural elements tably they have to fall some of them, by the Turkic people since the eleventh they perform a very complicating ritu- century have been trees and forests. al, asking for their forgiveness (Zar- People commonly address trees, call- cone, 2005). ing them Mr (bay) and this is often The Alevi societies develop special re- demonstrated in toponyms (Mr Tree, lations with representatives of the ani- Bay Yïgaç). A ritual prayer mentions mal kingdom, mainly deer and birds, a ‘may your tree with the generous practice deriving from animism, as well shade not be cut down’. And in West- as the theory of ‘Supernature’. The ern Muslim Anatolia a prayer is ad- Yürük and Tahtacï tribes that still reside dressed to all elements ‘mountains, in present-day Turkey, firmly believe stones, great trees and rivers, carry away the sickness my child is suffering that the deer society has a similar from’ (Zarcone, 2005). structure with the human society, with its own laws, organisation and chiefs, Objects of veneration are also rocks a remnant of ancient Turkic beliefs and stones; isolated piles of rocks be- where human clans maintained rela- tween hills and valleys are often attrib- tions with animal clans (ibid.). uted the name dede, a title associated with revered elders. Veneration of trees It has been stated that contrary to Re- and stones is also met, in saints’ naissance and Enlightment philoso- graves which are commonly surround- phies, the Alevi-Bektashi theology is ed by holy groves or in sanctuaries inherently friendly to the environment and holy places. A tree or grove may and the Alevi way of life is ecologically be worshiped but it is understood that sustainable (Endirce, 1998). it is the barakah (spiritual influence or blessing) of the holy person that makes it sacred and not that the tree is Alevis-Bektashis in in itself sacred (Zarcone, 2005). The south-eastern Europe differentiating factor between the two The Alevis and Bektashis number spiritual traditions is that in Islam spe- many millions in present-day Turkey cific natural elements are venerated and the Balkan countries of Greece, because of certain attributes each ele- Albania, FYR of Macedonia, Bulgaria, ment disposes, while in the Alevi-Bek- Romania and Bosnia. Three interesting tashi tradition all natural elements are examples of the Bektashis in the con- equally valued (Ignatow, 2008). temporary era are discussed bellow. The Alevi semi-nomad tribe of Tahtacï The Pomak Bektahis of Greece that live in the Taurus Mountains in Southern Turkey are so closely bound Among the Islamic Greek populations up with trees, because as they say that inhabit the Northern Rodopi Moun- ‘they love them so much’ and pertain tains in Eastern Thrace, Greece, there that they never harm them. Since inevi- are Slavic speaking people called the

101 place of pilgrimage (Mavromatis, 2008). Nowadays, ca. 30 000 Pomaks are living in Greece, all of them in East- ern Thrace (Alexiou, 2009).

It is rather fascinating that even today, a large number of Thracians consider many natural elements (mountains, dolmens, rocks, springs) holy and try to protect them from unsustainable management practices.

Roussa Tekke, Evros Greece. The Bektashis of Albania In 1925, when Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Pomaks. Many of them are Bektashis officially banned the dervish orders, and what makes their case special is the Bektashi community’s headquar- that the wider area they occupy has ters were then moved from Hacıbektas¸ been endowed with a rich cultural her- in central Anatolia to Tirana, Albania. itage, which influenced their own cul- While by and large ethnicity in South- ture. There are indications that the re- eastern Europe is closely related to gion has been continuously inhabited specific faiths (Serbs, Bulgarians, since the early Iron Age (1100–900 Greeks and Romanians are Christian BC), and there is a plethora of ele- Orthodox, Slovenians, Croats and ments of the ancient Thracian tradition Hungarians are Roman Catholics, Bos- (which also combines Orphic and Dio- nians, Pomaks and Turks are Muslims), nysian elements) that testifies it, such the case of Albania is different. People as rock engravings depicting humans, in the North are Catholics, in the South birds and reptiles, as well as other Orthodox and Bektashi and in the Cen- symbols with magical and averting evil tral and Eastern parts are Sunni Mus- properties, as well as open-air shrines lims. It is generally agreed that religion (sacred mountain tops) and dolmens in Albania tends to be syncretistic. Ele- (Aslanis and Arvanitidou, 2001). It is ments of the autochthonous folk reli- believed that one of the older oracles gions have been preserved in the of the ancient world was situated in the country, in a much greater extent than vicinity, the Oracle of Dionysus. in other regions of Europe. It is very In this area, the second most important common for Albanians to participate in Bektashi tekke of the world is situated, religious ceremonies as a form of so- near the Roussa Village and it is fortu- cial gathering, regardless of their own nately still in operation. It was founded faith. Approximately 20% of the Albani- in 1402 by Kizil-Deli and it is the local ans claim to have some connection to Bektashis’ most profoundly venerated the Bektashis (approximately 635 000

102 people) (Kressing, 2002) and Bektash- community, equal to but different from ism is one of the four religions recog- Sunnism. nised by the Albanian State. The Alevi religious notions about na- The Alevis of Turkey ture have taken a political character in the 1990s in Turkey, inspiring a spiritu- The Turkic Alevis, despite their perse- al type of ecology among some intel- cution by the Kemalist government, lectual circles, as a response to rising have managed to survive in great num- environmental dangers from industriali- bers, especially since they occupied sation and urbanisation (Zarcone, remote areas, away from the capital 2005). Following the military coop of and the central authority. In addition to 1980 and the constitutional changes in the fact that they were firmly rooted in the 1990s, a large number of hems¸ire the Balkans for centuries through the (hometown) organisations were estab- Turkish Diaspora they can be nowa- lished in large Turkish cities and in Eu- days traced to France and Northern ropean cities, which strengthen ties of Europe. In Turkey, it is estimated that, internal migrants with their homelands. at minimum, they reach a population of These organisations, along with Alevi 10 million people and, at maximum, 20 NGOs with close ties to Greenpeace, million people (a range of 14 to 27 per Friends of the Earth and many other cent of the country’s population) (Igna- environmental groups have brought to tow, 2008). the fore environmental issues and con- Nowadays, the Alevis ally with the cerns, as a result of a rising globalisation process (Ignatow, 2008). democratic secularists and oppose the fundamentalist influence and the Mus- In his book The Environment in Alevism lim extremists. They demand Alevism and Bektashism (1998), Nukret Endir- to be recognised as an official Islamic çe urges the political authorities and

Map depicting the Alevi population of Turkey.

Black Sea

Istanbul

Ankara

TURKEY

Mediterranean Sea

103 the environmental organisations to pro- four days. In August 2004, apart from tect the environment by adopting spe- the usual discussion panels organised cific measures. Annual festivals asso- during the festival (in which scientists ciated with devotional sites, where and civic leaders also participated ar- veneration is given equally to saints, guing against the construction of the animals, plants and minerals, offer pil- dams), a theatre play was staged, pre- grims the opportunity to demand senting in an original manner the spir- measures against the destruction of itual qualities the Alevi place on the riv- nature. Participants in this movement er and valley. The actors cloaked in sa- insist that the Bektashi-Alevi thought cred animals’ costumes (deer and sees nature (doga) as a unit; it sees a trout) told old village stories about the harmony that unites all things (Zar- river (Ignatow, 2008). cone, 2005). There are indications, though, that In the framework of contemporary things might start to change, regarding global environmental movements, a the recognition of their identity, their re- network of environmental and cultural ligious rights, the legal standing of organisations has been developed, their places of worship, and their wider with the purpose to oppose the con- acceptance by the Turkish government struction of a series of dams in the (Altintas¸, 2009). Tunceli region of Anatolia. Tunceli (or Dersim) remains Turkey’s only province with an almost exclusively Alevi popu- Conclusions lation, and is renowned for its natural beauty. According to the project, eight The Alevi-Bektashi religious culture is dams are going to be built in the Mun- unique. Owing to its syncretistic nature zur Valley. Anti-dam activists believe it comprises centuries-old beliefs and that if the dams will be built, the rise in practices from a vast territory and uni- water will reach the foot of the city and fies them into a spiritual tradition that will flood many already isolated re- teaches love and respect for all things gions, cutting off the locals and de- in nature, animate and inanimate. populating the region. A wide network Combining elements from institutional- of Turkish Alevi migrants in Germany, ised religions and native faiths, it has Denmark, the Netherlands, Britain and acquired distinctive qualities and a Australia have joined forces and creat- very unique character. Rooted in two ed the necessary structures with the continents and tested in different so- aim of helping the Alevis in Turkey both cial and political surroundings and cir- financially and in terms of organisa- cumstances, it has proved its resil- tional support (Ignatow, 2008). ience surviving in the hearts and minds of the faithful. The Alevi activists schedule protests around the annual Tunceli Festival, Although considered a religious minor- which is held in August and lasts for ity, their number is quite large in the

104 Balkans and Asia Minor. Most of them The natural environment we inherited live in Anatolia and for many years from our fathers will be probably deliv- have been neglected by the central ered to our children in a much worse authorities. In Albania, as well, their condition. So, as Celal Arslan, an Alevi community is rather large, and smaller dede, mentioned during an interview in numbers of Alevis and Bektashis can 2004 (Ignatow, 2008): ‘We give prima- be found all over the Balkans, but also ry importance to the environment all in other parts of the world. the time for our and our children’s future. Our ancestors planted a tree Not well-known in the Western world, wherever they saw water. The impor- their respectful attitude to nature could tance of trees has come down to us. serve as an example of good practice. When we were young our elders used Their teachings should become better to say ‘Plant trees as long as you live. known and their message of harmoni- Even if you yourself cannot benefit, ous life with nature should be further other living things such as birds and promoted. Their voice should be heard wolves can benefit’, and they planted a by the governments of their countries love of nature in us. But over time, the more clearly and appropriate meas- slaughter of nature increased. I am tell- ures for the sustainable management ing you as an Alevi, as a dede, we of protected areas and the environ- should give environmental conscious- ment could be taken. ness to our children.’

105 References:

Alexiou, K. (2009), Οι Πομάκοι της Θράκης, [Pomaks of Thrace], http://www.ma- vriki.eu/meionotites.html, checked 25 May 2011, (in Greek).

Altintas¸, E. B. and Haydar Gözlü, ’Tunceli embraces President Gül’, Todays Za- man, 6 November 2009, http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById. action?load=print&link=192139&yazarAd, checked 25 May 2011.

ARC, What do Muslims teach us about ecology?, Alliance of Religions and Con- servation, http://www.arcworld.org/faiths.asp?pageID=6, checked 25 May 2011.

Aslanis, I. and Arvanitidou, S. (2001), Roussa in Ancient times, Electronic thesau- rus of Thrace, http://www.xanthi.ilsp.gr/thraki/history/his.asp?perioxhid=H0005, checked 26 May 2011 (in Greek).

Doja, A. (2006a), A Political History of Bektashism from Ottoman Anatolia to Con- temporary Turkey, Journal of Church & State, 48 (2), 423–450. Doja, A. (2006b), Spiritual Surrender: From Companionship to Hierarchy in the His- tory of Bektashism. Numen: International Review for the History of Religions, 53(4), 448–510.

Endirce, N. (1998), The Environment in Alevism and Bektashism, Istanbul: Can Yayinlari.

Ignatow, G. (2008), Transnational environmentalism at Europe’s boundaries: identity movements in Lithuania and Turkey, Current Sociology, 56(6): 845–864.

Karamustafa, A. T. (1994), God’s Unruly Friends: Dervish Groups in the Islamic Later Middle Period 1200–1550, Salt Lake City, UT: University of Utah Press. Koukos, M. (1991), Στα βήματα του Ορφέα, Οδοιπορικό της Θράκης, In the steps of Orpheas, Traveling in Thrace, http://alex.eled.duth.gr/Eldoseis/Koukos/orfeas/ index.htm, checked 26 May 2011, (in Greek).

Kressing, F. (2002), A Preliminary account of research regarding the Albanian Bek- tashis – Myths and unresolved questions, in Albania – A Country in Transition. As- pects of Changing Identities in a South-east European Country, ed. K. Kaser and F. Kressing, Baden-Baden, pp. 65–92. Leaman, O. and Nasr, S. H. (ed.) (2001), History of Islamic Philosophy (Routledge History of World Philosophies), New York: Routledge.

Mavrommatis, G. (2008), Bektashis in 20th century Greece, Turcica, pp. 40, 219–251.

106 Mélikoff, I. (1998), Bektashi/Kizilbas: historical bipartition and its consequences, in, Alevi Identities. Cultural, Religious and Social Perspectives, Papers read at a Conference held at the Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul, November 25–27 1996 ed. T. Olsson, E. Özdalga and Kathrin Raudvere, Swedish Research Institute Transactions 8, pp. 1–7.

NasseJ, A. O. (1986), Muslim declaration, in The Assisi Declarations: Messages on Man and Nature from Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism, WWF, Gland: WWF International.

Norcliffe, D. (1999), Islam, in World Religions: an Introduction for Students ed. J. Fowler, M. Fowler, D. Norcliffe, N. Hill and D. Watkins, Brighton: Sussex Academic Press.

Zarcone, T. (2005), Stone people, tree people and animal people in Turkic Asia and Eastern Europe, Diogenes 207: 35–46. Zeginis, E. (2001), Ο Μπεχτατισμός στη Δ. Θράκη: Συμβολή στην Ιστορία της διαδόσεως του Μουσουλμανισμού στον Ελλαδικό χώρο [Bektashi Religion in Western Thrace: Contribution to the History of the Spread of Islam in Greece], Thessaloniki: Institute for Balkan Studies (in Greek).

107 108 Part Three: Managing lands of mainstream religions

109 110 The cultural and spiritual sites of the Parco Nazionale della Majella, Italy Vita de Waal

Intangible heritage ent people, thereby making it difficult to establish a clear-cut definition. It is there- The Majella National Park is a protected fore of the utmost importance for such area with an abundance of diverse and work to be multi-tasked, to have different intriguing sites spanning at least 800 approaches and to include a variety of 000 years. These cultural sites are not peoples, especially including those just physical sites but have deep his- whose traditions are being considered. toric, cultural and spiritual significance that cannot easily be conveyed to peo- This case study will raise a number of ple who are not of that culture or spirit- questions, but might also present an ual view. Furthermore, some cultural example in which many cultural, spirit- traditions have their source in civilisa- ual and historic contexts converge tions that have long since disappeared, within the contemporary context. but whose traditions are still alive today, as they have been passed on, either orally or in writing. The Abruzzo Region

A further difficulty is that intangible cultur- The sites of Majella National Park need al criteria mean different things to differ- to be set against the historical, cultural

< San Giovanni all’Orfento: Very remote site to which Pietro Angeleri retreated at the age of 69 and where he stayed for nine years.

111 Eremo San Bartolomeo in Legio (ninth century – still in use): Located next to a prehistoric lithic site. and geographical background of the Many of the new foreigners that settled Abruzzo Region. Situated in the centre in the area brought with them new cul- of the Italian peninsula and with over tural inputs, metal smelting tech- one-third of its territory protected, this niques, domesticated sheep, goats, region is considered one of Italy’s agricultural knowledge and a tradition greenest. Within its territory there are of transhumance that would mark the Majella National Park, Gran Sasso-La- Abruzzo region for millennia to come. ga National Park, Abruzzo National Milder weather conditions allowed the Park and the Regional Park of transition from a more mobile society Sirente-Velino. to the development of nascent and more permanent agricultural settle- While the Italian peninsula has seen di- ments coupled with seasonal move- verse peoples and cultures passing ments of transhumant activity. through its territory, many finds confirm that Homo erectus inhabited the Abru- The transition from a society of hunter- zzo area since the Lower Paleolithic. gatherers to an agricultural society did During the last glacial period the per- not occur in a consistent manner and manent snow line in this area went for a period Palaeolithic, Neolithic and down to 1200m. The hunter-gatherers Bronze Age cultures appear side-by- had to move down to the coastal plains side. By contrast, one element that can while the animals were forced to mi- be found to persist uniformly is the im- grate southwards to find new habitats. portance given to Mother Earth, to The glacial period ended about 10 000 Maja, the giver of life. However, many years ago with the milder weather clay figurines of her in burial sites show opening new grassland corridors al- that she does not only accompany indi- lowing new migration patterns and viduals in this life but also into the after- people from different regions. life. It is to her that the Majella Mountain

112 has been dedicated and since time im- The 250 km journey to the south took memorial the Majella is considered a two to three weeks and every three or sacred mountain, the Mother Mountain. five km along the drovers’ road the shepherds would find resting places that were strategically located, con- Transhumance taining wide open spaces that offered shadow, ample watering opportunities Majella National Park is intrinsically re- for the herds, cooking areas and stone lated to Abruzzo’s culture of tran- huts. The routes were also extensively shumance. Two of the millennia-old used by all needing to reach the South drovers’ roads (tratturi) used by shep- of Italy or by those travelling north- herds and their herds for their seasonal wards. Today, these highways of the migration traverse Majella National Park past are once again being used as and Abruzzo’s remote, majestic and trekking and pilgrimage routes. dramatic landscapes into Apulia, and over 1000 tholoi-type shepherd huts still Shepherds would build shrines to protec- dot the Majella landscape to this day. tor deities or even churches along these tracks which made these the preferred Transhumance was practiced in the way for pilgrims to travel to/from the Holy Abruzzo Region since the Copper Land. The commercial opportunities Ages till the 1950s, marking society, these migrations presented allowed peo- traditions, as well as its tangible and ple to organise markets, build taverns intangible culture. In 1605, and with and houses and, over time, lively market only a working population of 50 000 villages would come into being, as the people, five million bovines were most important requirements for making counted in the Abruzzo region alone to a living existed through the availability of which need to be added millions of water, roads, and a barter and trade net- sheep and goats. A single shepherd work with neighbouring regions. This was could be moving as many as 10 000 kept alive through the seasonal migration animals along drovers’ roads that of shepherds that allowed goods to be would be either 55 m or 111.6 m wide, transported, exchanged and sold. On 8 depending on whether he was moving May the shepherds would return home cattle or ovine. The distances travelled along a different route to the summer per day would be 40 km for cattle and pastures of their mountains, often joined 10-15 km for ovine. Shepherds had to by their families. pay a toll for the use of the tracks and for each animal; the income of these taxes to the Aragon crown was consid- The Majella, mountain of sacred erable. Farmers welcomed the herds sites as they benefitted from the passage of the animals. Archival records show It might seem a contradiction that the that wheat yields from fields fertilised abundance and diversity of sites is also by herds were well above average. the challenge Majella National Park fac-

113 es. Another point is that the same sites this hermitage state that hermits were have been used and reused by many already living then on the Majella. subsequent cultures. However, beneath • 639 AD: Monks escape the Persian it all there is a powerful force that has invasions of Egypt, Palestine, Syria, expressed itself continually, reinforcing Armenia and Sicily. the living matrix of this mountain that • 726/739: Byzantine Emperor Leo III has expressed itself as a Mother Moun- issues edicts against the worship of tain by giving birth to diverse cultures images. Pope Gregory III condemns and spiritual expressions. the Emperor’s decision and the icon- To use an ecological word, sites have oclasts escape to Southern Italy. been ‘recycled’ and adapted to meet new • 732: Leo III transfers Illyricum and requirements and interpretations and Southern Italy from Papal govern- therefore contain many historical, cultural ance to the Patriarch of Constantino- and spiritual layers. Which one is to be ple. Monks escape northwards and brought to the fore? Or is it the resulting to Rome. sacred landscape that needs focussing • 820: Saracens invade Abruzzo. on with this cultural and natural diversity Monks retire to remote areas to lead just an outcome of much deeper forces? an eremitic way of life • 1042: The creation of maritime links between South Italy, Syria and Pales- Context of monasticism and the tine and the advent of the Crusades Abruzzo in 1093 bring more monastics to Italy Monasticism in the Abruzzo region is characterised by a number of key dates. The Majella National Park • 4th–6th century AD: Christianity ar- The Majella National Park territory cov- rives in Abruzzo. The Valnerina Hagi- ers 74 094 ha within the three provinc- ographic texts mention Christians es of Pescara, L’Aquila and Chieti and who fled Syria and Anatolia arriving comprises 39 townships. in Valnerina. Here they lived as hermits, founded Anchoritic settlements, What sets the Majella National Park introduced the hermitic tradition and apart from the other national parks is reclaimed the marshy valley. the fact that 55% of its territory is situ- • 501 AD: St Benedict retreats to a ated above 2000 m (6562 ft). This also cave at Subiaco, while monasteries means that certain areas of the park already exist nearby. are not easily accessible from late au- • St Benedict creates his Rule based tumn to spring, thereby giving nature on the writings of St Basil and the some respite from visitors. early church fathers. Planning and Management • 6th century: The hermitage abbey of S. Salvatore a Majella was built on top The Resolution for the creation of Ma- of Roman settlement. Documents from jella National Park was adopted on 6

114 December 1991. It was founded in as those from the alpine regions there- 1993 and the institutional organ came by providing the essential elements for into being by presidential decree on 5 the survival of highly mobile popula- June 1995. The IUCN Category is II. tions of carnivores, specifically the Marsican brown bear. Some indicators The administration comprises a Board testifying to the natural wealth of the of Directors, an Executive Board, Audi- region are the following: tors, and the Park Community that is constituted by the presidents of the re- • Fauna: 78% of the mammal species gions and of the provinces, the town of Abruzzo and 45% of those of Italy mayors, and the presidents of the are found on its territory. mountain communities in whose terri- • Birds: 130 species tory the areas of the park are situated. • Flora: 65% of the Abruzzo’s, 37% of Italy’s and 22% of Europe’s species With over six million visitors the Majella of flora is located here. National Park was the most visited Na- tional Park of the Abruzzo in 2008. The Cultural and spiritual heritage Park has four visitor centres; five infor- The Park contains a wealth of sites that mation centres; two museums, of testify to the migration of peoples and which one is dedicated exclusively to tribes of cultural diversity. They con- the Marsican brown bear; two botani- tain archaeological sites dating back cal gardens and four hostels. to the Lower Palaeolithic (old/early Stone Age), caves used extensively There are over 500 km of hiking trails, from Early Neolithic times, pagan, Ital- and the Park attracts visitors that enjoy ic, Roman and Christian sanctuaries climbing, trekking, mountain biking and temples, Roman habitats, at least and skiing. 1000 tholoi-type huts used for transhu- The trails are well maintained and sign- mant activities, sacred wells, lakes, posted with length of hike, estimation and rocks, rock burial chambers, her- of time and degree of difficulty. Bench- mitages, coenobites, monasteries, es and/or picnic areas can be found sanctuaries, abbeys, churches and along some of the trails. numerous fortified medieval towns.

Sites are often located in remote areas. Although much can still be viewed, most Directions to the sites are sign-posted. of the archaeological and artistic treas- Information panels are displayed at the ures that were found at these sites have site. No facilities or shops are to be been moved to museums outside the found at any site. Park’s boundaries as the finds were of great importance and of relevance to the Natural heritage cultural heritage of the Italian nation.

The Park is host to a wealth of rare and The spiritual sites at Majella were so endemic species related to both fauna numerous that Petrarch, the famous and flora from southern Europe as well Italian humanist and poet, called the

115 Majella Mountain the ‘domus Christi’ cultural expressions that make this land (the house of Christ). unique. Many of the rituals are linked to elemental forces, such as earth, rocks, The deep forested gorges with an fire, water or animals, like snakes, that abundance of caves, water and will link people to the deeper forces that springs have made this an ideal loca- influence and shape human life and tion for hermits. It is known that hermits mark the changes of seasons on earth. stayed here well before 1000 AD. How- Festivals to celebrate these forces and to ever, it is mostly through the hermit Pi- invoke their protection are still attended etro Angeleri (1210–1296) that the Ma- jella hermitages are known, as he lived by all, young and old alike, and all partic- here for over 60 years restoring and ipate with equal delight and intensity. amplifying many of the existing spiritu- Such an example can be seen at Cocul- al sites. lo, eight km west of the Park when in May the statue of St Dominic is brought out after Mass and paraded through the Continuity of cultural and spiritual streets completely covered in snakes heritages (which were considered potent guardians of temples and other sacred spaces) The arrival of Christianity was seen as followed by the Serpari (local snake ex- an additional belief available to the peo- pert) who is also draped with serpents. ple and tribes living in the area that had The Serpari are a hereditary brotherhood a long history rich in culture that was of snake-charmers who play a major role permeated with a variety of spiritual tra- in the festival and to this day they are ditions. The people simply incorporated held in high regard. However, this festival aspects of this new faith and, for a peri- has much older roots and is related to a od, all these cultural and spiritual prac- much older rite, that of the snake deity/ tices were interwoven and found ex- witch Angitia. The snake-charmers were pression without any conflict. Christiani- in pagan times the priests at the sanctu- ty added an element of hope, salvation, ary of Angitia. and rebirth within the human realm.

The people of Abruzzo have kept many of their traditional beliefs alive, be- Selected sites cause the region was ‘off the beaten Valle Giumentina is an Old Stone Age track’, the high mountain range making site dating back 350 000 years that is this region inaccessible and remote, situated on the edge of what was once while it was also considered to be one a lake in the Valle Giumentina. Paleolith- of the economically poorest regions in ic humans took care of infirm and weak Italy. companions, they buried their dead, Still today age-old rituals are being acted had spiritual beliefs and engaged in rit- out and each town has its own traditions ual. They were hunter-gatherers. The and contributes to the rich tapestry of wildlife that surrounded them included

116 bison, elephants, rhinoceroses, lions, ing to note that during the Procession in hippopotami, water birds, tortoises and honour of the Madonna di Carpineto, all amphibians inhabiting the marsh areas young girls are dressed like Cerfia, with while the forests sheltered deer, wild three quarter long tunics over long horses, bears and boars. tiered dresses and flowers in their hair.

Caporciano includes 67 shaft tombs Votive deposits and coins dating back from seventh-sixth century BC. to the third century BC confirm this as an important sacred space for the Grotta dei Porci is a cave used since Maruccini tribe. Also found in the same Middle Paleolithic times for habitat, cave was the famous bronze tablet, burial, cult, and for making tools. A 12 called the Tabula Rapinensis from the 600 year old skeleton was found here, same period, which is exhibited today the skull of which can be seen in one in Moscow’s Puskin Museum. of the museums. In Longobard times (568 to 774 AD) the Grotta dei Piccioni, 6500 BC, is con- cave was a shrine to Archangel Michael sidered one of the most important Neo- while in later Christian times it was dedi- lithic sanctuaries in this area. cated to Santa Maria in Cryptis.

Grotta della Continenza is a cave that Temple of Ercole Currino, adjacent to the includes 37 burials with features com- National Park headquarters, is a sanctu- mon to most burials of this period: the ary dating back to the fourth century BC burials contained pierced deer canines, dedicated to Ercole Curino. An exquisite shells and ochre. However, there were bronze statue representing a Resting Er- also characteristics that were less com- cole from 300 BC and many ex-voti have mon: the skeletons were placed in been found and are now at the Archaeo- stone circles; the skeleton’s head in a logical Museum of Chieti. The sacred few instances was replaced by a stone well, located inside the cave, is still in (as in the nearby Grotta Maritza); there use today. An avalanche covered this were quartz crystals in the burial sites site in 200 BC. Stones used to build the and some burials were found with deer Abbazia di S. Spirito al Morrone, (Badia antlers fragments near their head. Morronese) at Sulmona and St.Onofrio uncovered the Sanctuary in 1259. Grotta del Colle is a huge cave rectan- gular 40 x 60 m wide and 4-12 m high Badia San Liberatore a Majella is one that was used in Paleolithic times as a of the oldest medieval Benedictine shelter, and only since the italic era did monastery churches, already docu- it come into use as a Sanctuary. In the mented in 884 in an inventory of Bene- sixth century BC it was an Italic temple dictine properties. It was destroyed dedicated to the Goddess Cerfia, the during the earthquake of 990, but re- Mother and Nutrix who gives fertility to build in 1007. The magnificent and im- the land. A small statuette of Goddess pressive mosaic floor from 1275 has Cerfia has been found and it is interest- been restored.

117 San Giuannelle near the shore of River Miraculous powers are attributed to Alento is made up of rock burial cham- the statue of San Bartolomeo which is bers, a niche, a small chapel and a sa- housed above the altar. In times of cred pool. It is thought that a group of need, especially when people were hermits came here in the eighth centu- very ill, individuals were allowed to ry AD. come and take the statue home until the patient recovered. However, the Grotta Sant’Angelo, a large cave with a rules have changed and instead of the church built inside, was already docu- statue, people today are allowed to mented in 1221. However, oral tradi- take home the knife that San Bartolo- tions mention this as being the site of an older pagan temple dedicated to meo holds in his hands. This site is still Bona, the Goddess of Fertility. Women in use today, and several ceremonies would make the trek through the for- and rituals are performed. ests to bathe their breasts in the spe- Santo Spirito a Majella is a monastic cial waters praying for an abundant complex with rich legacy of history and milk flow for their new-born child and traditions. It is one of the most famous the many water basins in the rocks and biggest monasteries of the Park. would confirm this ancient tradition. Dauferius stayed here with a fellow The Church of Sant’ Agata that is cur- group of hermits in 1053. Pietro da rently being excavated was built on a Morrone resided here for about three pagan temple where women who did years around the 1250s and his disci- not have enough milk for their new- ple, the Blessed Roberto da Salle, was born would come . Women still pray at Prior from 1310 to 1317. It still retains the altar stone. its charm and majesty due to its su- perb position and to the atmosphere of Abbazia di Santo Spirito al Morrone, at mystery that shrouds it. Sulmona was founded in 1259 by Pietro Angeleri, a holy man who later became Eremo San Giovanni all’Orfento. Pietro Pope Celestine V. The administrative of- Angeleri stayed at this remote and fices and headquarters of Majella Na- austere site from 1284 to 1293. The tional Park are currently located here. water harvesting techniques used here were applied extensively to all sites The Hermitage of San Bartolomeo, lo- and provide examples that could be cated next to a prehistoric site, is utilised in the twenty-first century. known to have existed in the ninth century. Pietro Angeleri stayed here and The Eremo Sant’Onofrio sul Morrone was was engaged in its restoration and ex- built in 1265, though Pietro Angeleri re- tension. His piety and fame drew many treated to this hermitage only in 1293. It visitors and he decided to move fur- is probably the most historic site. Elect- ther up the mountain, to the Orfento. ed by the cardinals to succeed Pope Many miracles are attributed to Pietro Nicholas IV, he refused to accept the Pa- Angeleri while he lived here. pacy. In 1293 a delegation of cardinals

118 These places often became places of pilgrimages that were visited on 29 September and 8 May, both days dedicated to the Great Protector Michael, the Patron Saint of Shepherds.

The Santuario di San Michele is a cave sanctuary near a resting place which water makes this an important rest stop and gathering point for shepherds and their herds. Ceramic finds from various epochs testify to its extensive use over time. It is situated on a strategic position on the drovers’ road near Pescocostanzo, a well-known fortified medieval hill-top town.

Challenges and Santo Spirito a Majella recommendations There are a number of challenges, some and bishops accompanied by the King of which paradoxically, stem from the of Naples and the King of Hungary successful manner the Park developed made their way to the hermitage to con- various programmes, e.g. breeding, vince him. Finally he accepted and was protecting its wildlife, its visitor and edu- crowned Pope Celestine V at S. Maria di cational facilities. The National Park at- Collemaggio in Aquila. tracts over six million visitors yearly and He issued a number of papal bulls, people of the neighbouring townships one of these declaring the right of any realise the importance to the local econ- Pope to abdicate, a right that he exer- omy of keeping these visitors in the cised within six months to return to area. This has led to an encroaching ur- Sant’Onofrio. However, his successor, banisation in areas inside the park. Pope Boniface VIII, decided to impris- Larger visitor numbers create more on him in the castle of Fumane where waste. A rubbish dump and a toxic he died on 19 May 1296. It is believed waste discharge now exist in an adja- that Boniface had him killed. He was cent border area, threatening both canonised in 1313. people and wildlife. Sites related to transhumance The people of the Abruzzo have a great Along the drovers’ routes one can find affection for their brown bear, the Marsi- caves with shrines dedicated to Arch- can Brown Bear (Ursus arctos marsi- angel Michael, many with healing wells. canus), also known as the Appennine

119 Duration of Use of Majella National Park Sites

800 000 to 12 000 to 6000 4000 BC Sites - Used since 20 000 BC 9 500 BC BC Bronze Age

Eremo Sant’Onofrio sul Morrone Eremo di San Bartolomeo Abbazia S.to Spirito al Morrone Eremo Sant’Onofrio Badia San Liberatore a Majella Tombe Rupestri San Giuannelle Grotta Sant’Angelo Chiesa Madonna Buon Cammino Drovers Road and Sites √ √ Grotta del Colle √ √ √ √ Sanctuary San Michele Santo Spirito a Majella Chiesa Sant’Agata Eremo San Giovanni all’Orfento Grotta della Continenza √ √ √ √ Sanctuary Ercole Currino Grotta dei Piccioni √ √ √ Grotta dei Porci √ √ √ √ Roccamorice Lithic Site √ √ √ Valle Giumentina Site √ √ √

120 1200 BC to AD to 476 568 to 1017 Middle Ages Renaissance Still in use in AD Iron Roman Lombard 500 - 1400 1500 - 1700 20th Century Age Italic Empire Empire culture √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √ √

121 brown bear, an endangered subspecies some of the Palaeolithic and Neolithic of the brown bear. Their habitat is mainly sites. Recently a 14 000 year old restricted to Abruzzo National Park, hearth was discovered, making this though a number have also been seen one of the best-preserved hearths in at Majella National Park. The total popu- Europe. While a number of caves to- lation of this subspecies is estimated to day have the necessary legal safe- be only around 40 bears. Big roads and guards (because they are related to motorways divide Abruzzo National paleosurfaces) there are still a number Park from Majella National Park and of caves that people can just walk into. Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga National It is of note to mention that only recent- Park. There is an urgent need for wildlife ly (2004) Palaeolithic surfaces in Italy corridors between these parks. received protection through Legislative The numerous sacred sites also pose decree no. 42/2004, containing the challenges, though these are more relat- ’Code on Cultural Heritage and Land- ed to restoration, maintenance and safe- scape’ - Title I, Section 10. However, ty measures. While many of these sites no such regulation exists related to (caves, hermitages, churches, abbeys caves, and of consequence hermitag- and monasteries) are still in use, not all es will suffer further deterioration. Al- are used on a daily basis. There might though many of these sites have beau- therefore be a question of who is to look tiful frescoes funding might be hard to after these sites, many still consecrated. be obtained for any restoration work. Another point is that while these sites are remote, the Abruzzo winter also delivers At present the panels at sites do men- much snow and with over 55% of its ter- tion their history and use, but more in- ritory above 2000 m many sites are inac- formation is still at hand; it might be cessible from November till March. Nor worth speaking with those who still is the weather gentle with the frescoes hold the memory of how people used and statues and it is amazing that after these sites, about the sites used for the hundreds of years we are still able to ad- water cult, of those used for litho-ther- mire some of the paintings. Unfortunate- apy (the rubbing against stone walls or ly many people think that it is acceptable lying on rocks and slabs), the rituals in- to scribble their name over paintings, on volved with these and the dates which statues and even on altars. An educa- were considered the most beneficial. tional initiative that values the unique- These are the cultural traditions and ness of Abruzzo’s special natural, cultur- related knowledge that are being lost. al and spiritual heritage might help in Some sites need safer access, e.g. safeguarding its importance to future San Giovanni all’Orfento. If this is not generations. possible then there needs to be at Only recently has some money been least a sign informing visitors that they made available by the government, should not access the site or do it at and excavations have resumed at their own risk and peril.

122 As was mentioned above, there is a need The Parco Nazionale della Majella, for wildlife corridors and for feeding pro- with its protected natural landscape grammes for the Marsican Brown Bear. dotted by sacred and historic sites comprises hermitages, monasteries, In 2001, the Board of Majella National churches and abbeys. The millennia Park sent a request to Dr G. Proietti, Di- old traditions of transhumance have in- rector of the Permanent Working Group fluenced the culture of the Abruzzo for the UNESCO World Heritage List at and the caves, tholoi-huts, drovers’ the Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Cul- roads, sacred wells and lakes are tes- turali, asking for the Park to be included timony to a spirituality that is still very in the list of Italian sites to be presented alive today. Festivals and celebrations to the World Heritage Committee. It is a continue to reflect the sacred and are pity that this was refused, as the Parco related to the earth, the abundance of Nazionale della Majella would be an harvests and peoples’ gratitude for the outstanding world heritage site, offering gifts and the healing power of nature. a variety of sites rarely found elsewhere Around this colourful tapestry of cultur- and spanning from Paleolithic times to al traditions those related to the culi- the Middle Ages and to the present. nary arts, to food preparation and to The above-mentioned list of sites con- food preservation are bountiful. The tains only few examples of the many sa- sacred mother is still very much pre- cred and natural sites that can be found sent and it is hoped that the Majella there. This National Park is remarkable National Park Board will once again as the natural aspect is almost overshad- consider bringing the Park to the atten- owed by the great and diverse variety of tion of the Ministry of Culture for inclu- sacred natural sites, many or which are sion in the Italian UNESCO World Her- not restricted to the historic period. itage List.

References

N. Cimini, (2008), L’economia Della Vita – Un Esempio: il Valore del Parco Nazion- ale della Majella, Edizioni Parco Nazionale della Majella, p. 106 (In Italian).

Websites www.parcomajella.it/LgENG/home.asp www.borghitalia.it/html/borgo_en.php?codice_borgo=222

Acknowledgements I want to extend my thanks to Dr N. Cimini, Director of the Parco Nazionale della Majella, for the hospitality extended and to Dr G. Marcantonio and Mr J. Forcone for having been my experienced guides and for having shared their wealth of knowledge that allowed me to see and live the sites while visiting.

123 124 Holy Island of Lindisfarne and the modern relevance of Celtic ‘Nature Saints’. Robert Wild

‘All places and all people are sacred. Introduction We have to recapture that, and respect The Holy Island of Lindisfarne is located even the smallest wood as well as the on the north east coast of England, on largest rainforest’ Rev. Canon David the border with Scotland. It is accessible Adam, Vicar of Holy Island 1995-2003 at low tide, across sand and mud flats, (personal communication, 2009). which carry an ancient pilgrim’s way and ‘… has shown how much liveliness a modern road causeway. It is surround- there is on the island, how much will- ed by the 3541 ha Lindisfarne National ingness to accommodate new ven- Nature Reserve which protects the is- tures, but also how much determina- land’s sand dunes and the adjacent in- tion there is for the future to be shaped ter-tidal habitats (Natural England, by and for the island people. We are 2005), that support a wide variety of not ready to become anyone’s theme plant life and attract vast numbers of park, now or ever!’ (Tristram, 2009). birds. Almost 300 bird species have been recorded and the wintering wildfowl population is estimated at 60 000.

< The Parish Church of St Mary’s thought to be on the site of St Aiden’s monastery, and the ruins of the Lindisfarne Benedictine Priory.

125 Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve with Holy Island at its centre.

Holy Island, Lindisfarne was founded farming but increasingly engaged in in AD 635 as the first monastic commu- tourism. The island receives in excess of nity in England and for 240 years it half a million visitors per year, many of was a centre of Christian learning. It is whom are attracted by nature and the is- associated with several Saints includ- land’s religious and secular history. ing St. Cuthbert. Desecrated by the This paper builds on the modern con- first Viking raid on England in AD 793, servation situation of Holy Island as the Abbey removed St Cuthbert’s relics described by Wild (2010). It outlines in 875 and they were located at Dur- the life of St Cuthbert and expands on ham where a medieval Cathedral was the nature spirituality of a group of ‘na- built in his honour. ture saints’ of which St Cuthbert is an The main settlement on Holy Island is a important exemplar. It examines ele- traditional Northumbrian village of about ments of a revival in ‘Celtic spirituality’. 150 residents once reliant on fishing and It then discusses some of the challeng-

126 es facing Holy Island Lindisfarne. It heaven to the south. This signalled the asks the question; is it legitimate to in- death and ascension of St Aidan, the voke the lives of long dead, and large- remarkable founder of the monastery ly forgotten saints in the name of con- on Lindisfarne, whose generosity and temporary environmental concerns? humility is considered to have established the spiritual pattern of Holy Is- Mammals extant in Northern Britain during land. On witnessing this event Cuth- St. Cuthbert’s time. bert was moved to become a monk.

Species Date extirpated St Cuthbert’s legacy and influence in Britain European Wolf c. AD 1740 Cuthbert excelled as a student and (Canis lupus) gained a reputation as a preacher and healer. Eurasian Beaver 16th century (Castor fiber) ‘A hermit, prior and then bishop to the Wild Boar 13th century monastic community of Lindisfarne, (Sus scrofa), Cuthbert became on his death in 687 European Brown Bear 10th century one of the most important medieval (Ursus arctos arctos) saints in Europe and one of the foremost saints of Medieval England.’ (Marner, 2000).

St Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Cuthbert, when alive, was visited by Two hagiographies of St Cuthbert sur- Ecgfrith, King of Northumbria (670- vive, one was written anonymously (c. 685), he miraculously ‘appeared’ to 700), the other by St. (the Venerable) King Alfred at Glastonbury, and his Bede between AD 716 and 726 (Bede, shrine was visited by three English 731; Magnusson, 1984; Farmer, 1998). kings (Aethelstan 934, Edmund 945 St Cuthbert lived from 634 to 687, and Cnut 1027). By the late eleventh when the Britons (ancestors of the century his feast days were celebrated modern Welsh), English, Picts and Dal- in many monasteries in Europe, and riada (Irish) were vying for territory and many copies of his hagiographies were power in northern Britain. We first hear produced. Forty-five copies are in exist- of him at 16 years old, upon the hills of ence indicating their popularity (Farmer, what is now southern Scotland. On that 1998). Many churches in England were night in AD 651 Cuthbert was defend- dedicated to him, as was Durham Ca- ing a flock of sheep, at a time when thedral, where his relics were en- northern Britain was under larger areas tombed. (Marner, 2000). The Cathedral of natural forest and with existing pop- is now a World Heritage Site and is con- ulations of wolf, bear and other large sidered ‘the largest and most perfect mammals. During his watch he saw a monument of ‘Norman’ style architec- bright stream of light descending from ture in England’, (UNESCO, 2011).

127 Political divisions of northern Britain indicative of St Cuthbert’s era.

The Lindisfarne Gospels, produced in ‘Cuthbert was not only a historical fig- his honour, are recognised as one of ure providing continuity with the com- the world’s greatest masterpieces of munity’s ancient roots at Lindisfarne manuscript painting (Backhouse, but was also considered a protector of 1981, Brown, 2003) and one of the both his community and ‘his peo- best documented (Backhouse, 1981). ple’.....The very physical presence of As well as international fame, Cuthbert Cuthbert, in all areas of Northumbria amassed a body of local folklore, per- both while alive and after his death, is haps larger than any other English a fascinating example of the way in saint (Doel and Doel, 2009). which the corporal presence of a saint

128 somehow helps sanctify a geographi- creatures, furred or feathered, great or cal region and affirms and strengthens small, are legion. One gets the impres- its boundaries (Marner, 2000). sion from the Lives (hagiographies) that he virtually declared Lindisfarne a Cuthbert and nature Nature Reserve 1300 years before the Nature Conservancy Council. (Mag- St Cuthbert had a close relationship nusson, 1984). and affinity with nature (McManners, 2008). For Christian preachers of the Sources of St. Cuthbert’s nature time this was not unusual. Cuthbert spirituality was an ascetic and would spend all night in the sea. Once he was ob- St Cuthbert’ nature spirituality can be served emerging at daybreak he knelt attributed to a Christian nature tradition on the sand to pray. and to a pre-Christian Celtic nature spirituality described in the following ‘And immediately there followed in his sections. footsteps two little sea-animals (four- footed creatures, which are called ot- A tradition of Christian ‘nature saints’ ters – Bede) humbly prostrating themselves on the earth; and licking his St. Cuthbert was one of a dispersed feet, they rolled upon them wiping line of spiritual transmission from the them with their skins (fur-Bede) and fourth century ‘Desert Fathers’ of Mid- warming them with their breath. After dle East and North Africa, starting this service and ministry had been ful- with the eremitic St. Anthony. This filled and his blessing had been re- group is termed here as ‘nature saints’ ceived they departed into their haunts and defined here as saints whose in the waves of the sea.’ The Anony- lives demonstrate a particular affinity mous Life (annotated by Bede’s Life) in or love of nature. Nature saints are Magnusson, 1984. found in many Christian traditions and the early Church abounds with their Cuthbert spend several years (676- stories. The Orthodox Church is an 684) on the island of Inner Farne, close especially rich branch from the same to Lindisfarne. He was particularly Middle Eastern desert root, and the fond of the seabirds and is attributed three named here spanning some with establishing England’s first ever 1300 years, are St Yared (505–571) of bird protection rules relating to the kill- the Ethiopian Orthodox, St Ivan of Rila ing of wildfowl. The Eider Duck (Soma- (876 to c. 946) Bulgarian Orthodox, St teria mollissima) is associated with Seraphim of Sarov (1759–1833) Rus- him, and locally nicknamed ‘Cuddy sian Orthodox. The most well-known Ducks’. He was said to allow them to ‘nature saint’ in the Catholic tradition nest on the steps of his altar on Farne. is St Francis of Assisi (1181–1226), (National Trust, 2011). the patron saint of ecology and some ‘Tales about St Cuthbert’s love for all consider that he may have been influ-

129 From St Anthony to St Cuthbert: A transmission of a nature spirituality

c. 251–356 St Anthony of One of the early desert monks/fathers. the Desert 316–397 St Martin Gaul of Tours (modern Brittany) developed his spiritual practice based on a hagiography of St. Anthony, he medi- tated in the ‘dessert’ and rejected urban ways. c. 360–432 St Ninian Briton (Old Welsh), Kingdom of Strathclyde. Inspired by St. Martin founded Casa Candida, AD 397 the first Chris- tian centre in what was then Britain and is now Scotland. c. 490–d.543 St Serf Pict, trained at Casa Candida. 521–597 St Columba Irish/Dal Riada (563 founds Iona) 528–612 St Kerntigern Brition/Pict. Old Welsh Kingdom of Strathclyde, founder of (St Mungo) Glasgow. d. 651 St Aidan Irish/Dal Riada, St. Columba’s pupil, founder of Lindisfarne Abbey in 635 635–687 St Cuthbert English Abbot of Lindisfarne

(Note: Derived from Leatham, 1948 and other sources, there are many other saints that could be included in this table).

enced by the missionary saints from sea, grant for thy conduct such re- Britain that established Christian cen- wards as He knoweth is best for thee’. tres in Europe (Simpson, 1995: 172; (Leathem, 1948: 121). St Kentigern Brown, 2003). founded a community - Glesgu (Happy Family), now city of Glasgow. His daily Many of the Celtic saints are connect- routine, and his habit of living in sepa- ed with nature related miracles, locat- rate huts were seen a direct line from ing their centres based on signs from St Anthony, St Martin and St Ninian’ nature, or the appearance of specific (Leatham, 1948). His Pictish muinntir animals. To take just one other, of many (attendants) founded missionaries in examples, St Kentigern was led to the Orkney, Iceland and Norway. site of his religious community or ‘muinntir’ in North Wales by a miracu- Celtic nature spirituality lous white boar. Before it departed the saint blessed the animal. ‘Then the The other source of Celtic nature spir- saint, scratching the head of the brute, ituality is the Celtic pre-Christian reli- and stroking his mouth and teeth, said: gion. Pre-Christian Celts believed that God Almighty, in Whose power are all all aspects of the natural world con- the beasts of the forests, the oxen, the tained spirits. Three areas of evidence birds or the air and the fishes of the for an adoption of Celtic nature spiritu-

130 ality into early Christian forms are identified as follows.

Pictish Scultpured Stones A seeming transition of Celtic nature spirituality to a Christian form is evidenced in the art of the Pictish standing stones found through central Scot- land. Leatham attributes the carvings to St. Kentigerns muinntir, where carv- ing was amongst the skills practiced. The wild animals depicted in the carvings include wolf, snake, salmon, eagle, stag, bear and boar (as illustrated in Fraser, 2008). Figure on the right shows the Drosten Stone which shows an intricately woven cross and the en- igmatic Pictish symbols, wild animals including bear and boar, the latter be- The Drosten Stone (839-42), front and back. ing aimed at by a hunter, a domestic Historic Scotland Museum, Abroath, Scot- goat, an osprey with a salmon and a land. beautiful carved fawn suckling a doe. art of the Lindisfarne Gospels included Lindisfarne Gospels elements of Celtic, Anglo Saxon, and Beautifully illustrated, the Lindisfarne Coptic art (Blackhouse, 1981; Brown, Gospels also exhibit a rich nature im- 2003). agery. ‘The initial letters are filled with a Folk Christianity throng of interlacing birds and beasts partaking of the word of God, and with Further examples of the melding of the a vortex of swirling Celtic spiral work re- traditions derive from the Celtic folk calling water, air and fire. For centuries Christianity of Ireland, Scotland and Celtic and Germanic peoples had sig- Wales. For example the Scottish col- nalled status and power by the metal- lection of poems, prayers and incanta- work that they wore… These ornaments tions of the Carmina Gadelica (Carmi- and symbols were now applied to the chael, 1900) is an extended collection, ultimate authority of the Word of God… and includes much related to nature. This is not direct observation perhaps This is of more recent origin and is not from the natural world...but this is totally necessarily directly linked to the era of at one with creation and building upon the early saints. It mostly consists of that in the way that we know that cer- what is sometimes pejoratively called tainly the Celtic tradition was very in- ‘folk’ religion but can be considered clined to do’ (Brown, 2000). Thus the ‘cultural variants’ of mainstream faiths.

131 An example of a prayer follows. Christianity’, and suggests much of it is a modern creation. He considers it It were as easy for Jesu not well rooted in scholarship that it re- To renew the withered tree invents and embellishes the facts, and As to wither the new it is separated from the original Gaelic Were it His will so to do and Welsh sources. He considers Jesu! Jesu! Jesu! many of the promoters of Celtic Chris- Jesu! meet it were to praise Him. tianity are ‘constructing and alternative There is no plant in the ground Celtic tradition’. One of the claims he But is full of His virtue. counters is that Celtic Christianity is There is no form in the strand unique in the Christian world. ‘The ide- But it is full of His blessing. als of the Egyptian desert father lasted Jesu! Jesu! Jesu! long in the insular Celtic context as Jesu! meet it were to praise Him. elsewhere in the West…it is quite un- acceptable to see them as purely in- There is no life in the sea, digenous or unique to the Celtic areas’ There is not creature in the river, (Meek, 2000:147). There is naught in the firmament But proclaims His goodness Meek also challenges the portrayal of Jesu! Jesu! Jesu! ‘Celtic Christianity’ as friendly to nature Jesu! meet it were to praise Him. and to the environment, in contrast to modern environmental degradation. He There is no bird on the wing considers that they had little choice oth- There is no star in the sky, er than living close to nature, but does There is nothing beneath the sun concede that ‘Celtic literature across But proclames His goodness the centuries show a ‘lively response to Jesu! Jesu! Jesu! nature’ (p. 85), he does not see this a Jesu! meet it were to praise Him. unique to Celtic Christianity, and mod- (Carmichael, 1900) ern writers, ‘weave the body of ‘hermit nature verse’ into an interpretive pas- These cultural or folk variants often tiche which covers it with a subjective, contain valuable elements of the previ- highly romantic, eco-friendly, and fre- ous indigenous faith, and can be an quently pagan-friendly glow (p. 86)’. important source of reviving a nature He warns; ‘As a result the quest for the spirituality. saints may be motivated by factors ranging from general curiosity to a Celtic Christianity - a caution special concern for the local economy The Celtic Christianity revival, however, or the environment. It is important to has its critics, and Donald Meek, in recognise the diversity of approaches particular, a Celtic Scholar and Gaelic- within contemporary ‘saint seeking’, speaking Hebridean Islander, ques- since it is the preconceived expecta- tions the existence of a unique ‘Celtic tion will almost inevitably lead to a de-

132 gree of reconstruction of the (rediscov- species and an outstanding assem- ered) saints’. Meek admits that, ‘the blage of plants. Due to these wildlife saints, however, are not strangers to values the coastal area that surrounds reconstruction’ (Meek, 2000:162). Holy Island has been legally declared a ‘Most people who invoke the saints National Nature Reserve and is also a nowadays will not be concerned so Ramsar Wetland of International Impor- much with the profile of the saint in the tance. It is registered as an IUCN cate- past; their main concern will be with gory IV protected area in the World Da- the power and efficacy of the saints in tabase of Protected Areas, considered the present’ (Meek, 2000:163). Meek is a ‘habitat/species management area’. particularly dismissive of the collection of Carmichael. ‘..the Carmina may rep- Spiritual values, churches and retreats resent essentially ‘folk religion,’ blend- The Anglican or Episcopalian Church is ing folklore with saint-lore, pagan and the oldest church on the Island and is Christian, in ways that ought not to be the Parish Church. The Church is one of confused with the formal teaching of the key visitor sites, and often hosts any ‘Celtic Church’…This popular de- large groups of several thousand peo- motic [i.e. colloquial] Christianity which ple. Due to declining parishioners the has come down through the centuries United Reformed Church was convert- with inevitable reshaping and admix- ed to St. Cuthbert’s Centre open to visi- ture… It shows the type of syncretism, tors and hosts a variety of religious, spir- which can be found readily across the itual and cultural events, some related globe in similar contexts (p. 70). De- to nature. These mostly include bird spite his criticisms he states ‘Even so watching weekends titled, for example, no amount of warning will prevent peo- ‘Faith and Feathers’ and ‘Bible and ple from believing what they wish to Birds’, as well as exhibitions of sacred believe especially since ‘Celtic Christi- art. There is a Catholic Church on the is- anity’ seems to be in tune with the land and a resident Catholic Sister moods of the age’ (Meek, 2000:22). (Daughter of the Cross) who welcomes pilgrims. Two retreat centres are on the Modern Lindisfarne, Holy Island island, Marygate and The Open Gate. The former is an independent charitable and commercial success trust, while the Open Gate focuses on As mentioned the contemporary situa- Celtic Christianity and runs retreats in- tion of Holy Island is discussed more cluding one called ‘God in Nature’ and fully in Sacred Natural Sites: Conserv- another ‘Saints and Seabirds’. These ex- ing Nature and Culture (Wild 2010), and plore nature beauty and spirituality of readers are referred there for more in- Holy Island and other areas such as the formation. The Island is surrounded by Farne Isles and St Abbs Head (http:// coastal and marine habitats, and sup- www.aidanandhilda.org). Holy Island ports internationally important wildfowl has a strong ecumenical movement.

133 Holy Island has, along with Iona in Scot- The government owns about 30% of land, been the node of the revival of land within National Nature Reserve, ‘Celtic spirituality’ discussed above. Da- and the remainder falls within 17 pri- vid Adam, a native of the Northumbrian vate holdings of the inter-tidal area. coast and vicar of Lindisfarne from 1995 Within the village properties are pri- to 2003, is one of the foremost propo- vately owned by many people. Much nents and closely associated with the of the personal wealth of Britons is de- Island. He has written numerous books pendent on property values, a critical and prayers in the Celtic style (e.g. element in understanding Holy Island. Adam, 1989, 1991). While Celtic Christi- Rapid increases in house prices dur- anity has its sceptics (see section 2.4), ing the decade to 2008 have meant it is clear from its remarkable popularity, that low-income households have that it is filling a need for a form of Chris- been priced out of their own communi- tianity with a clear concern for the Earth ties. This situation is not unique to and its ecological community. Lindisfarne and affects many villages in Britain. When no long-standing com- Community, tourism and ownership munity members remain in a village it might be said to have lost its heart. Lindisfarne is also a Northumbrian village typical of the area, with a small fishing harbour and traditional buildings. Discussion and The traditional village community con- Recommendations sists of a number of long-established families that have deep-rooted cultural Conservation management ties to the island and unique traditions. Unfortunately the local population has The National Nature Reserve staff en- been declining over recent years. gage in management, including livestock grazing, visitor management and While no official statistics are kept, it is interpretation. The construction of a estimated that more than half a million causeway (1954–64) has perhaps visitors a year visit Holy Island, and in- caused the biggest changes to the Na- creasingly much of the island’s econo- tional Nature Reserve, reducing the my is built on tourism, now estimated area of habitats important for wildfowl at 70-80% of the island’s income (Tris- (English Nature, 2005). tram, 2009). The main heritage sites depend largely on entrance fees to Community trust fund maintain their properties. Other businesses on the island include hotels, It is increasingly considered that a cafes, shops and kiosks. The Island strengthening of community action is a runs a website recording web-hits up key element in tackling some of the from 1.5 million in 2001 to 11 million in key social and environmental issues 2008 (http://www.lindisfarne.org.uk/ that face us today (McIntosh, 2008). In webmaster/statistics1.htm). response to the lack of affordable

134 housing the islanders established The Conclusion and discussion Holy Island of Lindisfarne Community The concept of ‘nature saints’ is not Development Trust in 1996. The Trust very well known within the Christian established a Visitor Centre using the Church, yet the stories of these saints revenue to build 11 community hous- contain strong associations with local es. This indicates the way in which the places, native animals and nature in island community is countering the general. Many of the miracle stories, challenges of high property values. while touching, are not factual but do tell of a close relationship with wildlife Managing tourism and wild places. Rather than being While tourism is the mainstay of the is- unique to the British Isles ‘nature saints’ are part of a wider Christian tra- land’s economy, hosting over half a dition that deserves further research. million visitors per year puts a strain on the 150 island residents. Peak visitors The Eastern Orthodox Church has per- occur during the summer school and haps best maintained this ‘nature’ eth- public holidays and at weekends. The ic as living tradition and it may be no tidal nature and limited accommoda- accident that it has in fact shown the tion does mean regular quieter times greatest level of Christian leadership in and quieter places once one is away the face of the current environmental from the village centre. The National crisis. The British Isles and especially Nature Reserve is under less pressure the Celtic fringe seems particularly rich in these saints from the early than other areas of the island although Christian era. While not unique these, parking is a problem at peak times. and the folk component of British Christianity, roots religion in a national Seeking balance between nature, setting and provide strong connection religion, community and commerce to local places, local wildlife and local The Holy Island is managed by a num- culture. A greater tolerance and em- ber of institutions. Agreeing to a com- bracing of the cultural and folk variants mon course of action is challenging, by religious orthodoxies is advocated, because the key players, while sharing especially when it comes to the care of common interests, have their own re- nature, which seem better developed mits. Over the past two years a ‘Lindis- locally than centrally. farne Partnership’ has been put in Contemporary Britain has a predomi- place and is becoming increasingly nantly secular, multi-cultural urban pop- important in implementing a collective ulation largely separated from nature. and holistic vision for the management The growing interest on Celtic (or Insu- the Island (Andrew Craggs, Natural lar Christianity as some prefer) indi- England, personal communication, cates that these saints do reach across June 2011). the centuries and hold meaning for

135 modern peoples in Britain, the Anglo- Natural Sites and one where national Celtic diaspora and beyond. It does ecological values overlap with national seem important, while remaining true to religious and historical values. The re- what we know of their lives, that these vival of interest in ‘Celtic’ as an indige- saints are interpreted and revitalised to nous branch of Christianity may infuse new generations, as their vigour, frugal- the conservation movement with a ity and closeness to nature are values spiritual dimension and has contribut- needed by modern society. ‘The tales ed to the Island’s tourism economy. are ancient but the underlying senti- Conversely, it may have added to the ments speak directly to us today. We risk to local community values and put have much to learn from a spirituality the Island’s fabric under strain. It is en- that works with the grain and rhythm of couraging therefore that the key insti- the natural world and rejoices in the tutions are increasingly working to- whole of creation’ (McManners, 2008). gether to ensure that the island main- tains its integrity, community and multi- The Holy island of Lindisfarne is one of ple values into the future. Britain’s foremost Christian Sacred

References

Adam, D. (1989), Tides and Seasons: Modern Prayers in the Celtic tradition, Lon- don: Triangle.

Adam, D. (1991), Border Lands: The Best of David Adam’s Celtic Vision, Wiscon- sin: Sheed and Ward.

Backhouse, J. (1981), The Lindisfarne Gospels, London: Phaidon Press Ltd.

Bede. (1994), An Ecclesiastical History of the English People, ed. McClure and Collins, Oxford: Oxford World Classics, OUP.

Brown, M. P. (2003), Painted Labyrinth: The World of the Lindisfarne Gospels, Lon- don: The British Library.

Carmichael, A. (1900), Carmina Gadelica: Hymns and Incantations Collected in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, (reprinted in 1992), Edinburgh: Floris Books.

Doel, F. and Doel, G. (2009), Folklore of Northumbria, Stroud: The History Press Ltd.

136 UNESCO, (2011), Durham Castle and Cathedral - World Heritage Listing: http:// whc.unesco.org/en/list/370 last accessed June 2011.

Farmer, D.H. (ed.) (1998). The Age of Bede, London: Penguin Classics. (First Pub- lished 1965).

Fraser, I. (ed.) (2008), The Pictish Symbol Stones of Scotland, Edinburgh: Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland.

Leatham, D. (1948), They Built on Rock: Stories of the Celtic Saints, London: Hod- der and Stoughton.

Magnusson M. (1984), Lindisfarne, The Cradle Island, London: Oriel Press.

Marner, D. (2000), St Cuthbert – His Life and Cult in Medieval Durham, London: The British Library.

McIntosh, A. (2008), Rekindling Community: Connecting People, Environment and Spirituality, Schumacher Briefings 15, Totnes: Green Books.

Meek, D. (2000), The Quest for Celtic Spirituality, Kincardine: Handsel Press.

McManners, J. (2008), St Cuthbert and the Animals, Gemini Productions: Bishop Auckland. National Trust (2011), The Farne Isles: a brief history, http://www.nationaltrust.org. uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-farnes/w-farneislands-history.htm. Natural England, (undated), Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve. A visitors guide (also as web text). Natural England (2005), Management plan of Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve, Natural England, The Quadrant: Newcastle upon Tyne. Shepherd, W. R. (1923). Map of the political divisions of northern Britain indicative of St. Cuthbert’s era. http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/shepherd/british_ isles_802.jpg Simpson, R. (1995), Exploring Celtic Spirituality: Historic Roots for Our Future, London: Hodder and Stoughton. Tristram, K. (2009), The Story of Holy Island: An Illustrated History, Norwich: Can- terbury Press.

Wild, R.G. (2010), Nature saint and holy island, ancient values in a modern economy: The enduring influence of St Cuthbert and Lindisfarne, UK, inSacred Natu- ral Sites: Conserving Nature and Culture, ed. B. Verschuuren, R.G Wild, J.A. Mc- Neely, and G. Oviedo, London: Earthscan.

137 Lauretana Pilgrimage Route in Italy and protected areas along the route

National and Regional Parks XVI cent. Lauretana postal route of the Stato Pontificio

Sites of Community Importance (SCI) Plestian Plateaus and Colfiorito Regional Park

Zone of Special Protection

Colfiorito Regional Park

Sanctuary of Santa Maria of Plestia (1)

Colfiorito

Marsh of Colfiorito (2)

(1)

0 10 20 40 Km

(2)

The Lauretana Pilgrimage Route and the Colfiorito Regional Park.

138 Landscape linkages between cultural and spiritual values. The wetland of Colfiorito and the Lauretana pilgrimage route in the Plestian Plateaus. Chiara Serenelli

This article constitutes part of a re- given by the presence of Natural Pro- search aiming to investigate the utility tected Areas and Regional or National of historical cultural and spiritual routes Parks along the ancient route. in promoting landscape management and conservation at local level. Land- scape is the prominent feature of the Cultural and spiritual linkages project. The research takes into con- across the Plestian Landscape sideration the landscapes of Central It- Along the Lauretana Pilgrimage Route, aly crossed by the Lauretana pilgrim- ca. 150 km north from Rome, the trav- age route connecting Rome with the eller reaches one of the crucial stages Sanctuary of Loreto, in the East Coast of the Cammini Lauretani, the city of of Italy. The pilgrimage creates a net- Foligno. Embedded in the landscape work of territorial and local linkages matrix of the Umbrian Valley, the town based on traces of ancient roads that had been an important crossing of the can operate as cultural and ecological Flaminia Roman road. Continuing from connections between people and Foligno towards Loreto, the Lauretana landscape mosaics. While cultural val- enters the Menotre Valley and then ues are rendered by the historical crosses the mountainous chain of Ap- landscapes shaped by the pilgrimage pennino Umbro-Marchigiano through dynamics, ecological ones are also the Colfiorito mountain pass, beyond

139 which lies the ample plateau of Colfio not communicating with the others is rito. It is named Plestian after the an- located a few kilometres south-west cient settlement of Plestia, and its eco- from the marsh and is separated from logical and cultural values make it one the rest by a narrow ridge. The whole of the most characteristic areas of the plateau system is well visible from the pilgrimage. top of Mount Trella, overlooking the archaeological site of Plestia, from The Plateau is a system of seven which the relations between the plains karstic tectonic plains. While once they and the layout of the roads that cross all were lake basins, they were later them are well discernible. drained as outcome of natural mecha- nisms and human activities. Even to- The road commonly known as Lauret- day, however, they appear flooded ana, which is also named Romana, can during some periods of the year, de- nowadays be identified with the course pending on seasonal precipitation. The of the National Road 77 (Val di Chienti drainage of water is caused only Road). It crosses the Plains from the slightly by the network of ditches and south-western to the north-eastern side, canals, while the seasonal variation in running along the southern side of the water levels is due to a sub-surface marsh of Colfiorito. Pilgrimages toward capitation system that relies on the Loreto began in the fourteenth century, presence of inghiottitoi, i.e. natural but it was from the sixteenth century that ground pits also used in agriculture. it was possible to use the postal road of The Plestian system is one of the most Stato Pontificio, suitable for carriages. interesting natural areas in the Central Today Road 77 is a highway, unsuitable Apennines (Orsomando and Catorci, for walking. It is possible to recognise, 1997). It contains the line of the Um- though, other traces of ancient routes, in bria-Marche watershed and is sur- many cases unpaved country roads rounded by mountains overlooking crossing the Plains, stretching among the Mount Sibillini National Park on hilly pastures broken out by herbaceous the eastern side. It includes biotopes crops and woods of Turkey oak. The that are very important for the conser- whole road network connecting the Pla- vation of biodiversity in Italy, i.e. the teau with its surroundings is of historical marsh of Colfiorito, legally protected and scenic interest. While the network of since 1970 (Pedrotti, 1996), interna- ancient roads that cross the Plateaus tionally recognised as a Ramsar site from west to east mainly corresponds to since 1976 and made a Regional Park the Lauretana pilgrimage network itself, in 1995. Around the 355 ha of wet- other important roads cross the Basin land, located at the centre of the Ba- lengthwise, whose ancient courses can sin, the landscape opens out from the still be discerned on the Plains’ land- Colfiorito Plain onto five surrounding scape they cross. Still nowadays, this plains located at an altitude of 750– route system allows the ancient settle- 800 m above sea level. The only plain ment of Plestia located into the Plestian

140 basin to be connected with other nu- administrative organisation. The trails, merous landmarks that define the Ples- therefore, have always been of great im- tian landscape’s history and keep con- portance for the locals (Sensi, 1984). veying stories of popular traditions and religious devotion. All along these trails we can reconstruct the route of the ritual Signs of historical evolution and processions to the places of worship of spiritual values of the landscape the Plains and the near Menotre Valley. Religion has offered the much-needed The diachronic evolution of the land social cohesion for a population that has and its settlements, together with an always been subjected to consecutive investigation of its religious traditions, episodes of conquest and change of can surely contribute to the under-

A scheme of the Plestian Plateau System.

Vigna valley Geographic boundaries of the Plestian Plateau system surrounded by hills and mountains and the northern, M. Faeto eastern, south-western Chienti River valley openings

Perimeter of the 7 tectonic-karstic plains creating the system M. Boundaries of Prefoglio protected areas into the Plestian system

Boundaries of Colfiorito Regional Park

Marsh of Colfiorito Colfiorito village Sanctuary of Plestia M. Menotre River valley Tolagna Layout of the upcoming motorway crossing the M. Plains, above and M. under ground and the della Civitella junction of Plestia le Macchie

141 1

Sanctuary of Madonna del Piano

2 3

Sanctuary of Madonna di Ricciano

4 Hermitage of Santa Maria Giacobbe

Sanctuary of Madonna delle Grazie Left: The main sacred sites in and next to the basin forming the system of ‘Therapeutic sanctuaries’ Right: Present-day rituals and processions of local people and religious confraternities. standing of the current structure and latest republican Roman Age can still be layers of the landscape. found in the remains of a domus, in the archaeological site of the Casone Plain. Traces of pre-Roman settlements char- acterise the area surrounding Mount Following the barbaric invasions of the Orve. In Roman times, however, the High Middle Ages and the destruction most important centre certainly became of Plestia, the population moved to the Plestia, built on the bank of the Plestian surrounding hills and started the con- Lake, which was drained to obtain agri- struction of castles in defence of the cultural lands (Sensi, 1984). The main main roads. This fostered the particu- public spaces were once situated lar hillock settlement system that still around the lake. A historical sign of the characterises the area.

142 The only remnant of the ancient Plestia sanctuaries (Sensi, 1984: 207-231), that is the sanctuary of Saint Mary an early is, places of worship generally of very Christian basilica which became cathe- old origins, whose denomination derives dral in the eleventh century. In effect, from their religious and spiritual function because of its location at an important and their position. They are in fact told crossroads, the sanctuary came to rep- to have apothropaic powers (therapeu- resent a prominent centre for religious tic sanctuaries) and they are located at participation and the spreading of the confluence of lands belonging to dif- Christianity. In the Middle Ages, the ferent administrators (sanctuaries of area where the Basilica was located be- frontiers). Even today, their presence came a junction where the rivalries for and role is acknowledged as they the setting of boundaries among the helped people conserve a certain de- townships of Camerino (Marche), Folig- gree of religious freedom and a distinct no and Spoleto (Umbria) developed. cultural identity. The majority of these The townships were all striving for the sanctuaries are dedicated to the Virgin control of the Plateaus, and thus caus- Mary and are located along the Menotre ing their administrative, civil and reli- Valley and the Plestian Highlands. Their gious fragmentation. Therefore, where- presence has facilitated the establish- as once all pivoted around Plestia, by ment of a network of small pilgrimages the twelfth century the Basin was divid- from the surrounding villages, often ed along the two main defence lines – along the ancient routes connecting the Camerino on the one hand, Foligno on settlements. the other. Both display traces of fortifi- cations, as the ruins on the top of some Even today, on the occasion of local hills still reveal. festivities people from the different villages of the Plains find religious refer- Nowadays, the regional boundary be- ences in many of these sanctuaries, tween Marche and Umbria runs all along which continue to be destinations of lo- the buffer zone which lies between these cal pilgrimages and processions (Sen- two ancient frontier lines. Nonetheless, a si, personal communication, 2010. strong factor of social cohesion can be Santa Maria of Plestia has become found in the cultural identity of the local again a multifunctional centre of reli- population, their sense of places’ histor- gious, economic and social events, as ic depth and in a solid religious compo- it hosts an annual exhibition of tradi- nent that stayed unscathed through all tional dairy products. Many sanctuar- the administrative divisions, in spite of ies continue also to be the focus of lo- the reiterated frictions concerning the cal religious festivities involving people management of the local resources of every age. Over time, certain sanc- (Sensi, 1984; Sensi, 1998). tuaries have been abandoned and de- During the sixteenth century, an impor- cayed, such as the sanctuary of Ma- tant element of social cohesion donna di Ricciano (in the Ricciano stemmed from the frontier therapeutic Plain, one of the seven karst plains).

143 The spatial distribution of the sanctuar- tional level, is given by the web of ies largely derives from the pre-exist- roads and pathways, defining also the ence of older religious architectures, flows of pilgrims directed to the Sanc- such as tabernacles, hermitages, mon- tuary of Loreto. If the linear network of asteries, etc., related to miraculous human connection between historical events or the religious history of a local and cultural elements of the Plestian community. It thus seems possible to landscape can be found in these local think of those as ‘places of memory’ roads, a deeper structure subtending that enable communities to remember also the latter ones can be identified in their past and cultural values, in spite of the agricultural landscape, which has the physical transformations of the land shaped the land patterns of the area (Sensi, personal communication, 2010). according to the human needs. Sometimes such places of worship are located at the top of a castelliere, i.e. a pre-historic type of settlement fortified Biodiversity in the rural by an embankment – which remains landscape recognisable still today - abandoned in The lands of the Plains are mainly used Roman times and sometime restored and re-used in the Middle Ages (Sensi, as croplands. The cultivation of leg- 1984: 3-27; Sensi, 1998: 6-8). umes and potatoes is predominant, and along with grain and forage they form The proto-historical system of castellie- the basis of the local agricultural pro- ri surrounding the Plains represents duction. In the valleys, although drain- another defining element of the Ples- age and reclamation works have turned tian landscape, a clear sign of a long most of the ground into cultivated lands history of human habitation and their since the Roman Age, wet meadows, role in the transformation of the natural marsh and lake formations still are a ecosystems. The therapeutic sanctuar- very important natural resource. The ies, which are mainly located in the hills surrounding the plains, again, are valleys and plains, the hillside villages characterised by the presence of cops- and the castles erected on the very top es, the Turkey oak (Quercus cerris L.), of the hills, all comprise components of the Hop hornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia the local history. Together they define a Scop.), as well as the Downy oak specific cultural and land-use system, (Quercus pubescens Willd.) being the a sign of human presence in these dominant species in the sunnier areas, lands and a landscape organisation and the beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) on typical of the Basin, characterising its the higher relieves. The arboreal vege- cultural diversity, charged with pro- tation of the hills alternates with the her- found spiritual values and enriched baceous vegetation types of the hill and with natural resources. mountain pastures, which define the In such a structure, the main connec- landscape mosaic shaped by another tion, at the cultural, religious and func- important local human activity: farming,

144 The Quadrilatero Project, threats Historic roads of possible pedestrian connection Future road with risk of traffic increasing

village of Colfiorito archaeological site and sanctuary of Plestia junction area tunnel entrance

Real risks of landscape fragmentation Entrance of the tunnel near Mount Trella Works on the buffer zone of Selva di Cupigliolo march, 2010 march, 2009

Some effects of motorway construction in the Plestian Basin.

and stock-breeding, though nowadays timing marking important moments of traditional grazing is decreasing. On the agricultural cycle. This has turned some hills conifer reforestations made the local landscape into a primary ele- in the Sixties can also be recognised ment of cultural and spiritual, as well (Orsomando and Sensi, 2002). as ecological, importance defining together with the network of sanctuaries The ‘landscape units’ defining the and pilgrimage routes, the ‘landscapes Plestian landscape create a variegat- of the sacred’ (Tosco, 2009: 166). ed system of resources that the local communities have used over time, of- Additionally, the rural matrix also hosts ten associating them with social partic- natural areas of international signifi- ipation events, such as exhibitions, cance, owing to the presence of rare festivals and religious festivities, their and endangered habitats or species.

145 These constitute the nodes of the Na lem. The mere presence of protected tura2000 European Ecological Net- areas does not always guarantee a work. Moreover, sometimes shrines sustainable integrated management of and religious buildings are associated the entire landscape, nor does it halt with the presence of protected areas. the loss of biodiversity. Sometime func- The link between protected areas and tional choices imposed on by the na- therapeutic sanctuaries is probably tional government, responding to the coincidental. No historical references current economic global system’s connect their location to particular nat- needs, actually represent threats for ural elements (Sensi, personal commu- biodiversity conservation, despite the nication, 2010), although sometimes protection of specific sites. they are related to the cult of spring A first threat to the conservation of lo- water (Sensi, 1984) and they are actu- cal ecosystems comes from methodol- ally built along watercourses or in par- ogies of management that are only ap- ticularly scenic natural settings. And it parently coherent with the aims of bio- is also argued (Antinori, 2009) that diversity conservation, but actually far some Christian sacred places traces from a holistic, integrated and system- out older pagan temples and sacred ic vision that takes into account deli- sites, often connected to the natural cate ecological balances and dynam- characters of landscape (presence of ics (Pedrotti, 1996) together with their spring water and mountains). What re- relations with human activities. This is mains certain is that the shrines and re- especially true as regards the marsh, ligious buildings are often associated where part of the wetland was drained with ‘outstanding landscapes’. Anyway between 1963-1992, because of the the spontaneous manifestations of the agricultural reconversion, the extrac- devotion of locals and their familiarity tion of peat, and interventions aimed at with the place make these outstanding the naturalistic and touristic ‘revitalisa- landscapes part of their everyday life. tion’ of the protected area, such as the closure of the main inghiottitoio (see above) to stabilise the water level (Pe- Threats for the conservation drotti, 1996; Pedrotti personal commu- of landscape connections and nication, 2010). The second threat visions for future management comes from modern agricultural and zoo-technical practices, e.g. the in- Despite the presence of a significant creasing use of fertilisers, the reduc- number of protected areas, nonethe- tion of linear elements of ecological less, the Plestian landscape remains connectivity, such as hedges and rows open to threats and transformations. of trees, in addition to the spread of ur- The complexity of the relationships be- banised areas at the valley bottoms. tween the different parts of the region, whether they are of natural or cultural/ Also for these reasons, the protected spiritual relevance adds to the prob- areas of the Plains do not yet represent

146 an ensemble, as they lack connectivity the importance of the Plestian land- and the management practices inside scape on its cultural values and typical the protected areas often clash with agricultural productions, linked to the unsustainable practices outside these local manifestations of faith and areas. spirituality.

Moreover, the administrative division of Recognition of the high landscape val- the Plestian territory risks dividing a ue, in definitive, is shared by both Re- unified landscape with divergent man- gions, and today is even stronger agement choices. The Plestian Basin thanks to the Regional Ecological Net- is still shared by three Municipalities, work project4, which aims to become a two Districts and two Regions, using set of inspiring principles for regional the same tools for land planning, but and local programming and planning have sometimes different priorities, es- (Sargolini, 2006). pecially as the regional trends are In particular, the role of the Plestian adapted to the local levels. Plateaus can be seen as strategy for The Umbria Region employs two main the national ecological connectivity, instruments of planning and govern- representing a possible junction in the ance: Territorial Urban Plan (Piano Ur- greater mountainous system of Central banistico Territoriale)1 and Regional Apennine, the north-south axis struc- Landscape Planning (Piano Paesag- turing the ecological continuity at a na- gistico Regionale)2, both strongly ori- tional level between Lazio-Abruzzo’s ented to the conservation of land- and Toscana-Emilia Romagna’s areas scapes and particular natural values. (Romano, 2010) forming a part of the The former recognises the Plestian Appennino Parco d’Europa project. Plateaus as a high-interest area for its Furthermore, the Plestian Basin can particular and rare flora; the latter un- also be seen as an area of transversal derlines the importance of the Plestian connection with both cultural and ecosystem as a pivotal component of the logical values, strengthening again, at regional identity, where natural, histori- the ecological level, its ancient role as cal and symbolic elements interact to a road-link between the Tirrenic and define a manifold landscape, which Adriatic coasts. But do such guide- has also an economic and social val- lines really become operative planning ue. Also the Marche Region with the and management actions? Regional Landscape Planning (Piano Translating recommendations into ac- Paesaggistico Regionale)3 grounds tions at the local level is not always simple, and the Plestian landscape is 1 Regional Act no. 27, 24 March 2000 2 Regional Act no. 13, 24 March 2009 3 Regional Decree no. 197, 3 November 1989 4 Rete Ecologica Regionale Umbra, Regional and updating according to the National Code Act 13/2009 and REM, Rete Ecologica of Cultural Heritage and Landscape Marche, project from competition, Legislative (Legislative Decree no. 42/2004) Decree 163/2006, art. 108

147 often subjected to threats of ecological takes into account the fact that the dis- landscape fragmentation that also in- persion of urban settlements is one of fluence the application of the Ecologi- the major causes of fragmentation and cal Network project. The loss of con- loss of connectivity (Romano, 2010). nectivity was influenced by various lo- It may be argued that the Quadrilatero cal parameters; on top of them one Project could be an opportunity for the can add the decreasing of the social inhabitants of the region, as it will im- cohesion caused by weak financial co- prove the communication with more operation strategies and possibly by developed areas, favour tourism and the erosion of the religious imprint; ad- decrease traffic within the villages. A ditionally, the fragmentation might be more likely outcome, however, will be caused by planning choices at the na- an increase of high-speed traffic, pol- tional level, and especially those linked lution and soil consumption in these to the development of infrastructures. fragile areas, once characterised by a The problem of road barriers, already slow velocity road network in balance existent in the Plestian region (Roma- with the features of the landscape. In no, 2010), is increasing with the up- order to be sustainable, the develop- coming project of a four-lane motorway ment of these lands should be founded connecting Foligno and the Adriatic on very different bases. coast that is going to cross the Ples- The Lauretana pilgrimage route restora- tian Plateaus from its south-western to tion project can have a favourable out- its north-eastern side (called the come, if its natural and cultural resourc- Quadrilatero Project. es are integrated in a sustainable man- While it is planned not to be construct- agement plan. The improvement of ed in the proximity of the wetland so as ‘slow’ travel infrastructures and the cre- not to compromise the ecosystem di- ation of naturalistic and historical-cul- rectly, it is nonetheless likely that it will tural routes, embracing the whole Ples- constitute, even during the construction tian region and pivoting around the phase, a concrete threat to the unity of therapeutic sanctuaries network, can the entire system at both the ecological be the key concepts, upon which the and cultural levels, risking also the loss ecological connectivity and the creation of historical connections between parts of a system of protected areas around of the Plestian landscape. the Regional Park can be rescheduled.

To add insult to injury, the decision to In fact, by integrating the idea of recov- construct a road junction in the area of ering the historical road network into a Plestia, near the archaeological site greater plan at the landscape scale, in- and the sanctuary, could also initiate cluding both conservation and devel- urbanisation processes for the broader opment, one could guarantee a truly area. The dangers of such a prospect multifunctional delivery of services, might be even more evident, if one ranging from the restoration and con-

148 servation of the wetland ecosystem as A possible model of an ‘Interregional a ‘all-encompassing reserve’ (Pedrotti, Park’ was drafted as part of a master 1996), to the optimisation of the local thesis on ‘Lauretana Route as Europe- economic resources, whether they are an Cultural Route’. It indicated that the agricultural, tourist or educational. area of Plestia that includes the archaeological park and sanctuary, This can be feasible only by promoting could be the centre from which the an idea of a Natural Park far from the ‘cultural system’ of the Plateaus can patterns of command-and-control as cast its light on the rest of the land, typical of the Italian conservation tradition, already proposed and refused by since it is the historical meeting point local populations. A new model is of the roads that enter the Basin from needed, related to the ‘new para- its natural entryways, which could thus digms’ developed by recent Italian re- become the ‘gates’ of the Park. search conducted by Valerio Giaco- The Lauretana Route, as the ‘back- mini (Giacomini and Romano, 1982) to bone’ of a low speed travel through the Roberto Gambino (Gambino, 2010). It area, could become the main axis of proposes a vision that makes local distribution of local products and cul- communities and their environmental tural and traditional knowledge, also culture the fulcrum around which pro- through the ancient hospitalia located jects can be built, and systemic and along the way. In fact, today the little reticular logics the guiding principles parking bays along Road 77 are used for their implementation. In order to by local producers to sell renowned lo- satisfy the need to conserve and man- cal products, such as the red potato of age the linkages between natural and Colfiorito. In this case, the completion human systems with important histori- of the motorway project could para- cal connections, a new model of a doxically contribute to the redefine- Park has to operate at different and in- ment of the existing main road as a tegrated levels of landscape protec- slow velocity road network. But evi- tion. It is, of course, a vision that in- dently, it needs a critical revision of volves more complex procedures, but each of the project’s stages. it is in the acceptance of complexity that the new vision of reality must be In the Plains, which are characterised founded upon (Morin, 1993). by important biodiversity values, all activities will have to be compatible with The possibility to recover/salvage the the conservation of the wet meadow relationship between humans and na- vegetation and the marsh ecosystem. ture underlies also in the IUCN initia- In general, all of the agricultural practic- tive for including Protected Land- es will have to conserve at least small scapes into the categories of biodiver- elements of ecological connectivity, sity conservation. That can be an im- threatened by mechanised agriculture. portant example and reference for the Plestian landscape itself. The natural entryways of the Park will

149 ensure communication with neighbour- for the local development of projects, a ing protected areas, thus enforcing tool of both knowledge-analysis and ecological connectivity against the ef- land use planning, where the commu- fect of the current ecological barriers – nity becomes the real subject of the lo- mostly, the main roads crossing the cal actions and its cultural heritage the Apennine landscape. main object of local development (De Varine, 2005). In a unitary but not homogeneous structure, elements of the historical Of course, different instruments, such memory will create an expanding cul- as the Regional Park, the Ecomuseum, tural system, its spiritual components and the Protected Landscape can be discernible in the cluster of therapeutic used together in an integrated manner, sanctuaries, further consolidated by provided that the local community be- the presence of the Park. The natural comes the first referent of the project and spiritual components will be visi- and dynamic conservation its first bly linked together in the Lauretana Pil- objective. grimage Route network. Moreover, in order to connect the Ples- It is precisely this strong interrelation tian landscape unit with landscapes between the natural and cultural-spirit- belonging to the regions of Marche ual elements of the Plestian landscape and Umbria, one has to consider, that will guide the planner to develop whether the Cultural Route5 can be models of landscape management, used as another tool of the valorisation which take into account the impor- of the natural and cultural resources, tance of local communities and let not bound within the specific context them become the focus of conserva- but guaranteeing interrelationships at tion and development projects, by pro- a larger territorial scale. Therefore, the moting the preservation of spiritual tra- Cultural Route becomes a territorial ditions and strengthening the local system connecting its local nodes (the ecological and landscape culture. Parks, Ecomuseums and Protected Ar- eas) along the thematic and geograph- A recent Degree thesis has suggested ic ‘conductor’ of the Marian pilgrimage how an Ecomuseum can be used as a route towards Loreto. cultural model to be taken into account

5 According to the definition given by both the Council of Europe in the Resolution CM/ Res(2010)53 and the International Scientific Committee of Cultural Routes of ICOMOS/CIIC with the 2008 Charter of Cultural Routes.

150 The wetland. Steps of protection.

1969 Date of first requirement of conservation of the wetland of Colfiorito by prof. F. Pedrotti (University of Camerino). He proposed a Managed Nature Reserve (Riserva Naturale Guidata)

1971 The area is indicated as Fauna Oasis (Oasi faunistica)

1976 The wetland is included in the Ramsar list that gives it the international acknowledgement as Natural Protected Area

1983 The wetland is included among the Areas of particular naturalistic interest (Area di particolare interesse naturalistico-ambientale) by Umbria Region, with L.R. n. 52, after indication of great public interest (notevole interesse pubblico) by E. Orsomando and F Pedrotti in 1980/81

1995 Date of birth of the Regional Park of Colfiorito (Parco Regionale di Colfiorito) with L.R. n. 9

1994-97 With Bioitaly Project the wetland is recognised as ASP (Area of Special Protection, Directive 79/409/EEC) and SCI (Site of Community Importance, Directive 92/43/EEC)

Present days The Plestian system is considered as an area of public interest (Area di notevole interesse pubblico) according to the Italian Code of Cultural Heritage and Landscape (Codice dei Beni Culturali e del Paesaggio, D. lg 42/2004).

The Landscape. Meanings and importance.

Uniqueness Multiplicity of its representative

of the wetland of Colfiorito in ecosystems the system (the wetland is representative of a (there is no other similar interesting number of different ecosystems wetland in the Basin) (Pedrotti, 1965)) the Wetland the

to be conserved Richness of the system Rarity (as a cultural heritage and natural resource) Biodiversity

Uniqueness Unity of the system in the national of its vital functioning contest (considering its (the system as a whole based on

the Basin the international importance) interconnection between parts (Lippi Boncampi, 1940))

151 References

Antinori, A. (2009), I sentieri del silenzio. Guida agli eremi rupestri ed alle abbazie dell’Appennino umbro-marchigiano [Pathways of silence. A guide to hermitages and abbeys of the Apennine Mountains in Umbria-Marche], Folignano, Ascoli Pi- ceno: Società Editrice Ricerche.

De Varine, H. (2005), Les racines du futur: Le patrimoine au service du développe- ment local, it. ed. (2005), Le radici del futuro: il patrimonio culturale al servizio del- lo sviluppo locale it. trans. by Daniele Jalla, Bologna: Clueb. Gambino, R. (2010), Parchi e paesaggi d’Europa. Un programma di ricerca territoriale [Parks and landscapes of Europe. A regional research programme], in Ri- vista. Ricerche per la progettazione del paesaggio, 14/2010, luglio/dicembre, anno 8, numero monografico, in http://www.unifi.it/ri-vista/14ri/14r.html

Giacomini, V. and Romani, V. (1982), Uomini e Parchi [Man and Parks], Milano: Franco Angeli.

Morin, E. (1990), Introduction à la pensèe complexe, it. ed. (1993), Introduzione al pensiero complesso. Gli strumenti per affrontare la sfida della complessità, it. trans. by Monica Corbani, Milano: Sperling & Kupfer.

Orsomando, E., and Catorci, A. (1997), Fisiografia [Physiography], inGli Altipiani di Colfiorito. Appennino Umbro-marchigiano. Storia e ambiente [The Colfiorito Pla- teaus. The Apennine Range in Umbria-Marche. History and environment], ed. E. Orsomando, Comunità Montana del Monte Subasio, Ente Parco Regionale di Col- fiorito, pp. 13-15.

Orsomando, E. and Sensi, M. (eds.) (2002), Studi sull’ambiente naturale degli Al- tipiani di Colfiorito [Studies on the natural environment of the Colfiorito Plateaus], Colfiorito, Foligno: Quaderni della ‘Sagra della patata rossa’, with a map of vegetation.

Pedrotti, F. (1996), Gestione su base scientifica dei sistemi ecologici per la loro conservazione e recupero [Science-based management of ecological systems for their conservation and recovery], in Società Italiana di Ecologia, 17: 549-554, Ec- ologia. Atti del VII Congresso Nazionale della Società Italiana di Ecologia. Napoli, 11-14 Settembre, 1996.

Romano, B. (2010), Le interferenze insediative [Human settlements’ intrusions], in AA.VV. RERU. Rete Ecologica Regionale dell’Umbria. Proposte per la costruzione di una rete ecologica regionale [RERU. Ecological Network of Umbria Region. Pro- posals for the planning of a regional ecological network], Città di Castello: Petru- zzi Editore.

152 Sargolini, M. et al. (2006), Reti Ecologiche e Siti Natura 2000. Il caso studio delle Marche [Ecological Networks and Natura2000 sites. Case study in Marche], Roma: Ed. Kappa.

Sensi, M. (1984), Vita di pietà e vita civile di un altopiano tra Umbria e Marche (secc. XV-XVI) [Religious and civil life of the High Lands between Marche and Um- bria Regions (fifteenth to sixteenth centuries)], Storia e Letteratura, Raccolta di studi e testi: Roma.

Sensi, M. (ed.) (1998), Plestia si racconta. Dalla ‘fiera’ alla ‘sagra della patata rossa’ [Tales from Plestia. From the ‘fair to the ‘festival of the red potato’], Colfiorito, Foligno: Quaderni della ‘Sagra della patata rossa’.

Tosco, C. (2009), Il paesaggio storico. Le fonti e i metodi di ricerca tra medioevo ed età moderna [Historic landscape. References and methods of research between the Middle and Modern Ages], Bari: Laterza.

Other references used for producing maps: Lippi Boncampi, C. (1939), Il Bacino carsico di Colfiorito [The karst Basin of Col- fiorito], in Orsomando, E., Sensi, M. (2002), op. cit., pp. 160-164 Lippi Boncampi, C. (1940), Osservazioni morfologiche sul Bacino di Colfiorito e presupposti idrogeologici della sua bonifica [Observations on the morphology of the Colfiorito Basin and the hydro geological conditions for its drainage], in Orso- mando, E., Sensi, M. (2002), op. cit., pp. 61-87.

Acknowledgements Special thanks to Prof. Enrico Falqui, Prof. Gabriele Paolinelli, Prof. Franco Pedrot- ti, and Father Mario Sensi as well as Fabrizio Frascaroli, Damiano Galeotti, Silvia Minichino, Federica and Dante Santoni from Colfiorito, and Ms Milena from Rasiglia.

153 154 Part Four: Managing lands of monastic communities

155 156 Monastic communities and nature conservation: Overview of positive trends and best practices in Europe and the Middle East Josep-Maria Mallarach

The origin of a resilient lifestyle cism, under harsh conditions – was close to nature sought so that an aspirant might progress spiritually and attain to holiness, The origin of Christian monasticism is developing a deep harmony with na- to be found eighteen centuries ago in ture by approaching, or even recover- the deserts of Egypt, Palestine and ing, ‘the Adamic state’. The idea ex- Syria, during the time these countries pressed by St John Damascene, a formed part of the Roman Empire. In- Church Father, that ‘Nature is the icon deed, it is in the Egyptian deserts of the face of God’ is highly significant where the oldest Christian monasteries when one recalls the sacramental na- are still thriving. From the earliest ture accorded to icons in the Eastern times, the ideal of the monastic life was Christian Churches and the veneration closely connected to an aspiration to they receive. return to the terrestrial Paradise. More or less complete solitude in the wilder- From the first centuries of monasti- ness – usually associated with asceticism, two main lifestyles developed,

< Rila Natural Park, Bulgaria. The outstanding alpine forests around the Rila Monastery bear testimony of the long-lasting ‘holy unity between Nature and the monastery’, wished for by its founder Saint Ivan of Rila.

157 Well tended vegetable gardens and orchards like those near the monastery of Xenophontos, Athos. which have remained almost un- ena are found in Asia, where monasti- changed until the present day: com- cism, both cenobitic and heremitic, munity life – cenobitic – and isolated developed much earlier within different life – hermitic. Hermitism and cenobit- branches of Buddhism and Hinduism. ism are usually seen as complementa- The expansion of monastic settlements ry paths. Hermits are often fed by mo- occurred rapidly, and by the end of the nastic communities, and in some mon- first millennium thousands of monas- asteries all monks become hermits teries were thriving in Europe and the during some part of their lives. In other Middle East. The impact of these mo- communities, a hermitic life is an op- nastic communities on spirituality, art, tion only for those who feel attracted to science and culture has been widely it. In any case, a hermit devoted to si- acknowledged and documented lent prayer and contemplation in soli- (Krüger et al. 2007; Kinder, 2002, etc.), tude is the prototype of the human be- and their legacy has been, and still is, ing in deep harmony with nature. In a research topic for numerous journals. the words of one hermit, ‘hermits live a However, the positive impact of these cosmic experience of communion with communities in the management of nature’ (Mouizon, 2001). No wonder, natural resources and nature conser- therefore, that from the fourth century vation has received much less atten- onwards numerous historical records tion, despite the fact that the monas- describe the lives and feats of holy teries often developed very success- monks and hermits who befriended fully what we would currently call ‘sus- wild animals, such as lions, bears, tainable practices’. wolves or poisonous snakes, and it is recorded that some were even fed by Given the fact that the founders of mon- them (Macaire, 1993). Similar phenom- asteries deliberately sought out solitary

158 or ‘wild’ terrain, the longevity of many Carpathian mountains to the coastal communities is impressive. Obviously, wetlands of the Mediterranean, many in desert or arid areas, the survival of of which have been well conserved un- the community depended on the devel- til the present day. In actuality, hun- opment of highly sophisticated and ef- dreds of modern protected areas have ficient water management and garden- been established over ancient monas- ing techniques. The first Christian tic landscapes that still retain their monastery, St Catherine’s, founded in quality and biodiversity. Most of these 337 AD, is located at the foot of Mount protected areas are managed as Pro- Sinai, an extremely arid region. It has tected Landscapes, equivalent to the been continuously active ever since, IUCN category V, which is the most coming under the protection of Islamic common category of protected areas law in the seventh century. In 2002 the of Europe (Mallarach, 2008). This monastery itself was included in the noteworthy fact provides an additional Saint Katherine Protectorate, one of the proof of the effectiveness of these largest protected areas of Egypt types of community-conserved areas. (Grainger and Gilbert, 2008). A further Almost 50 monasteries (usually includ- example is St Anthony’s, founded in ing part of the lands they historically 356 AD, shortly after the saint’s death. managed) have been inscribed in the Situated on al-Qalzam Mountain near UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites Al Zaafarana, Egypt, the monastery to this day, additional evidence of the has enjoyed continual occupancy and global significance of these monastic today is a self-contained village with settlements. Even though most of gardens, a mill, a bakery, and five these sites are classified as ‘Cultural’, churches. Similarly to other Egyptian some are Mixed – ‘Natural and Cultur- Coptic monasteries, St Anthony’s is al’ – such as Mount Athos, Greece, or currently experiencing a revival; its mo- Studenica, Serbia; and in fact, more nastic population has grown consider- could also be classified as ‘Mixed’, as ably in recent years, attracting a large most of the remaining sites retain sig- number of pilgrims. Many monks of St nificant natural heritage value at either Anthony’s monastery nowadays spend global or national levels. the last part of their lives as hermits in Indeed, sustainability went hand in nearby caves. hand with monasticism from an early Such examples are not unique. The re- time. Among the Benedictines, for ex- sult of centuries of prudent resource ample, whose order was established management by monasteries was the by St Benedict in the sixth century creation of a wide variety of extensive (and whose flourish from the eleventh and harmonious monastic landscapes, to the fourteenth centuries led to the well adapted to different ecosystems, birth of orders such as the Cistercians, from the taiga of Siberia to the North Camaldolensians, Carthusians, etc.), African deserts, from the Alps or the agricultural and forestry management

159 practices were sophisticated and di- Because of the alms and donations verse. St Benedict set an early exam- they received, coupled with careful ple of sustainability; the Benedictine and efficient management, many mon- communities had to pass on their asteries ended up managing large lands in at least as fertile a state as tracts of land and water reserves, when they found them. Experts nowa- sometimes hundreds of square kilome- days can single out a forest which was tres in size. It is estimated that in many managed by a Benedictine, Cistercian European and Middle East countries or Camaldolensian monastic communi- monastic communities were responsi- ty identifying good-practice tech- ble for 10 to 25 per cent of the produc- niques that were used. In fact, the tive area. Moreover, medieval monas- sustainable forest practices of the Ca- tic gardens set the example for the es- maldolensians, in the extensive forest tablishment of botanical gardens and lands of the Apennines, were the foun- pharmaceutical gardens in post-medi- dation of the Italian legislation on for- eval European and Middle Eastern estry (Fr. P. Hughes, pers. comm.), and towns (MacDougall, 1986). Following the area around the monastery of Ca- the rule of ‘Ora et Labora’ (Pray and maldoli, including its Sacro Eremo – Work), monastic communities have al- hermitage – has been included in the ways been eager to develop efficient National Park of the Casentine Forests. self-sufficient strategies which allow Cistercians, on the other hand, estab- them to devote most of their time to lished their settlements in lowlands, prayer, meditation and contemplation. usually next to rivers and water bodies, Hermitages, on the other hand, have developing sophisticated systems for been traditionally located in wild or harnessing the renewable energy of rugged country, providing solitude and water (Leroux-Dhuys, 1999).

The Miracle Monastery, Spain. The spring blessing of water is held at dawn, after a long silent walk listening to the birds singing, during the spring session of the course on Nature and Spiri- tuality, in El Miracle Nature Reserve.

160 natural shelter, such as in caves. The course, one of steady evolution. Aside hermitic domains can be considered a from occasional disruptions due to kind of nature reserve, i.e. IUCN pro- wars or pillage, the worse setbacks tected area categories I or III. The in- suffered by monastic communities of clusion of some of these hermitages Europe came after the French Revolu- on the periphery of the monastic pro- tion (and the secularisation move- tected landscapes resulted in a very ments), leading into the nineteenth and balanced ecological pattern, which twentieth centuries. For political or can be still found in many regions. economic reasons, the governments of Monastic settlements containing scat- many European countries – liberal or tered small monasteries of different communist – banned religious organi- sizes, with assorted hermitages and sations or enforced severe prohibitions monks’ cells, in some cases created or on their activities, usually confiscating maintained astonishing landscapes, monastic properties. As a result, many like those of Cappadocia in Turkey, monasteries were abandoned, sacked and in other cases led to the construc- or destroyed. These measures had se- tion of imposing buildings in the midst vere repercussions not only on monas- of almost pristine natural areas, like the ticism itself, as is well known, but also Grand Chartreuse, France. The well on nature conservation – a fact which known ‘Carmelitan deserts’ usually lo- has been less well documented. Some cated in rugged and isolated natural monastic forests carefully managed for areas, are a special type of hermitic- centuries were razed to the ground in based landscape, established from few decades (Urteaga, 1989), numer- the seventeenth century to host a cer- ous traditional varieties of vegetables tain number of temporary hermits in were lost, and much ‘traditional eco- solitary places in Spain, where a num- logical knowledge’ and many related ber of modern protected areas have best practices, which had been pru- been established, such as the Natural dently developed over centuries, were Parks of Desert de les Palmes and Las rapidly forgotten. Batuecas (Ruiz & Husillos, 2008). Later, when the political situation im- The historical peak of monastic expan- proved, and a certain tolerance for religion was redeveloped, a monastic re- sion varied among regions. While in surgence occurred in most European the Middle East, North Africa, and Ire- countries, which led to the partial – in land the zenith was reached in the fifth most places – recovery of what had and sixth centuries, the apogee of mo- been lost. nasticism in many Western and Central European countries was not reached Nowadays, it is estimated that there are until the eleventh to the fourteenth cen- more than 5000 monastic communities turies; Russia also enjoyed its heyday in Europe and the Middle East, and during the 1500–1600s. However the over 80 000 monks and nuns, clear history of monasticism is not, of proof of the amazing resilience of this

161 way of life. This figure does not include • Within certain protected areas of Ro- the Catholic friar orders, which usually mania new monastic settlements are are located in urban areas, although being established, e.g. Skitul Sihla, some of them, like the Franciscans, had Agapia Veche, etc. At the same originally very tight bonds with nature. time, new monastic villages are developing around the old monasteries Currently, most of the former European of Agapia and Varatec, these being communist countries are experiencing the largest monasteries of the Ortho- a recovery and/or expansion of monas- dox world and yet unable to cope ticism, as can be seen in Belarus, Bul- with the large numbers of new garia, Romania, Russia, the Ukraine, aspirants. etc. The largest monastic population in • Some monasteries in the Balkans are Europe is actually to be found within being restored, after many years or the Natural Park of Vanatori-Neamt, in even centuries of neglect, e.g. those northeast Romania, which includes of Skadar Lake, Montenegro; moreo- over 2000 monks and nuns (Catanoius, ver, some abandoned monasteries in 2007), organised in self-sufficient com- Muslim dominant countries are being munities, either in monasteries or small recovered, e.g. Mar Musa in Syria. monastic villages. New foundations • There is an unexpected recovery and are frequent, and the expansion of the renewal of hermitism in the moun- historic monasteries is currently com- tains of many European countries, mon in this part of Europe. On the oth- but, as well as in Lebanon, where for er hand, the only monastic republic of example in Ouadi Qashida (the Holy the world, Mount Athos (the Garden of Valley) the Maronite Church’s spiritu- the Holy Virgin, as it is called by its inal cradle people from different reli- habitants), located in north-eastern gious backgrounds make retreats in Greece, reached its lowest ebb in the natural caves guided by Maronite 1970s. Since that time, however, the nuns (Mngr Samir Mazloum, pers. intake has been increasing steadily, comm.). In Italy alone it is estimated and it currently has about 1700 monks, that over 300 hermits are permanent- with all its 20 autonomous monasteries ly living in the wilderness, and over fully restored (Speake, 2002). 2000 temporary hermits take retreats Despite the general trend of seculari- in natural areas, staying there for a sation, and the decline that a number period that varies from a few months of monastic communities are still expe- to a few years (Denwahl, 2004). riencing, new monastic settlements are • Several new Orthodox monasteries currently being established in different have been established in Western, parts of Europe and the Middle East culturally Catholic European coun- (often within protected areas), and new tries, such as the Solan, Saint An- efforts are underway to recover and toine-le-Grand, and Cantauque mon- protect sacred natural sites. Some ex- asteries in France. amples are briefly discussed below. • The recovery and restoration of di-

162 verse ancient Coptic monasteries in it must be admitted, an insufficient the- desert areas, e.g. those of Wadi Mur, ology of Creation. in Egypt. Nowadays, most monastic communi- • The recent establishment of new mo- ties are aware of these contradictions nastic orders with ascetic lifestyles and many are working to improve their within or very close to nature, often coherency, following the guidelines of referred as the Green Cathedral, e.g. their spiritual leaders. The size of the Little Sisters/Brothers of the these communities may vary widely, Lamb, France, whose members live from a few members to a few hundred from alms. individuals, either male or female, but • The unexpected recovery of ancient usually are made of a few dozen men pilgrimage routes, connecting old and or women. The principle of self-suffi- new monasteries, e.g. a number of ciency is widespread, especially branches of the Way of Saint James among Orthodox and Coptic commu- (Camino de Santiago) in northern nities. In former times the same could Spain, and many more in the Car- be said of the monastic communities of pathians, Romania and Hungary. the Roman Church, but some have • The intensification of efforts by the now abandoned manual labour for in- Franciscan Custody of the Holy tellectual work. Land, among others, to conserve sites sacred to Christianity, including In terms of leadership and vision, the some outstanding sacred natural highest spiritual authorities also have sites, like Mount Tabor, the Mount of demonstrated a commitment to nature the Blessings, or the shores of Lake conservation. H.A.H. Bartholomew I is Tiberias, threatened by development widely known as the ‘Green Patriarch’, pressures and projects. having developed numerous and very significant initiatives at different levels Despite this impressive resurgence of (Bartholomew I, 2003), including some interest in monasticism and the value for improving the awareness of monas- of community spiritual life in nature, tic communities of environmental is- one must also acknowledge the fact sues (Nantsou, 2009), while the last that during the twentieth century a two Catholic Popes have coined the number of existing or new monastic key concept of ‘ecological conversion’, communities adopted lifestyles not ful- insisting in their messages on the need ly coherent with spiritual principles re- for a radical change of lifestyle to regarding nature and the environment. duce consumption and increase re- The reasons for this are diverse, and spect for Creation (Benedictus XVI, include such factors as the influence of 2010). the surrounding secular society, a lack of discernment concerning the envi- In fact, monastic communities nowa- ronmental and social impact of new days are in a very good position to technologies and practices, and often, maintain or develop best practices re-

163 lated to nature conservation. After all, • The idea of communal rather than such practices are part of their history, private property; the concept of and most communities have kept re- monks as custodians or stewards, cords of this; and many monastic com- never owners munities are producing very fine or- • Cherished values which include: sa- ganic products, such as cheese, beer, credness, silence, solitude, harmony, wine, liqueur, herbal remedies, in- beauty cense, etc., or outstanding quality • Aiming for perfection, or excellence, crafts, like icons, rosaries, or pottery. in the spiritual and material domains Others are still engaged in farming, • Creation/Nature as an image/mani- animal husbandry, fishing or forestry. festation of God/Divinity/the Sacred, All of these activities, naturally, presup- or as a Teacher. Creation as a gift to pose a spiritual and ecologically re- be safeguarded and bestowed on fu- sponsible approach to the relationship ture generations between man and nature, which is, as • All natural living beings living in per- we have seen, at the very heart of the manent praise of their Creator monastic life. The values that monastic communities embrace are, therefore, very removed Values and principles from the mainstream values of Western materialistic societies, and indeed in Christian monastic communities have this sense the monks may be said to been established for more than ten share common ground with most tradi- centuries in most of Europe and the tional communities or indigenous peo- Middle East. They are, without ques- ples of the world. tion, the oldest democratic and self-or- Some have criticised the inhabitants of ganised communities of this part of the monastic communities for ‘abandoning world to have a continuous positive im- the world’, which is of course partially pact on nature conservation. This sig- true, but what is even more true is the nificant, but often overlooked, histori- fact that secluding themselves from cal fact can be explained, in part, be- society, these men and women strive cause monastic communities are to live in spiritual communion not only based on principles which are deeply with other human beings, but with the coherent with environmental sustaina- entire existence. According to the au- bility, such as: thorities of the Mar Mousa monastery, • Stability, discipline, asceticism, so- Syria, ‘the second priority is Evangeli- briety, ‘poverty’ cal simplicity, a way for living in harmo- • Reducing material needs; increasing ny and complete responsibility with the time for prayer, contemplation and Creation and the society that surround meditation us (...) with an aesthetic of justice and • Orientation not to material profit, but gratification’ (excerpt from the official to spiritual benefit web site).

164 Therefore, ‘the actuality of monasticism Protected areas and monastic is that – like it or not – it embodies with- communities: diversity of in the religion that which is of a spiritu- contexts al and contemplative essence, extreme and absolute (…), [that which] Most of the oldest and largest remain- shows to the world that happiness is ing monastic lands of Europe are not in some remote place, outside our- found inside protected areas of inter- selves (...) but now and here, where we national value (like the Natura 2000 are with God. In the face of a dehu- network, established by the European manised world, the monk represents Union based on bioregional criteria), what our true measures are’ (Schuon, such as the entire Athos peninsula in 1967). Greece, or Saint Otilia in Germany. In- deed, many monastic lands are effec- Except for a few orders that have cho- tively managed as protected areas, sen to remain completely silent, like even without designation, as clear ex- the Carthusians, most monastic com- amples of community-conserved are- munities use a variety of tools and as. Some protected areas have been strategies to communicate their values promoted or created by monastic au- to society, including the way they un- thorities, such as the Natural Park of derstand the Creation and their virtu- Rila, Bulgaria, nested inside the na- ous relationship with all living beings. tional park, or the Natural Area of Na- They may choose to use traditional tional Significance of Poblet, Spain. channels, new technologies, or both, depending on orders, context and cir- Land ownership is partially being de- cumstances, although they usually aim volved to some monastic communities at exclusive audiences. Traditional re- in some of the former communist coun- ligious tools, like retreats, seminars, tries, which may include portions of al- counselling, publication of books, arti- ready existing protected areas, such cles, and sacred art, are often com- as in the Natural Park of Vanatori-Nea- bined with modern tools, like sympo- mt, Romania, or in the National Park of sia, websites (see a short selection Rila, Bulgaria. below), DVDs, CDs, guided tours, in- Some monastic communities have terpretation centres, etc. Although few been recovering sacred sites, includ- monasteries have explicit communica- ing sacred natural sites, like the Fran- tion goals related to nature conserva- ciscan Custody of the Holy Land, that tion, it is indisputable that all the val- manages numerous sacred sites in Is- ues they communicate (including their rael/Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, own example) have a positive impact Egypt, Cyprus, and Greece, or the on their target audience, by increasing Benedictines who manage a number respect for nature and encouraging of calvaries, like the landscape com- others to adopt simpler, more sustain- plex of Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, in Po- able lifestyles. land, a World Heritage Site. Other mo-

165 nastic communities are at the service Finally, another trend that needs to be of pilgrimages, like the Way of Saint addressed when discussing the Euro- James (the first pilgrimage in the world pean context is the recent creation of to become a World Heritage Site), some Buddhist monasteries (mostly re- which stretches for more than one lated to Zen and Tibetan Buddhism) to thousand kilometres through Northern which an increasing number of Euro- Spain, fostering the development of peans feel attracted. Almost all of numerous protected areas along the these new monasteries are very com- way (Mallarach, 2005). mitted towards nature conservation and environmental respect. At the On the other hand, protected areas in- same time, however, there is an intrigu- cluding monastic communities have ing complementary trend: the creation very diverse ownership and govern- of new Roman Catholic monasteries in ance systems and styles, involving Asian countries, such as Vietnam or boards, planning and management Korea, where Buddhism has been the regulations, public use requirements, dominant religion for many centuries. etc. For instance, the territory of Mount Athos is the largest Natura 2000 and Mixed World Heritage Site of Europe Positive trends fully managed by monastic communities. In most cases, however, monastic From the environmental point of view, a communities are not allowed to partici- number of significant positive trends pate in the boards of governance. can be identified among the monastic communities in Europe and the Middle The Natural Park of Montserrat, Spain, East during the last years. A selection where the Abbot of the main monastery of these trends, each with a few exam- is the Vice-President of the Board, or the ples, is briefly discussed next. Poblet Nature Reserve, Spain, where the Prior of the Monastery of Poblet was • Development of organic farming in nu- recently elected President of the Board, merous monasteries, such as the Rieu- are quite exceptional, but could be rep- nette and Solan monasteries, France; licated in other protected areas with mo- Hosios Lukas and Chrysopigi monas- nastic communities. Of all the European teries, Greece; Santa Croce in Gerusa- and Middle East Christian monasteries lemme, Italy; Solan, France, and many that have been declared Cultural and/or monasteries of Romania, guided by Natural-Cultural World Heritage Sites by Pierre Rabhi, the French leader and UNESCO, only 40 per cent of them are activist on organic farming, under the managed by monastic communities, the patronage of the Orthodox Patriarch of rest being managed by governmental Romania (Rabhi, 1996). Other monas- institutions responsible for cultural herit- teries like those of Frauenthal and age. Such institutions often consider Hauterive Switzerland, or Cystersów, monastic complexes as museums or Poland, have been developing best cultural facilities. practices in animal husbandry.

166 The Holy Island of Arran, UK. Tibetan Buddhist Pilgrimages walking in silence across the hills have become a feature of this Scottish landscape.

• Development of sustainable practic- goal to reach zero consumption and es on forestry, for instance inverting emissions, e.g. Münsterschwarzach coppice oak wood to high forest, or Marienstatt in Germany; establish- combining sustained yield with biodi- ing or maintaining efficient water versity and beauty concerns, such management, e.g. monasteries of as in Simonopetra Monastery, Mount Wadi el-Natroun, Egypt; or including Athos (Kakouros, 2010), or Stift Heili- strict environmental criteria in all new genkreuz, Austria. monastic buildings, such as the mon- • Sensitising visitors vis-à-vis nature asteries of Siloe, Italy, and Himmer- and the environment, e.g. including od, Germany. spiritual principles and connecting • Building, restoring or adapting her- spirituality and nature in all educa- mitages or places for retreats within tional and retreat activities, for in- protected areas, providing an addi- stance in the Buddhist monasteries tional layer of protection, e.g. Les Er- of Plum Village, France, or the Holy mites de Marie, within the Nature Island of Arran, United Kingdom, and 2000 site of Les Albères, France. the monasteries of Camaldoli, Italy, • Restoring ancient medicinal gardens and the Virgin Mary of Rodia, and old herbal pharmaceutical reme- Greece; Solan, France; plus a num- dies and processes, e.g. in Vatopedi, ber of inter-religious initiatives, like Mount Athos or Sticˇna and Precˇastiti the Ecosite of Avalon developed by Gospod Opat Janez Nowak, Slovenia. the Institute Karma Ling in France. • Including spiritual principles in the • Reducing fossil fuel use as much as planning and management of pro- possible, sometimes with the explicit tected areas, e.g. in Poblet, Spain,

167 and Rila, Bulgaria. The main aim of theology of nature has blossomed, the Natural Park of Rila is ‘to guaran- as has also the dialogue between tee and preserve the holy unity be- science, specially frontier disci- tween nature and the Monastery, plines, and theology. These trends [and] its rebirth as spiritual and cul- are not confined to Europe or the tural centre of the country’. Middle East, but are more or less • It is also worth noting the creation of global. For instance, it is noteworthy new monastic orders within the Ro- that the theme of the third Inter-reli- man Church going back to their gious Dialogue between Christian Christian roots, emphasising harmo- and Buddhist monastic orders held ny with nature, simplicity, and life in in the monastery of Gethsemani, nature, with minimal resources and Kentucky, USA, in 2008, was ‘Monas- impact, like the Monastic family of ticism and the Environment’ (Mitchell Bethlehem (a new formulation of the & Skudlarek, 2010). It is appropriate Carthusians); the Little Sisters/Broth- to recall that the Benedictine Com- ers of the Lamb, or the Franciscan munity of Montserrat welcomed the Friars of the Renewal. first workshops of The Delos Initia- • Some monastic communities have tive, and that the proceedings of the decided moving from urban settings workshop were the first joint publica- to protected areas, to develop an tion between the Abbey of Montser- eco-friendly lifestyle, such as the rat – which has the oldest printing Benedictine Stanbrook Abbey that house of Europe – and IUCN, a clear moved to North York Moore National sign of cooperation (Mallarach, & Pa- Park, England. payannis, 2007) • At the same time, an interest in the

The Vatopedi Monastery, Athos, Greece. To feed the large vegetarian community of the monastery and her guests, the large greenhouse, heated with wood from nearby forests, makes vegetable production possible during the long winter.

168 Conclusion teries in Europe and Middle East is a promising trend. Their message, An analysis of the management of nat- grounded in solid spiritual principles, ural resources by monastic communi- and extensive traditional management ties in diverse ecosystems, throughout practices that cover many centuries, history, is of great interest from a na- provides a living example of resilient ture conservation point of view. Such sustainable life for many other commu- an analysis provides one of the best nities to follow. documented examples, in this part of the world, of effectively managed com- For all these reasons, the conservation munity-conserved areas that have cre- community ought to pay more attention ated, and maintained for centuries, a to this enduring class of community diversity of beautiful, harmonious, pro- conserved areas, to identify the les- ductive and biodiverse landscapes, in sons that may be learned for other pro- very different ecosystems, from the tected landscapes in general, as well Arctic to the tropics. as for other types of protected areas, especially those with religious or spir- In particular, those concerned with itual meaning or significance, such as IUCN Category V – Protected Land- sacred natural sites or sacred landscapes – could benefit greatly from the scapes. In particular, the practices that experience of monastic communities many monastic communities have de- over the ages in the management of veloped so as to be as coherent as forests, pastures, and croplands, not possible from an environmental point to mention the use of renewal energy, of view, within technologically devel- in particular, hydro-power. oped countries that are ostensibly fol- Furthermore, the renewed interest in lowing opposite trends, should be en- environmental coherence of many couraged and widely disseminated. Christian – and also Buddhist – monas-

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Rabhi, P. (1996), Parole de Terre, Preface of Yehudi Menuhin, Paris: Editions Albin Michel.

Ruíz, A. and Husillos, I. (2008), El Desierto de Las Palmas: historia y vida. [The desert of Las Plamas: history and life], Editor Fundación Desierto de Las Palmas, Castelló de La Plana.

Schuon, F. (1967), ‘Universality and actuality of monasticism’, in Light on the An- cient Worlds, Bloomington, Ind.: World Wisdom Books.

Speake, G. (2002), Mount Athos: Renewal in Paradise, New Haven and London: Yale University Press.

171 Urteaga, P. (1989), La Tierra Esquilmada [The Abused Earth]: Las Ideas Sobre La Conservación de La Naturaleza En La Cultura Española del Siglo XVIII, Libros del Buen Andar.

Selected websites Carmelitan Desert of Las Palmas http://www.desiertodelaspalmas.com/

Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land: http://198.62.75.4/opt/xampp/custodia

Ecosite Avalon: http://www.rimay.net/spip.php?page=sommaireECO

Holy Island of Arran: http://www.holyisland.org/

Indigenous and Community Conserved Areas. http://www.iccaforum.org/

Monastère de Solan. http://www.monasteredesolan.com

Monastery of Saint Anthony, Egypt: http://stantonymonastery.com/

Monastery of Mar Musa, Syria: http://www.deirmarmusa.org

Hermitism: http://www.hermitary.com/

Monastery of Camaldoli: http://www.camaldoli.it/

Münsterschwarzach: http://www.abtei-muensterschwarzach.de/ams/kloster/konventl

Monastery of Saint Macarius the Great, Egypt: http://www.stmacariusmonastery. org/

Monastery of Cantauque: http://www.monastere-cantauque.com/englishl

Monastery of Poblet: www.poblet.cat/

Monastic Inter-religious Dialogue on the Environment, 2008: http://monasticdialog. com/conference.php?id=117

Monastery of Plum Village: http://www.plumvillage.org/

Monastic Orders and Monasteries: http://www.religiousworlds.com/mystic/orders. html

Stanbrook Abbey: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/oct/30/ stanbrook-abbey-eco-friendly-nuns.

172 Acknowledgements I am deeply indebted to the following people:

Br Carles-Xavier Noriega, O.S.B. Montserrat Monastery, Spain: Benedictine monasteries of Europe.

Fr Artemio Vitores, O.C: Catholic Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, Jerusalem, Israel.

Fr Lluc Torcal, O.C, Poblet Monastery, Spain: Cistercian monasteries of Europe.

Fr Peter Hughes: Catholic monasteries of Italy.

Fr Samuel, Cantauque monastery: Orthodox monasteries of France.

Fr Ignacio Husillos Tamarit, OCD: Carmelitan monastery of Desert de Les Palmes, Spain.

HM Makarios, Holy Monastery of Simonopetra: Orthodox monasticism and nature.

HM Maximos: Holy Monastery of Simonopetra, Athos, Greece.

Mngr Samir Mazloum: Maronite Patriarchate, Qadisha Valley, Lebanon.

Mother Hypandia: Orthodox Monastery of Solan, France.

Mr Sebastian Catanoiu, Vanatory-Neamt Natural Park: Orthodox monasteries of Romania.

Mr Vangel Agramov, Rila Natural Park: Orthodox Monastery of Rila, Bulgaria.

Ms Anne McIvor: Plum Village Zen Monastery, France.

Ms Chiara Serenelli: Loreto pilgrimage and related monasteries, Italy.

Ms Isabel Soria: Carmelitan monasteries of Spain, and the Holy Island of Arran, Scotland, Tibetan Buddhist retreat centre.

Ms Marie Helène Faure: Orthodox Monastery of Cantauque, France.

Ms Svetlana Dingarac: Orthodox monasteries of Serbia and Montenegro.

Sr Nicodème: Orthodox Monastery of Solan / Tour du Valat.

Sr Odile: Cistercian Abbey of Rieunette, France.

173 174 Managing the heritage of Mt Athos

Thymio Papayannis1

Introduction Cypriot monastic communities (Tachi- aios, 2006). Yet all the monks on Mt The spiritual, cultural and natural herit- Athos are recognised as citizens of age of Mt Athos dates back to the end Greece residing in a self-governed part of the first millennium AD, through ten of the country (Kadas, 2002). centuries of uninterrupted monastic life, and is still vibrant in the beginning of Already in 885 Emperor Basil I de- the third millennium. The twenty Chris- clared Mt Athos as ‘…a place of monks, tian Orthodox sacred monasteries that where no laymen nor farmers nor cat- share the Athonite peninsula – in tle-breeders were allowed to settle’. Halkidiki to the East of Thessaloniki – During the Byzantine Period a number are quite diverse. Established during of great monasteries were established the Byzantine times, and inspired by in the area. The time of prosperity for the monastic traditions of Eastern Chris- the monasteries continued even in the tianity, they have developed through the early Ottoman Empire period. However, ages in parallel paths and even have the heavy taxation gradually inflicted different ethnic backgrounds with on them led to an economic crisis dur- Greek, Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian and

1 The views included in this paper are of its author and do not represent necessarily those of < The approach to the Stavronikita Monastery. the Holy Community of Mt Athos.

175 Cape Arapis younger and well-educated monks (Si- deropoulos, 2000) whose number has Chilandariou been doubled during the past forty Es gmenou Ouranoupoli Cape Agios Theodori years. It is up to them to continue the Frangokastello Vatopediou spiritual traditions of the area during Pantokratoros Zografou Stavronikita the third millennium. Konstamonitou Karyes Dovhiariou Koutloumousion Xenofondos Iviron Philotheo Agiou Panteleimonos Dafni Xiropotamou Karakalou The heritage of Mt Athos Simonos Petras Megistis Osiou Grigoriou Lavra Dionysiou Mt Athos It is important to note that the heritage Agiou Pavlou Cape Timiou Prodros Cape Pines of Mt Athos is multiple and integrated, and that it is incorporated in a living millennial tradition (Smyrnakis, 1903). ing the sixteenth and seventeenth cen- In parallel, this tradition is maintained turies and made them abandon the while the monastic communities of coenobitic and embrace the idiorrhyth- Athos adapt contemporary techniques mic system (where monks come to- to their needs. Thus, state-of-the-art gether but are able to own things indi- methods are being used in restoring vidually and not being obliged to work and protecting priceless icons and an- for the common good). Despite their cient manuscripts, while the monks impoverished situation during the use mobile telephony and the internet eighteenth century, Mt Athos took a to communicate, although their use is leading role in the Greek enlighten- in principle restricted. ment, founding the Athonite Academy near Vatopedi Monastery (Theodorou The spiritual heritage of the area origi- and Dana, 2003). During the Greek nates from the Byzantine Orthodox tra- War of Independence in the early nine- dition with the Ecumenical Patriarch of teenth century, the Holy Mountain be- Constantinople still maintaining the came a shelter for the suffering Greek spiritual leadership of Athos (Pa- population, and was plundered by the pachrysanthou, 1992). The strong reli- Ottomans. After the end of the war, gious faith of the monks and their devo- many Slavonic countries in an attempt tion to ascetic life dedicated to prayer to increase their influence in the area is an inspiration for the Christian Ortho- donated large sums of money to re- dox faithful, which is estimated now to build old monasteries and the numbers 200-250 million people distributed in of the monks increased. The world many countries (McGuckin, 2011). wars and the civil war that followed di- Part of this spiritual tradition is the ava- minished their numbers considerately. ton, which forbids the entrance of wom- Near the end of the twentieth century, en and children, as well as female ani- Mt Athos monasticism experienced a mals to Mt Athos. Since its official es- re-vitalisation through an increase of tablishment in 969 AD by Ioannis Tsi-

176 miskis, the area has been dedicated to mate types provides a habitat for a large the Virgin Mary and has been known as number of plant and animal species, in- Her ‘little garden’. Thus, no other wom- cluding quite a few endemic to the re- an has ever been allowed to enter. gion (Kakouros, 2006). The absence of grazing in the entire peninsula has al- The cultural heritage consists of a lowed the existence of a dense forest, of unique architecture, which melds deciduous and coniferous and maquis many different styles from various ep- vegetation (Dafis et al., 1996). ochs and countries, perfectly in harmony with each other and very well in- That is why Mt Athos has been recog- tegrated in the rich natural environ- nised by UNESCO as a Mixed World ment of the Athonite Peninsula. It is Heritage property for both nature and complemented by invaluable collec- culture in September 1988. The entire tions of artefacts, frescoes and icons, area has been included in the Natura manuscripts and old editions, objects 2000 European Union network of proof religious art and other precious gifts tected areas, both for its habitats and from devout leaders and pilgrims. Most birds. Both of these designations have of these are now properly maintained, been proposed unilaterally by the although fires and insensitive restora- Greek State, without the participation tions have caused occasionally seri- and the agreement of the monastic ous damage (Papayannis, 2007). communities and have been approved by the World Heritage Committee and The natural heritage is also unique due the European Commission. The Holy to a rapid succession of diverse climatic Community of Mt Athos has accepted conditions and ecosystems from Medi- these designations ipso facto, but only terranean along the coasts to alpine at within the historic and legal framework the tip of Mt Athos, which exceeds 2000 of the Athonite Peninsula. m (Ganiatsas, 2003). The variety of cli-

The inner courtyard of the Vatopedi Monastery.

177 Management responsibilities clearly presented in the following excerpt from a letter sent to UNESCO in The requirements of the two protection October 2010: regimes under UNESCO and the Euro- pean Union have created occasional ‘Naturally, the monks of Mount friction between government services Athos are themselves the unremu- and the Mt Athos authorities, who feel nerated custodians, protectors, and strongly that they have the full respon- preservers of the peninsula’s natu- sibilities for the management of the ral and cultural treasures. They are, Athonite Peninsula. This is based on in addition, the bearers and practi- the long tradition of the area, and has tioners of a spirituality that is both been recognised by the Decree traditional and contemporary; they 10/16.09.1926 on the ratification of ‘the are the ones who live in and shape Constitutional Charter of Mt Athos’, as the institutions and established or- well as by article 105, paragraphs 1–3, ders. The Athonite administrative of the Greek Constitution. It is also rec- authorities (the Holy Community ognised by the 1981 Treaty of adhe- and the Twenty Holy Monasteries), sion of Greece in the European Union, manage their own affairs and strug- which recognises Mt Athos as part of a gle to maintain their institutions and European Union member state, but traditions. From their own funds, but with certain special considerations. occasionally with state and private grants, they care for the various In accordance with the existing legal monuments, and, either through framework, Mt Athos is governed by the services that they organize, or that Holy Community, which consists of rep- they entrust to outside collabora- resentatives of the 20 monasteries in tors, they oversee various studies the area. Each monastery has jurisdic- and restoration projects, plans for tion for the management of their proper- the management of the environ- ty, certain general matters, however, are ment, and, with the cooperation decided at the level of the Holy Com- and approval of the appropriate munity, such as opening of roads, or government services, they see that entry of automobiles for the transport of these projects are carried out.’ goods and people. For major matters, the Holy Community meets with 20 Ab- The relations of Greece with UNESCO bots also participating (Elissaios, 2007). for all World Heritage Convention matters have been ensured through the The State is represented by a Gover- Ministry of Culture and the Permanent nor – appointed by the Ministry of For- Delegation of Greece to UNESCO. Of- eign Affairs – who is responsible for ten the Holy Community has been ig- security matters and the implementa- nored, while the Ministry of the Envi- tion of Greek laws. ronment (responsible for nature pro- In this context, the diachronic views of tection) has shown little involvement. the Holy Community of Mt Athos are This has been strongly protested by

178 the Athos authorities who have at- Thus, decision WHC-06/30.COM/7B of tempted to communicate directly with the Committee meeting in Paris in- the World Heritage Committee with cludes the following: mixed results. It should be noted that ‘The highest priority for improve- in spite of recommendations from the ment of conservation of the World World Heritage Committee, the Minis- Heritage property is the prepara- try of Culture and the Holy Community tion, approval and implementation have been submitting separate reports of an integrated and multi-discipli- on the conditions of the Mt Athos site nary management plan for the en- (Holy Community, 2008). However, retire area of Mt. Athos, which should cently there has been progress to- cover the following issues: wards a better understanding and collaboration on all sides. • Evaluation of the current situation, taking into account the co- Thus, in November 2010, at the invita- existence of nature and spiritual- tion of UNESCO and the Government of ity/culture in Mt. Athos since the Ukraine, the Holy Community partici- end of the first millennium, and pated formally in a workshop on the role the legitimate needs of the Mo- of religious communities in the manage- nastic Brotherhoods; ment of World Heritage Sites with reli- • Circulation and transportation gious meaning. In January 2011, the network of Mt. Athos; Ministry of Culture of Greece invited the • Integrated management of the Coordinator of the Athos Study to par- natural environment; ticipate in a workshop on the manage- • Sustainable management of the ment of the Greek World Heritage prop- forests; erties. Finally, on 2–5 June 2011, Fran • Protection of the property within a cesco Bandarín, Assistant Director- cultural landscape perspective; General of UNESCO was the first World • Resolution of the problem of solid Heritage official to visit Mt Athos at the and liquid wastes; invitation of the Holy Community. • Improving management of risks, especially of fires and earth- The integrated management quakes, as well as eventual impacts from climate change; study • The importance of developing a Objectives consistent approach to conservation decision-making from mon- It should be clear that the integrated astery to monastery.’ management study for the Mt Athos spiritual, cultural and natural heritage However, the monastic authorities of Mt has been requested by the World Her- Athos have accepted willingly this rec- itage Committee, after a fact-finding ommendation as they believed it would mission in 2006 (UNESCO, 2006). contribute to the effective conservation

179 of the Athonite heritage and would also and productive activities, especially for strengthen their claims for responsible the cultivations and forestry, energy management, with full respect to the production and infrastructure net- national legislation and the acquis com- works. Future needs will be analysed munautaire. They also recognise that and proposals for the future distribu- the spiritual, cultural and natural herit- tion of land use will be developed. age of the area is inextricably interrelat- Transport and communication for ac- ed and this necessitates its integrated cess to Mt Athos and within its bound- and systematic management. aries will have to be reconsidered, so Structure that it serves efficiently the daily needs of the monastic communities and the The Mt Athos study will, therefore, ad- visitors. It should also be economical dress a variety of issues, among which in energy and reduces pollution and are the following. noise, while maintaining a peaceful mi- It would start with an honest and ob- lieu, which is an imperative require- jective assessment of contemporary ment for worship and ascetic life. conditions in the Athonite Peninsula on A major productive activity, forestry in all heritage aspects. These would in- Mt Athos has been practiced in tradi- clude not only positive development, tional ways. However, in recent times but also threats to heritage and prob- social and financial developments in lems to be faced. It would also identify Greece have rendered some of these the human and financial resources practices obsolete and have encour- available for the eventual needs of ef- aged more aggressive exploitation tech- fective management. niques. It is necessary, therefore, to A key issue would be the study of ex- re-evaluate forestry practices within isting land use for worship, habitation, the framework of sustainability (Dafis,

Restored wing of the Hilandar Monastery.

180 1992), and to promote the certification both monks and pilgrims through cen- of wood products from the forests of Mt turies. Remedial measures need to be Athos. As an example, Kakouros (2009) carefully designed to restore the land- reports that the implementation of selec- scapes affected (Papayannis, 2008). tive inversion thinning reduces the risk Extensive work has already been done of wildfires and promotes species diver- on the restoration of historic buildings sity. Furthermore, a monitoring system and facilities and their immediate envi- allows a more sufficient ecological and ronment in nearly all of the 20 monas- economical assessment of this method. teries (Pennington, 1978). Most of it The high biodiversity of Mt Athos (its flo- has been based on sound restoration ra includes 1453 taxa and its fauna 131 practices, with few exceptions. A more bird species, 37 mammals, 14 reptiles systematic approach is now neces- and 8 species of amphibians) (Dafis, sary, so that further restoration work 1992), is characterised also by an im- will be based on scientific research portant degree of endemism (22 taxa and documentation and is carried out endemic to Greece, 14 local endemics at the highest international levels of and six to the Balkan Peninsula).The quality; an approach that should take rich biodiversity must be identified, in- seriously into consideration the living ventoried and conserved through ap- conditions in buildings permanently in- propriate science-based methods and habited by the monastic communities. measures, also in accordance with Eu- This is merited by the uniqueness of ropean Union requirements and espe- the Mt Athos architectural heritage. cially the Birds and Habitats Directives. A system of monitoring key biodiversity A considerable part of the cultural her- indicators on a periodic basis must also itage of the area resides in the arte- be established and managed by the facts, icons and other objects of reli- Holy Community. gious arts, written or printed documents, and the utilitarian objects from At the interface between nature and past epochs. Their careful mainte- culture are the majestic landscapes of nance and enhancement is well ad- Mt Athos, formed through the ages by vanced in Mt Athos and in quite a few natural processes and human endeav- monasteries state-of-the-art facilities ours in total harmony. In recent times, for protecting and exhibiting them however, some of these cultural land- have been constructed. However, a scapes have been blighted by insensi- systematic inventory and programme tive infrastructure works, especially of conservation is needed. road construction. Although vehicle traffic is very limited, the roads them- The management of liquid and solid selves have had negative impacts not wastes in Mt Athos does not present only on the sensitive landscapes of Mt major problems. It must be resolved, Athos, but also on the historic network however, in a decisive manner using a of pedestrian trails that have served combination of traditional knowledge

181 Integration of Simonopetra Monastery in the surrounding landscape. and modern technology. Preventive ganisation and training. For instance, measures to decrease packaging of in August 1990 a large wild fire de- imported products and the extensive stroyed some of the forested areas of use of recycling should be strongly Mt Athos and menaced the Simonope- encouraged. tra Monastery. Also, the Hilandar Mon- astery was partly burned by a building As to energy, Mt Athos is not linked to fire in 2004 and is undergoing restora- the power networks of the country, but tion. As Mt Athos is in a dangerous relies on its own production. Part of it is seismic zone, the threats from earth- renewable (hydroelectric and solar quakes must also be considered. In energy), but most of it is produced addition, climate change impacts will through thermal generators. For the fu- be felt on the availability of water, on ture, ecological practices should be changes in ecosystems and flora and promoted, primarily through systemat- fauna species and through sea level ic energy economy, including the intro- rise. They should be carefully moni- duction of passive measures in build- tored and adaptive measures taken ings. Production should be redirected when proven necessary. to renewable sources, taking into ac- Finally, the Athos Management Study count, however, the need to protect will address the related administrative cultural landscapes. issues, which concern mainly the ap- Being a depository of great heritage propriate organisation of the Holy wealth, Mt Athos must seriously face Community and its Committees in the need to manage risks. As proven managing effectively the Athonite Pen- by its history, forest and building fires insula. The process of approvals and are the main threats and they require implementation of the Management preventive measures, equipment, or- Study will also be included, as well as

182 the necessary arrangements for moni- tre, including its technical advisors toring developments and for corrective (IUCN, ICCROM and ICOMOS), as measures whenever needed. well as the European Commission, in relation to the Natura 2000 Network. Key aspects The advice of these international bodies The approach considered by the Holy would be highly valuable for the prepa- Community has certain key aspects, ration and implementation of the Athos which may be considered as highly in- Management Study. In turn, the experi- novative in view of the specific condi- ence gained through it – properly dis- tions of a highly sensitive area man- seminated – may be valuable for similar aged by monastic fraternities. sacred sites in other parts of the world. The fully integrated approach to spiritual, cultural and natural heritage is a key constituent, quite uncommon in Greece, Basic management principles where often the Ministries of Culture To allow the monastic community of Mt and Environment barely collaborate. It Athos to appreciate the challenges requires the establishment of a multi- posed and to reach a consensus, a disciplinary study team, which will ap- number of basic management princi- preciate not only the technical and sci- ples were proposed in the first phase entific parameters but also the spiritual of the Management Study. Once ap- dimensions that govern them in Mt proved, they will govern decisively the Athos. An increased understanding will preparation of the Management Study; also be required from the responsible against them, the Study proposals and monastic authorities, so that they can recommendations will be judged be- comprehend the study proposals and fore final approval. be able to implement them effectively. The primary principle and objective for In this important matter, the perception the Study is to contribute to a modest of the study, as an open learning and extent to the maintenance and educating process for both sides, strengthening of the millennial Chris- might facilitate the work and ensure its tian Orthodox monastic traditions of Mt success. Thus, consultation is planned Athos, and to encourage their evolu- on three levels. Firstly, and most criti- tion in a world in which the simplicity cal one, with the 20 monastic fraterni- and sobriety of the ascetic approach ties and the Holy Community. Second- to life gains new pertinence. ly, with national public services and authorities involved in Mt Athos, in- In turn, the architectural heritage of Mt cluding the Governor, the Ministries of Athos being unique in its historic de- Culture and Environment and the Cen- velopment, diversity and wealth, and tre for the Protection of the Athonite its integration into the natural environ- Heritage. Thirdly, with UNESCO and its ment, must be respectfully restored World Heritage Convention and Cen- and sensitively adapted to the needs

183 of the monastic fraternities that inhabit The afore-mentioned principle is relat- it. This is complemented by a dense ed to the careful management of pil- system of footpaths and trails, whose grims and visitors, and it aims at continuity has been partially blocked reaching a balance between the tradi- and needs to be re-established. tion of hospitality that governs Athos and the need of maintaining peace This should be complemented by the and quiet. Measures to control the flow maintenance and safekeeping of all of visitors have already been instituted the elements of cultural heritage in the and can be further improved. Athonite Peninsula, including incorporated art work, imported gifts of a reli- In the same spirit, the technical infra- gious and secular character, and ob- structure must be planned in a highly jects that testify to a millennium of mo- effective and ecological manner, ac- nastic life, as well as the living intangi- cording to contemporary standards of ble heritage of oral traditions, liturgical performance, but also respecting mo- Byzantine music and psalms and relat- nastic considerations. ed practices, all imbued by a strong There are a few productive activities in religious dimension. In this context, the the Athonite Peninsula, with various conclusions of the 2003 ICCROM Fo- cultivations for self-consumption – rum on Conserving the Living Reli- mostly using organic agricultural prac- gious Heritage can be useful and es- tices – and a limited export of timber pecially their focus on integrity and au- and wine, while fishing by the monks thenticity (Stovel et al, eds., 2005). plays a marginal role. These, and any The protection of the natural environ- additional activities in the future, must ment is also an imperative considera- be carried out in a framework of sus- tion, as it is part of the early Byzantine tainability, so that they do not degrade tradition (Sinacos, 2003). This should the natural environment and will remain include the ecosystems (such as forest, feasible for future generations. coastal and marine, alpine), land- Similar sustainability principles must scapes and efforts to increase biodiver- be applied to all natural resources, sity and avoid the loss of species, and especially space, water and ener- which is already happening. Many spe- gy, as well as the treatment of waste. cies of the flora and fauna species of The environmental responsibility and the area are included the European the long-term care for the Athonite en- Red Data List (endangered, vulnerable vironment and the generations that will and rare) (Philippou and Kontos, 2009). inhabit it in the next centuries should be in harmony with the mentality of the A control of the terrestrial, marine and Athonite monastic fraternities (Papay- aerial boundaries of Mt Athos must be annis and Elissaios, 1994). maintained, in order to protect the monastic character of the area and its fo- A final key consideration is the inten- cus on worship. tion to encourage and ensure the ac-

184 tive – and decisive – involvement of the ble driver, time schedule and indica- monastic community and other perma- tive cost for each. The major issue that nent inhabitants in every step of the needs to be considered here is the fi- management process, through a sys- nancing of all these actions, especially tem of consultation and collaboration in view of the dire state of the Greek with the Study Team and a voice in the national economy. This should be con- evaluation of options and approvals. sidered carefully by the Holy Commu- nity, which has the overall responsibility for management implementation, Implementation and discussions on funding options should be held with the state authori- Through active participation, it is ex- ties and the European Union. pected that the Management Study will have good chances of being imple- It is clear that the integrated and sys- mented, once approved. Some other temic Management Study of the Athos choices will also contribute to the im- spiritual, cultural and natural heritage plementation. The Study Team will cul- is a critical step in the long history of tivate close collaboration with the sci- the area. The difficulty in preparing entific institutions, so that its proposals reasonable and balanced proposals are the result of a broad consultation. and obtaining agreement on them Similarly, it intends to initiate contacts should not be underestimated. On the with the appropriate public services other hand, if all goes well through the and take seriously into account their wise guidance of the Holy Community, views. The Study will include a de- the Study can play a significant role in tailed action plan of necessary meas- the maintenance and strengthening of ures, regulations and interventions, the traditions of this unique sacred providing a brief description, responsi- place.

Vegetable garden and outhouses of Simonopetra.

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186 Παπαγιάννης, Θ. και Ιερομόναxος Ελισαίος (1994), Φυσικός Xώρος και Mοναxισμός: Η Διατήρηση της Βυζαντινής Παράδοσης στο Άγιον Όρος, Αθήνα: Ίδρυμα Γουλανδρή-Χορν. [Papayannis, T. and Fr. Elissaios, (1994), Nature and Monasti- cism: The Preservation of the Byzantine Tradition on Mount Athos, Athens: Goulan- dris-Horn Foundation (in Greek).]

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Papayannis, T. (2008), Characteristic Mt. Athos landscapes: The case of the Holy Simonopetra Monastery, Greece, in Protected Landscapes and Cultural and Spir- itual Values, ed. J.-M. Mallarach, Barcelona: IUCN/WCPA, Spain, pp. 51-63.

Pennington, B. (1978), O Holy Mountain! Journal of a Retreat on Mt. Athos, New York: Doubleday. Σιδηρόπουλος, Γ. (2000), Άγιον Όρος: Αναφορές στην Ανθρωπογεωγραφία, Αθήνα: Εκδόσεις Καστανιώτη ΑΕ. [Sideropoulos, G. (2000), Mt. Athos: Reference to Cul- tural Geography, Athens: Castaniotis Publications, (in Greek).] Σινάκος, Α. (2003), Άνθρωπος και Περιβάλλον στην Πρωτοβυζαντινή εποχή, Θεσσαλονίκη: University Studio Press. [Sinacos, A. (2003), Man and Environment in the Early Byzantine Era (4th-6th centuries), Thessaloniki: University Studio Press, (in Greek).]

Σμυρνάκης, Γ. (1903). Το Άγιον Όρος, Αθήνα. [Smyrnakis, G. (1903). The Holy Mountain, Athens (in Greek).]

Stovel, H., Stanley-Price, N. and Killick, R. (eds). (2005) Conservation of religious Living Heritage. Papers from the ICCROM 2003 Forum on ‘Living Religious Herit- age: conserving the sacred’. Rome, Italy: ICCROM (ICS03). Ταχιάιος, Α. και Αιμίλιος Ν. (2006). Βυζάντιο, Σλάβοι, Άγιον Όρος, Αθήνα: University Studio Press. [Tachiaios, A. and Aimilios N. (2006). Byzantium, Slavs, Holy Moun- tain, Athens: University Studio Press, (in Greek).] Theodorou, L. and Dana, F. (2003). Greece, New Holland Publishers UNESCO, (2006). Report on the Joint Mission (UNESCO - ICOMOS - IUCN) to Mount Athos, Greece, http://whc.unesco.org/archive/2006/mis454-2006.pdf.

187 188 Special Nature Reserve Milesevka and the Mileseva Monastery Nadezda Pesic, Svetlana Dingarac and Dimitrije Pesic

Introduction and history of the by the Institute for the Protection of Cul- legal protection of the site tural Monuments of Serbia. In south-western Serbia, on the territory The protected natural environment of the former state of Raska, on the adds to the character and the beauty banks of River Milesevka, lies a spiritu- of the monastery. The surroundings of ally, culturally, historically and artistical- Mileseva are dominated by the canyon ly very important monument of the of River Milesevka, with a mediaeval country’s past, the Mileseva Monastery. fortification on the rocky top and mo- It became the most holy place of the nastic cells high above the river. The Serbian Orthodox Church, and people area of 290 ha is protected as a natu- after the relics of St Sava have been ral, cultural and historic complex. In transferred there from Trnovo (Bulgaria) 1990, the Institute for Nature Protection in 1236. From that time on the Mileseva of Serbia declared the surroundings of Monastery became a place of pilgrim- the monastery as a protected area of age of the Serbian people and other natural and cultural importance called Orthodox nations from the Balkans. It the Protected Natural Surroundings of was declared a ‘Cultural property of ex- the Mileseva Monastery, managed by ceptional national significance’ in 1979 the Serbian Orthodox Church.

< The White Angel from the scene the Holy Women at the Sepulchre.

189 The Special Nature Reserve Milesevka and the Protected Natural Surroundings of the Mileseva Monastery.

The gorge of River Milesevka was des- Natural values ignated as a Regional Nature Park in The Special Nature Reserve Milesevka 1976. Now, the protected area is is situated between the two mountains planned to be designated as a Special Zlatar (1627 m) and Jadovnik (1734 m). Nature Reserve of 1236 hectares in The canyon is characterised by unique size. The State Enterprise for Forest wild and rough nature, picturesque Management `Srbijasume` is in charge landscapes, inaccessible paths and the of the management of Milesevka Re- steep rock formations that sometimes gional Nature Park. rise to a height of 300 m and descend The Milesevka Gorge is proposed for almost vertically towards the riverbed. designation as an IUCN Category IV. The gorge is 24 km long and it ends As a site of national and international near the Mileseva Monastery. Walking importance, the Milesevka Gorge is in- through the gorge is possible only via a cluded in the list of ‘Important Birds narrow path carved into the cliffs. Areas in Europe, BirdLife 2000’ (YU 21 The flagship species of the protected SE). It is also included in the ecologi- area is the griffon vulture (Gyps ful- cal network ‘Emerald’, this being a pre- vus). The bird is protected as a rare paratory step towards an inclusion in species as it had almost disappeared. the Natura 2000 network. The Ministry Thanks to the efforts of experts and of Environment and Spatial Planning volunteers, the number of birds has and the Institute for Nature Conserva- multiplied, and currently, Serbia has tion of Serbia are responsible for moni- the largest griffon vulture populations toring and protection of the protected in the Balkan countries. The vulture is area. considered a holy bird among the

190 Serbs. From the eleventh century to ing, adrenalin tours through Milesevka the present times, it has been on the gorge, photo safaris, visits to spiritual, Serbian state coat of arms. historic and cultural monuments, rural tourism etc. Visit to the Reserves is re- On the other hand, there are 30 en- stricted to small groups. The local pop- demic taxa in the gorge’s flora (Ma- ulation does not endanger the griffon tovic, 1992). Eight species are consid- vultures with their everyday activities. ered rare. The fauna is represented by 24 species of mammals, many of those The Milesevka Gorge is considered a considered rare (bear, otter, wild sacred place by the Orthodox Chris- boar…). There are 73 species of birds, tians, because St Sava’s body rested 38 of those rare and of international im- there. His spirit has been protecting portance (such as Gyps fulvus, Aquila the gorge and all visitors with good in- chrysaetos, Falco tinnunculus, Crex tentions. The opposite is true as well: crex, Falco peregrinus, Alectoris grae- all actions that could impair the gorge ca, Bubo bubo, Alauda arvensis, Ti- bring misfortune. chodroma muraria, Lanius collurio…).

The activities in the Reserves are gen- Cultural heritage erally focused on supervising and maintaining the protected areas. Tourist The Raska region has been consid- activities include trekking, bird watch- ered holy since the beginning of the

The Mileseva Monastery (1219-1235).

191 twelfth century, when the first Serbian er, it became the most holy place of state had been established by the sac- Serbia after the transfer of the relics of rosanct Nemanjic dynasty. It had ruled St Sava. St Sava (1174–1235) is widely over the Serbian lands continuously considered as the most important fig- during the period of more than two ure of Serbian history and is canonised centuries (1166–1371). Kings from the and venerated by the Serbian Ortho- holy Nemanjic dynasty established the dox Church. St Sava was an Orthodox Serbian spirituality: the Serbian Ortho- monk, the first Archbishop of the Serbi- dox church, Svetosavlje (Saintsava- an Orthodox Church, a diplomat, writ- ism), literacy, literature, legislation and er, legislator and founder of several im- school system. Deeply religious and portant medieval monasteries. devoted to Orthodoxy, all the rulers of Since that time the Mileseva Monastery this family were generous donors who has been the spiritual and cultural cen- erected many magnificent monasteries tre of this region and a place of pil- and churches all over Serbia and even grimage for the Serbians and other Or- on Mount Athos (Hilandar). Until pre- thodox nations from the Balkans (Kan- sent times all of them are important dic, 1995). This tradition has never spiritual places, with valuable monu- been interrupted throughout the centu- ments of medieval construction and ar- ries until present times, despite many chitecture and galleries of the most different historical influences (the Turk- beautiful fresco paintings. ish occupation, wars, communism…). The Mileseva Monastery was erected Thus, Mileseva became a centre of between 1219 and 1235 by King hope, courage, and inspiration for the Vladislav Nemanjic. Although the mon- Serbian struggle against the Turkish astery was already important and well- occupation. Many miracles took place known as the burial place of its found- at the grave of St Sava in the Mileseva

The Mileseva Monastery, the Milesevac fortress, the River Milesevka Gorge and the village of Hisardzik make up a natural, cultural and historical complex.

192 monastery. The Venetian diplomat portant spiritual and cultural centre Ramberty, who visited Mileseva in with a scriptorium and a library, where 1534, wrote that not only Serbs, but original works of Serbian literature also Muslims and Jews were visiting were copied. Also, one of the oldest the monastery and asking for healing. schools of Serbia existed in the monastery. In 1544, one of the first printing Mileseva was ranked second among houses in Serbia was established in all Serbian monasteries. In the golden the monastery (Nemirovski, 1996). The age of Serbia, during the Nemanjic dy- monks printed two books: the Psalter nasty, the monastic community in the in 1544 and the Prayer Book in 1546. A Mileseva Monastery counted around second edition of the Psalter was print- 300 monks. In 1377 the church saw the ed in 1557. The printing house was lo- coronation of Stjepan Tvrtko Kotroman- cated and assembled in a secret hid- ic as the king of Bosnia and Serbia, ing place in the sub-dome area of the while in 1466 Stephan Vukcic Kosaca outer narthex. Manuscripts and printed received the title the `Duke of St Sava’. books were disseminated throughout The monastery, an artistic and ecclesi- Europe owing several destructions of astical-political centre, situated at one the monastery, the migrations of the of the chief stopping places on an im- Serbian population during the rule of portant international trade route served the Ottoman Turks, the riots against the as the intersection of influences from Ottoman Turks, and wars. Today, only a Eastern and Western Europe for few manuscripts and printed books are centuries. kept in the renewed treasury. The church of Mileseva is dedicated to The monastery was torn down many the Ascension of the Lord and is built times in its history, as also other Serbi- in the traditional style of the Raska re- an holy places. The first time the mon- gion. Mileseva’s thirteenth century astery was ruined in 1459 by the Otto- frescoes are considered to be one of man Turks. It was renewed and recon- the best samples of painting in Europe structed with the help of the Grand Vi- of that time (Cmiljanovic, 2009). One of zier Mehmed Pasha and his close rela- the most famous Mileseva frescoes is tive Patriarch Makarije Sokolovic. In the White Angel from the scene of the 1624 the raging stream took a part of Holy Women at the Sepulchre, as well the yard away together with some ob- as a fresco with the portraits of family jects. The monks completely recon- members of the Nemanjics. The structed the church and other build- Mileseva portraits of the first Nemanjic ings with the help of the Russian em- family members were made while they perors. During the Austrian-Turkish were still alive and therefore are of War of 1689–90, the Mileseva Monas- great historical value. tery, like other Serbian churches and Since the time of its foundation, the monasteries, was plundered and dev- Mileseva Monastery has been an im- astated. A large number of monks, to-

193 gether with thousands of Serbian families, moved to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The monastery was left in ruins and without monks. In 1863 some prominent local families were allowed by the Turkish Vizier to restore the monastery and the work was completed in six years time by local builders (who used traditional building techniques?). There was a great flood at the end of the nineteen century, which once more caused major damage to the monastery. After World War II, the Serbian communist government confiscated all monastery property, and only one monk stayed there for more than 20 years without any financial support from the authorities. A plethora of monastic hermitages in the cliffs of the River Milesevka Gorge. In 1974, the Serbian Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments started excavations and conservation hermitages founded in natural caves. works. The church was repaired, the They are called ‘fasting cells’ and are frescoes cleaned and conserved. De- located in natural spots thought to be tailed activities were initiated in 1980 God’s creation. The first written reference to these ‘fasting cells’ is a manu- (Lukic, 2004) with regard to the church, script from 1508 (Spasic, 1996). Fast- monastery premises and monastery ing cells are significant elements of the surroundings. medieval spiritual heritage and invalua- In 1992 the Mileseva Eparchy was es- ble monuments of the period. In the tablished; monks and a Bishop settled largest hermitage named after St Sava again the monastery. In 2002 Mileseva there is a spring of holy water. There are became a female monastery. At pre- no written records about when exactly sent, the monastic community consists the hermits stopped living in the Milese- of seven nuns, one monk and four va fasting cells. Today, they are consid- novices. ered as a cult place, but monks do not use them any longer. On the steep cliff over the depths of the Milesevka Gorge there are the rem- The Mileseva Monastery, the Milesevac nants of twelfth century town Milesevac, fortress, the St Sava hermitage and the which has been declared a Cultural village Hisardzik constitute a natural, Monument. Below the town, on the cultural and historical complex, appre- north side of the cliff, there are three ciated alike by the Christian and the

194 Muslim populations of the region, who had always emphasised their role as are living together harmoniously? guardians of the tomb of St Sava and his cult, even after Sinan Pasha took St Visitors and pilgrims who come to the Sava’s relics to Belgrade (in 1594 or monastery attend religious services. 1595), and burned them in order to Some of them walk through the can- break the Serbian rebellion against the yon, and climb a path up to the hermit- Turks. For the Serbian Church and St age of St Sava, where they wash their Sava cult promoters on the other hand, face and drink the holy water. the burning of the St Sava relics became of utmost importance, through Spiritual values which the Saint gained a posthumous martyrdom status. His cult was strength- The ethnical and cultural identity of the ened and his burial place in the Milese- population of the local communities in va Monastery augmented its value as a the Raska region is marked by Sve- pilgrimage site, which survives until tosavlje (Saintsavaism). Svetosavlje’s today. ethic implies a historical normative In Serbian oral tradition during the Me- pattern of social behaviour and collec- dieval and the Ottoman periods, St Sa- tive effort of the Serbs as Orthodox va’s role was to watch always over the Christians that imbues all areas of hu- Serbian people. In many popular leg- man practice (Mitrovic, 1995). ends and folk tales he is the creator of St Sava spiritually united the Serbs and miraculous springs, a master of the that feeling still persists despite a num- forces of nature. Numerous sites have ber of different influences they received. been named after St Sava and consid- St Sava became a myth and a constant ered holy places (water springs, rocks, inspiration for the Serbian people. The mountain peaks etc.) and they are al- veneration of St Sava was supported by ways marked with a cross. This links a whole dynasty, a powerful church or- folk spirituality with nature, and nature ganisation and the people of Serbia, conservation. and that strengthened his cult back in St Sava’s Day (27 January) is the ‘sla- the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. va’ (the patron saint’s day) for the During the period of the Ottoman domi- Mileseva Monastery and is celebrated nation, St Sava was a central figure in with holy liturgy, the operation of a spir- both the formal religious and traditional itual academy in the monastery and a cultures, which were responsible for large gathering of people. keeping the national spirit of the Serbs alive. His miracle-working body in the Christianity was introduced in Serbia in monastery of Mileseva was venerated the ninth century, but the Serbs main- by pilgrims who came from near and far tained a lot of pre-Christian rituals. St destinations to implore his intercession. Sava Christianised those customs and The monks from the Mileseva Monastery linked them to Christian saints. Many

195 pre-Christian Serbian tribal customs, Zavetina: a holiday devoted to the pa- cults and myths are preserved in Sve- tron of each village. It is an important tosavlje, not only as secondary relicts social event during which a religious of the old spirituality, but also as funda- procession takes place. The litany mental pillars of Svetosavlje. The comprises of cross bearers and their Church of Svetosavlje originated from co-villagers who visit the village’s sa- the people and it is expressed in peo- cred sites (usually beautiful natural ple’s language. Religious service is sites). The litany arrives at the holy site performed not only in churches and (holy spring, holy hill or holy tree monasteries, but also at the sacred [zapis]) and pray. After traditional food sites in nature, near zapis (holy trees) has been served, the ritual continues. at the fields where some big battles Zapis: (Inscription) – sacred trees, have were fought and the Serbian people been important long-lasting natural ele- suffered their own calvary. Some other ments and respected through the cen- pre-Christian rituals and customs in- turies until the present day. The select- corporated in Svetosavlje are: ed tree becomes a zapis through the rite of consecration performed by a Ser- Krsna Slava: the celebration of the Pa- bian Orthodox priest in which a cross is tron Saint of the home is most typical of inscribed into its bark. The Zapis is invi- the national and religious life of the olable: it is believed that great misfor- Serbian people, and is an exclusively tune will befall anyone who dares to cut Serbian custom. During its construc- it down. If the tree fell naturally, the tree tion, every house is sanctified with a had to remain at the spot and that place religious ritual, and a sanctuary lamp was marked with a wooden cross. Peo- and an icon are brought into the house. ple gathered in prayer and sought pre- On the day of the Patron each family vention from misfortune. In Serbian celebrates, and neighbours and popular religion these rituals have an friends gather. After the religious ser- important role, binding and strengthen- vice, which is performed by the local ing the local communities and evoking priest, bread made especially for this the respect of nature. It is important to occasion is parted and everybody cel- preserve the beauty and original char- ebrates with food, drinks and toasts for acter of the Raska district customs as a the well-being of the family. part of a centuries-old tradition and a Sabor: the gathering of people and special way of life. priests during religious celebrations are often placed in beautiful natural settings Conservation perspectives and near holy places. They have been held sustainability since the sixteenth century and have a vast social significance. During theSa - Today, the spiritual heritage in this re- bor, a religious service is performed gion is very well preserved and it is and is followed by a popular feast. fostered in the families and the local

196 community. Thanks to the enormous There are no official records of the efforts of the monastic community, the number of pilgrims, religious visitors clergy of the Mileseva Eparchy and and tourists who are currently visiting Bishop Filaret, the spiritual, cultural the monastery. According to a rough and economic life of the whole epar- estimation of Mother Ana, the prioress chy has been improved. There is a of the monastery, approximately 70 good cooperation among Bishop Filar- 000 persons visit the complex annual- et, sisterhood of the Mileseva monas- ly. Several thousand people are at- tery and the clergy of Mileseva Epar- tending the religious celebrations - chy, on the one hand, and the man- and around 1500 people arrive there agement authorities of the natural re- each weekend. serve, on the other. At the moment, archaeological re- Bishop Filaret is very active in renova- search and pre-conservation works are tion and strengthening of the economy conducted on several locations under of the monasteries, and the erection of the supervision of the Institute for the new churches. He also enhances spir- Protection of Cultural Monuments of itual activities and promotes the in- Serbia. crease of the numbers of monks and Despite its successive destructions nuns. In the monastery complex, on the and deterioration caused in the course foundations of the old building, a library of time, the Mileseva Monastery pre- and treasury have been constructed. A served a fair part of the original fres- new building for the accommodation of coes, which today stand out character- pilgrims and religious visitors was built, ised by great beauty and original ex- as well as a new dormitory for nuns. pression. After conservation works Also, since the bishop plans to develop were completed, the frescoes were tourist activities in all protected areas in again in good condition. In 1996, an his eparchy, a tourist facility was built eminent professional jury consisting of on Zlatar Mountain, some 14 km away over one hundred academics, paint- from the monastery in order to reduce ers, art critics and art historians, with a the pressure of tourists on the monas- majority of votes announced the White tery complex and its surroundings. Angel from Mileseva as the most im- There is a café near the gate of the portant painting of the millennium in monastery complex. A radio station the area of former Yugoslavia (Cmil- called ‘Mileseva’ has also been estab- janovic, 2009). The art of the Mileseva lished. Bishop Filaret’s enthusiasm for frescoes influenced artistic ideas, building constructions, and his man- which flow there more impulsively and agement capacities caused conflicts in strongly than in other regions. the cultural and religious fields; and a question was raised, when the building The Mileseva artistic colony was set up of new facilities in the monastic com- in 1974 in the monastery. It has estab- plex should stop? lished spiritual continuity, finding key

197 inspiration in Mileseva fresco painting, have been issued, and waste disposal in the monastery’s architecture and in sites on the edge of the protected zone nature that surrounds the monastery. have been tolerated. Recently, the Serbi- an government approved research for the reopening of the copper, lead and Pressures and impacts zinc mine ‘Cadinja’ that is only 7 km away from the Mileseva Monastery. Fur- The Raska region is one of the most thermore there are pressures to increase undeveloped parts of Serbia. The dis- the industrial exploitation of a decorative integration of Yugoslavia, the sanc- stone within the protected area. Moreo- tions, the ethnic conflicts in the Bal- ver, the amounts of wild berries and kans and NATO strikes caused eco- herbs picked exceed set limits. nomic stagnation. The poor economy and bad infrastructure cause perma- Currently, the main threat to the mon- nent migrations of local population to astery and the monastic landscape is the more developed parts of Serbia. the illegal building of private houses in its surroundings. Agriculture is extensive and it is practised in a traditional way. Food is of Growing pressure is put on the hydro- very good quality, produced mainly to power potential of River Lim Basin, which fulfil personal needs and feed local River Milesevka is part of, where many markets. The population in the villages important cultural and historical sites are generally is aging. The local authorities located, although the Institute for Nature are not capable of supporting rural de- Conservation of Serbia and the Institute velopment and the Serbian govern- for the Protection of Cultural Monuments ment has not taken any systematic have prepared projects for the preserva- measures in that direction so far. The tion and protection of those sites. Serbian government is very interested On the other hand, many cultural in exploiting the natural resources, as it events are being organised, which ful- desperately needs economic develop- fil the spiritual needs of the pilgrims. ment and investments. For that reason, After consultation with the main stake- the Government neglects the protec- holders, a number of recommendation of these natural resources. tions have been made, covering a Spatial planning of the region has not wide range of issues from planning to been carried out so far, which creates specific management aspects, that management problems in the protect- can affront the main challenges and ed areas. pressures the site is receiving. Poverty, institutional and personal irre- sponsibility, as well as incompetence, Recommendations lead in some cases to illegal behaviour. For instance, a large number of licenses The preservation of any protected value for wood exploitation and new buildings is, to some extent, dependent on the

198 different needs of the stakeholders. A • Ecotourism is the way forward, as it vital and prospering local community, would contribute to the economic in- aware of the value and significance of dependence of the local population. its heritage, is the best guardian of the It should be based on promoting the natural values, and it is of great impor- natural beauty and the preservation tance to offer to it an alternative to the of the traditional spiritual and ethical present socio-economic development. values, associated to skills and There are possibilities for development knowledge about life in nature, or- in several traditional areas, such as tra- ganic products and traditional hand- ditional agricultural practices (produc- icrafts. The following actions are tion of organic food), old crafts and in a recommended: few new ones (such as tourism), but taking always under consideration the 1) The establishment of a network of free spirit and pride of local people. Pa- walking trails and cycling tracks tience and careful dialogue among all connecting the natural protected local stakeholders are necessary. sites with the places of spiritual, cultural and historical importance of the In light of the above analysis and diag- area. This action should follow the nosis we suggest the following identification of viewpoints (lookouts) actions: and resting places. One or several • The preparation of a spatial plan for tourist information booths should be the region should be the top priority. placed on strategic points along the This plan should aim to conserve this trails. precious heritage as a whole, includ- 2) The reconstruction of the walking ing all the religious, spiritual, cultural trail which leads to Saint Sava’s and natural values. hermitage. • The management of the protected area in cooperation with local authori- 3) The reconstruction of the walking ties should seek markets in Serbia trail through the Milesevka Gorge. and abroad for high-quality organic 4) The restoration interventions need- food and promote in that way sales of ed to prevent the collapse of some local products, which will increase portions of the walls of the fortified the income of the villagers. With the town of Milesevac, which is in a bad support of the authorities, projects condition. should be launched and encourage young people from urban centres to 5) The conservation and revitalisa- return to their homeland and renew tion of cultural heritage and its natu- the production of local organic food. ral surroundings, either in situ (in ex- • It is of the great importance to pro- isting ethnological complexes with mote waste reduction and to con- traditional rural architecture) or in struct a regional waste disposal and designed ethno parks, such as recycling plant. open-air museums are needed. The

199 building of the new houses and tour- • Raise the awareness of the local in- ist facilities should be done respect- habitants and entrepreneurs about ing the principles and styles of tradi- the great value of nature and culture tional architecture. they inherited and the necessity for conservation, protection and restora- 6) The capacity building of the local tion of these values. human resources for training in organic food production, ecotourism, • Establishment of cooperation with traditional crafts and skills (carpen- other protected areas with signifi- try, weaving, beekeeping, wool pro- cant spiritual and cultural values at cessing) and the nurturing of cultural the international level. and spiritual identity. To accomplish all of the above-men- 7) The set up of a unique website tioned goals, help and support by the that should promote the whole re- international community is needed. gion and facilitate access to information about the area.

200 References

Cmiljanovic, M. (2009), Art gathering Mileseva Prijepolje 35 years of work, Prije- polje: Prijepolje Cultural Centre.

Kandic, O., Popovic, S., Zaric, R. (1995), The Mileseva Monastery, Belgrade: Re- publican Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments

Lukic, M. (2004), Integrated Rehabilitation Project Plan / Survey of the Architectur- al and Archaeological Heritage (IRPP/SAAH), Serbia and Montenegro (Serbia)-Eu- ropean Commission-Council of Europe Joint Programme.

Matovic, M. (1992), Relic Flora and Vegetation in Canyon of the Milesevka River [Serbia, Yugoslavia] are Endangered, Kragujevac: the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institute of biology.

Mitrovic, M. (1995), Ethic of Saintsavaism and the Spirit of Modernism in Sympo- sium: `Village days of Sreten Vukosavljevic XIV` Prijepolje: The Cultural Centre of the Municipality of Prijepolje.

Nemirovski, J. (1996), First and second printing houses of the Mileseva Monastery in Mileseva Writings 2, Prijepolje: Museum in Prijepolje.

Spasic, D. (1996), Medieval fortified towns of the middle Polimlje in Mileseva Writ- ings 2, Prijepolje: Museum in Prijepolje.

Subotic, V., Skovran, A., Vlahovic, P. (2010), Biseri stare Raske [Highlights of Old Raska], Belgrade: Homeland society of People from Nova Varos in Belgrade.

201 202 Part Five: Europe: a wealth of sacred natural sites

203 204 Diversity of sacred lands and meanings in Northern Europe: Challenges for the managers of protected areas Rauno Väisänen

Introduction opportunities and may bring in new and rewarding insights into the inter- In this paper based on the opening pretation and communication of the di- statement of the third workshop of the verse values of the parks. Delos Initiative, the sacred natural sites are considered from the protect- Most of the examples and experiences ed area practitioner’s point of view. presented in this paper come from Why should the protected areas, na- Northern Europe and, especially, from tional parks and protected area agen- Finland, a sparsely populated forested cies be interested in the sacred dimen- country with a small indigenous Sámi sion of the protected areas? How can minority in the north. In Finland, most the spiritual values be taken into ac- protected areas lie on the state-owned count in the design, management and lands and are managed by a single monitoring of the protected areas? The agency, i.e. Metsähallitus Natural Herit- aim is to show that, although the con- age Services. The management is servation of the integrity of sacred nat- based on standardised and regularly ural sites may be challenging, it pro- updated principles of the management vides parks professionals with a lot of of protected areas, as well as on legis-

< Koli National Park is of great historical significance as a sacred site and has contemporary significance as a national landscape, both contributing to the Finnish identity

205 lation and management plans compiled managers of protected areas are usu- using the participatory approach, which ally biologists and foresters. So it is not emphasises the role of local and indig- surprising that the natural resources enous communities. Altogether the Nat- and species of protected areas are of- ural Heritage Services manages four ten systematically investigated and million hectares of lands, including 37 their features and values are generally national parks, 19 strict nature reserves, relatively well-known and communicat- 500 other nature reserves and 12 wil- ed, while the cultural and landscape derness areas, as well as three million values are not, and the sacred dimen- hectares of public waters, mostly in the sion has been largely neglected. coastal areas of the Baltic Sea. In order The Kalevala, the national epic of Fin- to investigate and preserve cultural her- land, is a nineteenth century work of itage, Natural Heritage Services works epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnroth in close cooperation with the Ministries from the Finnish and Karelian oral folk- and the National Board of Antiquities. lore and mythology. It has played an in- strumental role in the development of the The overlooked sacred Finnish national identity. Even the an- dimension of protected areas in cient poems of the Kalevala emphasise Northern Europe the role of common sense, practical knowledge, skills and understanding, in- The spiritual values of protected areas stead of metaphysics or religion. In spite have been largely overlooked by the of this, people still used to show great re- park managers and protected area spect to nature, e.g. when asking polite- agencies in developed countries, ally nature for some catch for hunters and though the spiritual values of indige- fishermen and forgiveness when killing nous people in developing countries wild animals. It was only Christianity, first has received a reasonable amount of the Roman Catholic and then the Luther- attention. There may not be any indian Church, that started the alienation vidual reason for that, but it is possible from nature and changed the relation- to find an explanation from the pre- ship towards a more utilitarian one. Par- dominantly materialistic worldview re- allel ideological impacts were caused by lated to the modern western culture. the development of positivism, material- In Northern Europe, many people be- ism and modern materialistic science. long to the predominant Lutheran The alienation process was greatly en- Church just for practical or purely tra- hanced by the industrialisation and as- ditional reasons. The culture is highly sociated urbanisation and ‘virtualisation’, secularised. Consequently, it is difficult which together have reduced the role of to communicate on religious or spiritu- nature to be mainly a source of natural al matters, especially for natural scien- resources for people and businesses, tists like biologists or foresters, without hardly with anything sacred for the politi- losing professional credibility. The cians and decision-makers.

206 A rock painting portraying an elk from Kolovesi National Park in Eastern Finland.

However, at a very personal level, the nature without causing sensitive con- Finns as a nation seem to have an unu- frontations with a person’s religious sually pious and ardent, and at the same opinions. Tools, best practices and time very practical, connection to nature. techniques are needed to better un- Thus, visitors of the parks commonly ex- derstand, investigate, manage and perience at the personal level something communicate the spiritual and cultural spiritually valuable, unity with nature, values of protected areas. and maybe with God present in nature. Protected areas clearly have more value for the people than the sum of their spe- Sacred natural sites in the cies, habitats and ecosystems. management planning of According to an expert of the Finnish protected areas protected areas agency, during the in- Sacred natural sites are taken into ac- terpretation of the values of parks, ‘we count at varying degrees in Northern proudly present our cultural and histor- European protected areas. In Finland, ical sites, but strictly avoid all connec- there are three cases in which the spir- tions to the Lutheran church or other itual dimension plays an important role: religious matters’. In order to make it (1) ancient monuments and sites, (2) ar- easier to communicate the sacred di- eas culturally or spiritually valuable for mension of protected areas to visitors the Sámi people, and (3) special natu- and the public at large in a culturally ral attractions or landscape formations appropriate way, it may be helpful to which were used as sacred sites and/or notice the faint distinction between the have contemporary spiritual values. concepts ‘religious’ and ‘spiritual’. The latter can be used in context when re- The ancient monuments and sites of the ferring to the personal perception of Sámi and other Finns are all automati-

207 cally protected by the law, and the pro- spiritual dimension providing placid tection is complemented by social re- space with silence, scenery and dark spect. Some rock paintings apparently skies with stars and northern lights. have had a spiritual role. There are a lot The Western European national roman- of rock paintings known, for instance, tic idea of national landscapes is also from Kolovesi National Park and Hossa strong in present-day Finland. National Recreational Area. For exam- It may be noted that even though large ple, the elk is considered to be a sacred animal and there are a lot of rock areas in the Sámi homeland have been paintings portraying it. Rock paintings legally designated as wilderness areas may have had also ‘practical’ objec- (IUCN Category Ib or VI, depending on tives, such as marking the boundaries the interpretation of the criteria), na- between different groups of people and tional parks (IUCN Category II) or strict improving hunting success. nature reserves (IUCN Category Ia), they include sites and wider land- Spectacular natural attractions or landscapes which are of a great cultural or scape formations often had earlier sig- spiritual value for the Sámi people. nificance as sacred sites as shown by Such values are, by no means, restrict- both the etymological analyses of the ed to the IUCN Category V protected site names and the archaeological landscapes which have received much studies of the sites. They are also com- more attention (Mallarach 2008). monly considered special places by experts and the public at large because of their beauty, cultural or land- The names of places reveal the scape values. It is not only the sacred sacred nature of sites site itself in the strict sense, but also the wider landscape around it which Although largely forgotten and over- contributes to the experience of the looked, the sacred sites are not rare in

Pyhä-Häkki National Park in Central Finland is known for its impressive old-growth forests.

208 the protected areas of Finland. In fact, cred, with a restricted access permit- they are amazingly common. This is ted only to a small circle of people, clearly indicated by the names of sites e.g. shamans (Y. Norokorpi, personal and their etymology. Many sites have communication, 2010). Similarly, ‘sa- been sacred to our ancestors, and cred’ has the connotation of set aside, many of them still have some spiritual separated or restricted in many other significance to contemporary people. languages, e.g. Greek and Latin and its derivatives. Some parts of sacred The meaning of the names referring to groves may have been forbidden and spiritual values has often changed or fenced, so that only sacrifices may been forgotten during the centuries. have been thrown there from outside. Sometimes the conceptual changes have been linked with historical events It is interesting to notice that in the and associated with cultural and reli- Finnish language, the word ‘pyhä’ is gious changes. In many cases, there related to the word ‘piha’, meaning a are contrasting and fascinating inter- yard, courtyard or garden. While the pretations by various experts. The constitutional everyman’s right of free words ‘pyhä’ and ‘hiisi’ provide illustra- access covers almost all public and tive examples. private areas in Finland, the right ex- cludes ‘piha’ areas which are received The Finnish word ’pyhä’ means ’sa- only for private use. Thus, the concept cred’ or ’holy’. It is a Germanic loan ‘piha’ seems to have retained some from around 3000 years ago. In Fin- original elements of ‘pyhä’. land, there are at least 42 lakes, 26 hills (’mäki’, ’vaara’), 22 peninsulas, 18 The Christian mission in the present ponds, 15 rivers, 11 bays and 9 moun- Nordic countries was started in the tains with the prefix’pyhä’ (Lounema eighth century. It took a longer time for 2003). Examples include Pyhätunturi the Christian faith to get an official po- Fell in Pyhä-Luosto National Park and sition in Finland than elsewhere in the Nordic countries, which became Chris- Pyhäkero Fell in Pallas-Yllästunturi Na- tian in the tenth century. In a papal let- tional Park, as well as Pyhä-Häkki Na- ter in 1209, Finland was mentioned to tional Park in Central Finland. have been recently converted to Chris- According to one interpretation tianity. However, it was a long process, (Lounema 2003), the original meaning and the elimination of some of the old of ‘pyhä’ for the ancient Finns was a ‘pagan’ beliefs was gradual, only com- clearly visible landscape character plemented by the Lutheran Church bordering the familiar inhabited area several centuries later. During the pro- and the external wilderness. This cess, the Christian faith successfully meaning may have been associated reserved the word ’pyhä’ for itself and with or gradually changed towards for God. In the Christian context, the dangerous or forbidden. ‘Pyhä’ may prefix ‘pyhä’ means good, respected also have referred to something sa- and holy (even a Saint and holidays).

209 Hiidenportti National Park with its deep gorges in Eastern Finland.

Thus, the concept ‘pyhä’ seem to have southern part of the country, where the evolved into a ‘positive’ direction and it great majority of the very small popula- has lost most of its meaning as some- tion lived. However, the sites could still thing forbidden or dangerous. serve as graveyards, when they were consecrated for Christianity. Conse- Another example, the nowadays less quently, the concept changed into common word ‘hiisi’, is similar to ‘pyhä’ something remote and scary, rocky wil- in many respects, but its conceptual derness, and finally Devil! The saying evolution has been strikingly different. ’Hiisi vieköön!’ means ’What the dick- The original meaning of is an an- ‘hiisi’ ens!’, and ’Painu hiiteen!’ means ’Go to cient sacred grove, a place of sacrifice blazes! Interestingly, the ancient and burial (but it has also a commonly meaning of the word ‘hiisi’ has not re- known meaning of a spiritual being). In covered in the secularised Finnish so- Finland, there are at least 50 hills, 36 ciety, whereas the latter negative peninsulas, 32 ponds, 29 mountains, 25 meaning of the word is still commonly bays, 16 islands, 12 mires and 12 natu- used. ral ’gates’ or gorges with the prefix’hiisi’ or its genitive ’hiiden’ (Lounema 2003). Challenges in conserving the In 1229, when Finland was under the protection of the Holy Seat (and not yet integrity of sacred sites part of the Kingdom of Sweden), Pope The aim of the management of the pro- Gregorius IX prescribed by a papal tected areas is to conserve the integri- bull that all the ‘pagan’ sacred groves ty of natural and cultural values of the had to be confiscated by the Church. areas. The management should be sci- And, so it happened at least in the ence-based. In Finland, the inventory,

210 management and conservation of the natural site has a remarkable contem- integrity of valuable cultural and sa- porary value as a sacred site, it would cred sites is an on-going process as- be reasonable to restrict its use for in- sociated with the management plan- appropriate purposes. ning of individual protected areas Often individual people or groups of (Heinonen, 2007). In addition, a nation- people feel a strong belonging or spir- wide systematic inventory of the cultur- itual interconnectedness to some natu- al values of forests is included in the ral sites or protected areas. For exam- implementation of Finland’s National ple, Ranger Doug Follett from the Gla- Forest Programme 2015. However, cier National Park, U.S.A., feels from some spiritual management-related is- watching visitors over the last 50 years, sues go beyond inventories and are that ‘the American people feel that their more connected to the perception of National Park System is the basis of a sites by the people, and consequently, kind of religion. And that the national easily neglected by park managers. parks are the cathedrals where they In the Sámi homeland, comprehensive come to worship. And that the people in inventories of the values of the areas big hats [i.e. rangers] are the high are carried out, associated with the priests who have been given the re- management planning cycle of the wil- sponsibility to protect these sacred land derness areas, national parks and other trusts’ (Anonymous, 2010a). The same protected areas. The management seems to be true in Northern Europe. planning is a participatory process in How should such experienced holi- which the sacred sites are taken into ness, placidity, peace of mind, beauty account in a way usually proposed by or other spiritual values affect the man- the Saami Parliament. Due to the priva- agement policies and practices? The cy of the sacred sites, it is not certain answer may have far-reaching conse- that all the sites are known to the au- quences in developing interpretation thorities. However, the management of and communication strategies of the the areas is based on management protected areas and park agencies. It is plans, and prior to all changes in the essential to know why visitors come to management plans, the Saami Parlia- any specific protected area, and what ment and other stakeholders are con- the key motivators of the visits are (Ka- sulted so that these values are respect- jala et al., 2007). The scope of services ed and not harmed. However, it remains and different functions of the area can an open question, whether some areas be developed in the direction that the should be classified as sacred natural visitors consider important. A con- sites for the Sámi people. It might have scious attempt can be made to offer some significance, for example, when visitors a chance for natural, cultural designing the protected area network and spiritual experiences that they con- or the management activities and visitor sider important and expect from their management of individual parks. If a visits, and to avoid conflicts between

211 and within visitor groups, e.g. by chan- sionals may feel certain uneasiness nelling spatial and temporal distribution when dealing with these matters. The of visitor flows. benefits of a wider approach are evident.

Why are the sacred sites • The recognition of the spiritual and important? cultural values of protected areas increases and deepens the relevance The intangible values of nature, such as of parks and nature to people. It is beautiful landscapes and opportunities very narrow-minded to try to define to experience nature, are invariably the the significance of nature in the con- most important motives for the recrea- ventional utilitarian or purely natural tional use of protected areas, according scientific way, when a multidimension- to all visitor surveys carried out in Fin- al approach would make nature con- land (Sulkava et al., 2004, Heinonen servation sensible even to such peo- 2007). A doctoral thesis (Järviluoma, ple who don’t care about the identifi- 2006) on the responses of visitors to cation of species or even about the four tourist centres in Lapland, three of conservation of birds or beetles. which are closely connected to national • The benefits of nature and protected parks, showed, consistently with the areas for the physical and mental visitor surveys, that peace and quiet, health are evident and diverse beautiful landscapes, and nature in (Anonymous 2010b, Stolton and general are the most important attrac- Dudley, 2010, see also the Proceed- tions influencing visitor’s choice of des- ings of the Conference ‘Healthy tination. According to the study, women Parks, Healthy People’, http://www. emphasise the importance of nature healthyparkshealthypeoplecongress. more than men on average. For older org/). There seems to be a relation- age groups natural features were more ship between the personal, and often important reasons for their choice of quite spiritual, experiences in im- destination than visitors on average. On pressive natural environments, such the basis of the visitor surveys, for inde- as the national parks, and the mental pendent hikers in protected areas, the health and general well-being. most important recreational motives are • The integration of spiritual, cultural, so- landscapes and natural features, and cial, economic and ecological values the next most important ones are relax- in protected area management is like- ation, breaking away from everyday life, ly to help the park managers to avoid and mental well-being (Heinonen, 2007: losses of cultural and spiritual values. 105). Such losses may be unintentional, Consequently, the sacred dimension of merely due to the lack of information. protected areas provides remarkable Unfortunately, many of the cultural opportunities for the managers of pro- losses may also be irreversible. tected areas, although the park profes- • The enhancement of the living Sámi

212 culture is a part of the duties of the vation. The sacred dimension of pro- Natural Heritage Services of Metsähal- tected areas has a considerable po- litus in Finland. According to the Finn- tential to increase the benefits there- ish legislation, the use, management of for human well-being and mental and conservation of natural resources and physical health. In the national in the state-owned areas in the Sámi parks, it is possible for visitors to homeland shall be integrated in a stop, to slow down, to calm down, to manner that favourable conditions for reconnect to nature, to feel the touch the living Sámi culture can be guaran- of the pristine wilderness, to revitalise teed. The sacred natural sites form an the personal feelings of responsible important part of the Sámi culture and ownership and belonging some- identity. The Natural Heritage Services where. It would be desirable to de- is working closely with the Saami Par- velop enhanced tourism and recrea- liament and the reindeer herders in or- tion products that combine nature der to enhance the living Sámi culture. and culture creating integrated at- • The recognition of the sacred natural traction elements and reconnecting sites and the spiritual values of pro- people with nature through their cul- tected areas may increase coopera- ture. In a modern society, such a tion with ‘new’ customers and build mental recovery is urgently needed. up a wider constituency for conser-

Ukonsaari Island in Inari is a well-known sacred place for the Sámi people.

213 214 References Anonymous (2010a), The voice of Glacier. Ranger Doug Follett reflects on 50 years at Glacier National Park. National Parks, Spring 2010, pp. 10-13.

Anonymous (2010b), The Nature Experience and Mental Health. Report of the ‘Outdoor Life and Mental Health’ Nordic Project. Report extract in English. Norwe- gian Ministry of the Environment and Nordic Council of Ministers.

Heinonen, M. (ed.) (2007), State of the Parks in Finland. Finnish Protected Areas and Their Management from 2000 to 2005. Nature Protection Publications of Metsähallitus, Series A, 170: 1-313.

Järviluoma, J. (2006), Turistin luonto. [Tourist’s nature]. Acta Universitatis Lap- poniensis, 96, 1-214. Kajala, L., Almik, A., Dahl, R., Dikšaité, L., Erkkonen, J., Fredman, P., Søndergaard Jensen, F., Karoles, K., Sievänen, T., Skov-Petersen, H., Vistad, O.I. and Wallsten, P. (2007), Visitor Monitoring in Nature Areas – a Manual based on experiences from the Nordic and Baltic Countries. TemaNord 2007:534. Stockholm, Sweden: Swedish Environmental Protection Agency and Alfa Print.

Lounema, R. (2003), Suomen kansan pyhät paikat. [Sacred Sites of the Finnish People]. Hämeenlinna, Finland: Yhtyneet Kuvalehdet Oy.

Mallarach, J.-M., (ed.) (2008), Protected Landscapes: Cultural and Spiritual Val- ues. IUCN, GTZ and Obra Social de Caixa. Heidelberg: Kasparek Verlag.

Stolton, S. and Dudley, N. (2010), Arguments for Protection. Vital Sites. The Con- tribution of Protected Areas to Human Health. A research report by WWF and Equi- librium Research. Gland, Switzerland: WWF.

Sulkava, P., Hatanpää, M. and Ollila, E. (2004), Pallas-Ounastunturin kansallis puiston kävijät 2003. [Visitors to Pallas-Ounastunturi National Park in 2003]. Hel- sinki, Finland: Metsähallitus.

< A Lake Inari island where Inari Sámi people were buried as late as early 1900s.

215 216 The Carpathian Mountains, a realm of Sacred Natural Sites Sebastian Ca˘ta˘noiu

The Carpathian context 190 000 sq km, while the area of the broader Carpathian region is 470 000 The Carpathian Mountains form an arc sq km. roughly 1 500 km long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the The Carpathians are considered to be a longest, largest and most twisted- reservoir with the highest biodiversity in shaped mountain range in Europe. Europe, including around 60 000 wild From the Danube Gap, near Bratislava, species. The wooded areas include the Slovakia, they swing in a wide cres- largest pristine forests on the continent, cent-shaped arc, surrounding Tran- while some primeval beech forests in scarpathia and Transylvania, to Ors¸ova, the Carpathians were designated as a Romania, at the section of the Danube UNESCO World Heritage Site. The fau- valley called the Iron Gate. With an the na includes the most significant popula- average elevation of around 850 m and tion of large carnivores in Europe its highest peak, Gerlach, in Slovakia, (bears, wolves, lynx), in addition to bi- rising at 2 655 m above sea level the sons, deer, boars, chamois, marmots elevation of the Carpathians is much and numerous bird species. The rich lower than this of the Alps. The total variety of the endemic plants and ani- surface area of the mountain chain is mals, characteristic of the Carpathian

< Nature and spirituality in Pieniny National Park, Poland

217 A map of the Carpathian Ecoregion ecosystems, form a relevant part of the other ethnic groups. A distinctive fea- European biodiversity. Beside the large ture of the Carpathian region is that in forest patches, areas of other land use each country minority groups from types, such as grasslands, cultivated neighbouring countries live. This ethni- fields and pastures are small; the relat- cally diverse and multicultural region is ed agro-biodiversity, though, is very further enriched by Russians, Jews, significant due to a long-established Germans, Greeks, Armenians and agricultural tradition, its most prominent Roma. However, specific minorities, elements being seasonal pasturing in such as the Rusyns, Lemkos, Bojkos, mountain meadows and the cultivation Hutsuls, Górals, Szeklers, Csángos, of local plants and trees varieties. and Mot¸i consider themselves different from the Carpathian nations (Nikitin et There are seven countries in the Car- al., 2009; Eberhardt, 2003). The moun- pathian region, and the total popula- tain ranges have divided and isolated tion of around 20 million people is di- these populations from each other for vided among seven nations: the Hun- centuries, and as a result they have garians, Ukrainians, Slovaks, Czechs, developed and kept their own beliefs, Poles, Romanians, Serbs and several dialects and ethnic identities.

218 Throughout history, the Carpathian re- reason to rank Lepenski Vir as one of gion has been a ‘border area’ for the the most outstanding spiritual sites in large empires, such as the Ottoman, the European and world prehistory. Habsburg, or Russian/Soviet. Solidarity Around 1000 BC, the Geto-Dacian civi- rather than joining of forces was in the lisation had spread through the entire political agenda and strategies of the Carpathian Mountains region. The smaller nations in this ‘border area’; main deity of the Geto-Dacians was moreover, the great powers sustained Zamolxe, its name deriving from the hostility among these nations. The state words ‘zelmo’ that means skin and ‘olx- borders changed many times, and in is’ that means bear. According to my- some areas even the ethnic composi- thology, after his birth he was blanket- tion of the population changed substan- ed in a bearskin and spent long parts tially. For all these reasons, the border of his life living in an underground areas remained deliberately underde- cave, appearing and teaching people veloped and were not industrialised; occasionally. This is why each ancient during the communist era even the col- sacred place in the Carpathians is as- lectivisation was not carried out in some sociated with caves or tunnels. The mountainous areas, so the direct im- centre of this civilisation, located now pact of modernity, with all its implica- in Gra˘dis¸tea Muncelului Cioclovina Na- tions, is quite low, even today. ture Park, Romania, is a colossal complex of hundreds of temples, sanctuaries and fortresses spread over an area Ancient sacred natural sites of around 3000 square kilometres. All Lepenski Vir, situated in the Carpathian the mountains around this complex are Mountains near Danube in Djerdap terraced and walled. The Dacian build- National Park, Serbia, is considered ings and complexes are positioned fol- the oldest urban settlement in Europe. lowing precise geometrical patterns, It was a permanent settlement estab- occult symbols, and maps of the sky. lished at a time when elsewhere in Eu- The greatest achievement and mystery rope only temporary shelters of no- of this ancient civilisation is the capital, madic hunters were in use. Lepenski Sarmisegetuza, called also the ‘City Vir was a Mesolithic site of significant Calendar’. ‘Sanctuarul Mare Rotund’ religious importance. The fishlike hu- (Big Round Sanctuary) has an identical structure with Stonehenge, where- manoid figural sculptures discovered as another sanctuary, called ‘Soarele are related to primeval religion, and de Andezit’ (The Andesito Sun), re- represent one of the oldest stone sembles strongly the famous Maya cal- sculptures in Europe. The remains of endar. (Daicoviciu, 1991). numerous sacral buildings dating from 6500 BC to 5500 BC have been found. The Romanian Carpathians are famous Artefacts covered with pictograms dat- for their cultic anthropomorphic rocks, ed around 5000 BC, constitute another the most famous being the ‘Sphynx’

219 (which has the same height as the Caraiman Peak and a vast system of Egyptian one), the ‘Babele’ (The Old caves, some of them not yet explored. Women) in Bucegi Nature Park, and The top of Caraiman, due to its numer- ‘The Twelve Apostles’ in Ca˘limani Na- ous anthropomorphic rocks positioned tional Park. For ancient Romanians, the in a specific way, is considered to be sky, ‘cerul’ in Romanian, was called an immense stellar temple, compared ’Caelus Manus’, ‘Kerus Manus’, or ‘Duo- with Glastonbury (Geticus, 2003). The nus Cerus’ that means the Lord Sky. The Bucegi Mountain is considered to be actual name of some Romanian moun- an intersection of Earth energy lines, tains such as ‘Ca˘li-man’ and ‘Carai-man’ an area of very strange magnetic ab- represent not only the mountain, but normality. It has been discovered that also Divinity (Geticus, 2003). In Roma- a specific site near the Ialomicioara nia, there are three Caraiman Mountains Cave had positive effects on human and four Calimani Mountains, all of them bodies, resetting physical and chemi- considered sacred. cal bodily functions to normal state The Bucegi Mountain, located in the and restoring energy levels. In the Bucegi Nature Park, Romania, is be- popular Romanian tradition this site is lieved to be one of the possible loca- called the ‘Gura de Rai’ (the Mouth of tions of the Dacian holy mountain Heaven), and is considered to be sa- Kogainon, in which Zalmoxe resided in cred, a gate between different worlds, a cave. In that mountain, there are a road to Heaven. Because of the com- some amazing and mysterious places bination of these unique features and like the Omu Peak, known as ‘Zamolxe its natural beauties, Bucegi Nature throne’, which includes the name ‘om’ Park is currently the most visited park that is also the sacred syllable of Hin- in Romania, receiving around one mil- duism and Buddhism as well as the lion visitors per year.

Mosul, Calimani National Park, Romania. The Romanian word Mosul means the Old Man, but it is also a popular name for the Divinity.

220 In Ceahla˘u National Park, Romania, the stream religions established their own Ceahla˘u Mountain, called the ’Romani- shrines and places of worship in their an Olympus’ is considered since times vicinities. It is the Ceahla˘u Mountain, immemorial a holy mountain. It is visi- which, due to its ancient age and the ble from the Black Sea coast, 500 km actual monastic life, is considered the away. A strange phenomenon occurs second holiest mountain of Christian regularly: in the first week of August, at Orthodoxy, after Mt Athos. Another ex- sunrise, the shadow of two of its peaks ample is the Sinaia Monastery, also forms, for one hour and half, a spectac- called ‘the cathedral’ of the Bucegi ular hologram of a pyramid. At the Mountains, which was built on the main same period of time, above the Toaca road to the Bucegi Plateau, where the Peak, which has a perfect square py- ancient sacred site was located. The ramidal shape, for some minutes, an in- entrance to the famous Lalomicioara tense light pillar goes up towards the cave, the place from where Zamolxe sky. Some researchers believe that supposedly has disappeared, is nowa- Ceahla˘u Mountain is traversed by one days guarded by an Orthodox Monas- of the energetic axes of the Earth tery. Another outstanding sacred (www.2012en.wordpress.com). The place is Dobogóko˝, which is frequently ’Dobogóko˝’ (The Pulsating Stone), Pilis visited by high-level priests, Buddhist area, Duna-Ipoly National Park, Hunga- monks, and healers from around the ry, is considered to be the Earth’s heart world. Even the Chinese Shaolin order chakra. It is in the same place that At- has created its Eastern European mon- tila the Hun chose to place the centre astery close to this sacred site. of his great empire. When the Dalai The highly spiritual sites up in the Lama visited Hungary he declared: mountains, the processions, the calen- ‘The approach and behaviour of Tibet, dars, and even the physical locations similarly to other holy knowledge, sees of the early churches were clearly the and experiences the eternity as unity. same of those of the ancient shrines. According to this, the so-called power Many significant names also testify to and energy centres are being counted, their long history. For instance, Saint not only in a human body, but on the Andrew, who introduced Christianity Earth as well. According to the tradi- to Romania, is locally known as tion, the Earth heart chakra is in Hun- the ‘Apostle of the wolves’ - a name gary, more exactly in the area called charged with profound connotations, Pilis .’ (www.docstoc.com) given that the wolf was one of the spiritual ancestors of Dacians and its head An amazing mixture of beliefs was both a significant ethnic and a military symbol for them. Another exam- concerning nature ple is the myth of Rusalii, according to Recognising the importance and the which the souls of the girls who die value of the ancient sacred sites, main- young can be seen sailing through the

221 sky or in the forest, in a gracious bear masks, which is very spectacular dance. If they happen to be seen or in the Moldavia region, represents the heard by someone, that person death and resurrection of nature, also shouldn’t move or speak to the spirits. demonstrating vitality, finesse and force. Given the fact that these an- For Hutsul people (of Ukraine) the Car- cient beliefs are deeply rooted and fre- pathian Mountains are the land of quently met in local traditions, the bear ’bisytsyas’, beautiful ethereal women is currently quite abundant in forested who, with their song, lure men to their areas of Romania; their population ac- demise. This myth was assimilated counts for two thirds of the entire Euro- with the Christian Post-Pascal feast pean brown bear population. (Gorovei, day of The Fiftieth Day, which became 2003). the Pentecost ‘Rusalii’ Sunday. ‘Rusalii’ is the traditional feast day which is cel- In the Carpathians some ancient Pre- ebrated on the same day with the Fifti- Christian rituals and beliefs are still eth Day, being devoted especially to alive, and have survived Christianity. the celebration of the spirits of the The ‘molfars’ (for Hutsul people, Vys- dead. nytsky National Park, Ukraine), are wise botanical healers who gather me- Zamolxe, the brown bear, known in folk dicinal plants from the mountainscape, beliefs as ‘Martin’, ‘Martin the crone’ or and use chanting and music from a ‘the elder’, was a sacred animal for the small instrument known as ’drimba’ in Geto-Dacians. Even today in the popu- the healing process. They have an in- lar calendar, which combines phenol- timate and loving relationship with all ogy with pre-Christian and Christian components of the natural world, from events, the brown bear is well repre- Earth to water, fire to forest and all of sented; 24 March is the ‘Saturday of the animal and plant life of the Car- the bear’, 31 July, 1, 2 and 13 August pathian environment. The Goddesses are the ‘Days of the Bear’. The most of Kopanice or the Mystery Wise Wom- important period for the bear is 1–3 en (White Carpathians Protected Land- February, which is called ‘Sretenie’ scape Area, Czech Republic) can heal (Winter Martins). Offerings consisting a person using only curative herbs, of meat and honey are left in the forest, can find lost or stolen things or give near a passage of the bear, on 2 Feb- good advice in partnership relation ruary, which is called ‘The big Martin’. problems. Within the isolated commu- For all Carpathians the twelve cosmo- nities of the Romanian Carpathians gonic days from Christmas to Epipha- (Apuseni Nature Park, Munt¸ii ny represent the clearest example of Maramures¸ului Nature Park) certain syncretism between Christianity and people, especially old women, know pre-Christian faiths. In accordance and use magic incantations against ill- with pagan heritage, masks are used ness, bad luck, hex, etc. during the winter feasts in order to avoid malevolent spirits. The game of

222 Christian sacred natural sites sent a marvellous blend of Western and Eastern influences; there are Ro- Nowadays, the majority of the inhabit- manian Orthodox churches with a ants of the Carpathian area are Chris- Gothic architecture, but also Polish Ro- tians, and many of them are strong be- mano-Catholic churches with Orthodox lievers. A large part of the Polish, Slo- onion shaped spires. The craftsmen vak, Czech and Hungarian population were able to build these amazing is Roman Catholic. There are also Hun- buildings only with wood, without using garian Calvinists and German Luther- any iron nails or any written plans, just ans. The Szeklers belong to the Tran- using their knowledge, a secret trans- sylvanian Unitarian Church, which is a mitted only to chosen members of their religion established in and spread from guild. the Carpathian area. The majority of the Ukrainians, Romanians and Serbs Another old custom of the region, are Eastern Orthodox Christians. The which is still preserved nowadays, was Greek Catholic Church has a special that monks built small hermitages in significance in the Carpathian region, the vicinity of their monastery. Along because the greatest part of its adher- the years, many of these hermitages ents live in this part of Europe, mostly have grown, becoming new monaster- Ukrainians and Romanians, but also ies with their own priors. Slovaks and Hungarians. In all coun- Because there were many invasions, tries of the region, owing to the current wars and riots during the Middle Ages, deterioration of living conditions, the some of the Carpathian churches and collapse of earlier systems and ideals monasteries were strongly fortified. contributes to the increase of the num- Outstanding examples are the German ber of adherents of new Christian reli- fortified churches in Transylvania that gious movements. have been declared World Heritage Characteristic of the Carpathian region Sites (Biertan, Câlnic, Dârjiu, Prejmer, are the centuries-old wooden church- Saschiz, Valea Viilor, and Viscri). es, adapted perfectly to the landscape The number of Christian Sacred Natu- and to the small local communities, ral Sites of the Carpathians is very scattered in the forests. The most sig- large, although, at this moment a com- nificant wooden churches in Romania plete inventory does not exist. Only in- (Bârsana, Budesti, Desesti, Ieud, Plo- ¸ ¸ side the legally established protected pis, Poienile Izei, Rogoz, surdesti), Slo- ¸ ¸ ¸ areas of Romania, there are 198 oper- vakia (Hervartov, Tvrdošín, Hronsek, ating churches, monasteries and her- Leštiny, Kežmarok, Bodružal, Ruská mitages, populated by around 1800 Bystrá, Ladomirová) and in Poland monks and nuns. It suffices to mention (Binarowa, Blizne, Debno, Haczów, ¸ only some protected areas where Lipnica Dolna, Sekowa) have been de- ¸ these kinds of sites exist at a higher clared World Heritage Sites. The archi- concentration: tectural forms of these churches repre-

223 • Vâna˘tori Neamt¸ Nature Park, Roma- strongly connected with the local com- nia, the spiritual heart of Romania: 16 munities and those beyond them as monasteries and hermitages (Nea- well, often through pilgrimages. As re- mt¸, Secu, Siha˘stria, Sihla, Vîratec, gards the mountain range of the Car- Agapia, etc) are located inside the pathians, it is estimated that there are Park boundaries as well as around more than 400 places of pilgrimage, 40 churches, small hermitages, and while in the whole Carpathian region monasteries in the proximity. their number is approximately 700. Most • Munt¸ii Maramures¸ului Nature Park, of these pilgrimage sites are small and Romania: it hosts over 60 churches. only of local significance, but 50 to 60 of • Gra˘dis¸tea Muncelului Cioclovina Na- them have national significance, and ture Park, Romania: 10 churches are some 10 to 15 are of international situated within its boundaries. importance. • Port¸ile de Fier Nature Park Nature Park, Romania: more than 30 church- The most famous and the most fre- es, monasteries and hermitages can quented pilgrimage sites in the Car- be found in its territory. pathian region are the following: • Poloniny National Park, Slovakia, has • In the Polish Carpathian region: the the highest number of old wooden Jasna Góra monastery in Czesto- churches among all national parks in chowa, visited every year by several Slovakia: Ulicˇské krivé, Jalová, Ruský million pilgrims; the Calvary Sanctu- Potok, Topol’a, Kalná Roztoka. ary in Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, the Another characteristic feature of the Sa- biggest compound of its kind in Eu- cred Natural Sites in the Carpathians is rope and Poland’s second most im- that they are not only alive but also portant historic destination for pil-

The Agapia Veche Convent, Vâna˘ tori Neamt¸ Nature Park, Romania is a holy place dedicated to cenobitic life. Destroyed and rebuilt many times during the centuries, the Agapia Veche Con- vent (Old Agapia) was established in the fourteenth century.

224 grims; Wadowice, the birthplace of Maramures¸ului Nature Park (Moisei, Pope John Paul II visited by around Bogdan Voda, Rozavlea, and Bâr- 200 000 pilgrims yearly, etc (Borsa sana). The main pilgrimage place of et al., 2009). the Catholic Hungarians in Romania • In the Czech Carpathian region the is the church and monastery in most significant sites of pilgrimage s¸umuleu Ciuc (around 300 000 pil- are: Velehrad and Krˇtiny (White grims yearly). Carpathians). • In the Ukrainian Carpathian region • In the Slovakian Carpathian region, pilgrimage destinations are Krekhiv the main national pilgrimage places (miracle working icons), Hrushiv (ap- are Nitra, related with the Saints Cyril parition of Virgin Mary) etc. and Methodius, the creators of the The presence of the monastic commu- Glagolitic alphabet which was creat- nities and hermits living in solitude in ed to transcribe the Old Church Sla- vonic language; the Zobor Mountain the wilderness is another characteris- where the first monastery in Slovakia tic of the Carpathians. Only in the Ro- was built; Hronský Benˇadik, related manian Carpathians, monastic com- with the Benedictine abbey estab- munities are found within 13 National lished in 1075, all in or close to Ponit- and Nature Parks. The life of these mo- rie Protected Landscape Area; the nastic communities in forested areas, Levocˇa Marianská Hora church, close usually living in harsh conditions, often to Slovenský Raj National Park; Lit- includes an efficient use of pasture manová, the place of an apparition of lands, hay fields, and glades. The mo- Virgin Mary, in Pieniny National Park. nastic communities have a long-estab- • In the Hungarian Carpathian region lished tradition of wise use of natural the most famous pilgrimage sites are resources, in order to cover only their Máriapócs, Máriaremete, Márianosz- essential needs, giving to the natural tra, and Bélapátfalva all situated in elements found in the Carpathians Bukk National Park. some utilitarian, cultural and spiritual • In the Romanian Carpathian region, value. Thanks to the ancient monastic the Orthodox monasteries are the recipes, the plants and herbs that main pilgrimage destinations. There grow near the monasteries are famous are four main concentration areas of for their medicinal qualities. Brother monasteries: those of Bucovina (Hu- Cyprian, an eighteenth century monk mor, Voronet¸, Moldovit¸a, and from cˇervený Kláštor, Slovakia (Pieniny Sucevit¸a), Neamt¸ region and National Park), who was a famous Vâna˘tori Neamt¸ Nature Park (Neamt¸, pharmacist, is only one of many well- Secu, Vovidenia, Agapia, Siha˘stria, known examples. Each monastic com- Va˘ratec, etc), the valley of River Olt, munity practises a number of tradition- Buila Vânturarit¸a National Park and al activities without a significant nega- Cozia National Park (Hurezi, Curtea tive impact on the environment, such de Arges¸, Cozia, Bistrit¸a) and Munt¸ii as livestock farming, woodcraft, fruit

225 growing, picking of mushrooms and many of them are not even marked forest fruits, apiculture, weaving, pro- (Borsa et al., 2009). Nowadays, these ducing of traditional drinks from fruits, cemeteries represent places of pil- bakery, and fishing from ponds. grimage and self-communion. This has happened all around the Carpathians; This resilient model, characterised by an astonishing characteristic example a sustainable consumption and pro- is the establishment of the Sfânta Cru- duction, has not served to produce ce (The Holy Cross) Hermitage in large amounts of food; the small sur- Vâna˘tori Neamt¸ Nature Park, Romania, pluses are sold in the monastic stores a place where thousands of Romanian, or used as alms during the religious German and Russian soldiers were feasts. The hundreds of years of the killed during a battle of WW II. The monastic ownership of the land, and corpses of the soldiers were not bur- the continuous presence of the monas- ied; they were simply left there decay- tic communities during that time, ing, because their number was great, shaped the Carpathian landscapes in the front line moved rapidly and the particular ways. political situation changed; as a result In some cases (Agapia Convent and the surrounding forest has become a Va˘ratec Convent, Vâna˘tori Neamt¸ Na- sacred one. The Heroes Cross on the ture Park, Romania) the monastic com- Caraiman Mountain (Bucegi Natural munities are not organised in monaster- Park, Romania), 28 m high, is the tall- ies but in monastic villages, developed est structure in the world dedicated to according to self-sufficiency rules. the heroes who died during World War These villages have their own post offic- I, situated at an altitude of over 2000 es, dispensaries, mills and stores, and metres. Nowadays this cross is also a are almost entirely self-sufficient. subject of pilgrimage, not only for those who want to pay their respects or honour the heroes, but also to wor- Modern sacred natural sites ship the Divinity on the top of a sacred mountain. During the World Wars, the Carpathi- ans region was the scene of some of At the end of the nineteenth century, the largest and desperate battles. the Jewish population in the Carpathi- Only in World War I nearly two million an region was estimated at around 5 soldiers died on the Galician and Ro- million people. Since then, especially manian fronts. Because of changes of during and after World War II, their borders and translocation of popula- number rapidly decreased, and as a tions related with the disappearance of result, the old synagogues and Jewish the Austro-Hungarian Empire after cemeteries are now an object of atten- World War I, as well as the Soviet dom- tion for their descendants, which ination after World War II, the graves of spread all around the world. The Car- the solders are not cared for, while pathian Mountains are related with the

226 The Dacian King Decebalus, Port¸ile de Fier Nature Park, Romania. This statue, started in 1994 and finished in 2004, is the tallest rock sculpture in Europe (40 m high), located on the rock bank of River Danube. birth of the ’Hasidic’ (the word deriving resurrection of the ancient Pre-Christian from the Hebrew word ‘Hasid’ meaning beliefs, even of the Zamolxe cult. pious, righteous, invigorated and Not only the former sanctuaries and alive). It is an important mystical move- worship places are used, but also new ment founded by Baal Shem Tov in the artistic creations became the subject seventeenth century, one of the great- of spiritual interest, like the statue of est luminaries of the Jewish people. the Dacian King Decebalus, carved in His later followers said that going out to nature to speak to God in our own stone, in Port¸ile de Fier Nature Park, language is the secret to spiritual Romania. growth for every Jew and every human being. Based on the teaching of Baal Shem Tov, his great grandson, Rebbe Sacred natural sites, local Nachman wrote: ‘When a person medi- communities and nature tates in the fields, all the grasses join in conservation his prayer and increase its effective- A characteristic feature of the Car- ness and power.’ pathian area is that there are several In Domogled-Valea Cernei National places inhabited by more than one na- Park, Romania, near Herculane, 3000 to tionality, with distinctive cultural herit- 5000 yoga adepts from all over Europe age, while there are areas which were meet every spring, to do several medi- inhabited in the past by national and tative practices together, including a religious groups who do not live there yang spiral. On the other hand, the New anymore. Thinking especially about Age movements are interested in the the ancient Sacred Natural Sites, it is

227 obvious that the sacredness of some a divine creation, and allows raise of of them does not present a spiritual in- awareness for environmental matters terest for contemporary local commu- and dissemination of sound nature nities, and preservation works in these protection practices. But more impor- sites is carried out only for touristic tantly, visits in these sacred natural purposes. Even in this case, however, sites require not only external cleanli- local communities are usually interest- ness, but also internal purity and a rev- ed in maintaining unchanged the envi- erential attitude. Therefore, affirming ronmental quality of these sites. the sacred values of landscapes, sites and species is a necessary step to It is indisputable that Sacred Natural protect nature, emphasising thus the Sites which are currently important for amazing integration of the natural and the local communities play a key role spiritual features of the Carpathian in nature conservation, because each region. of them conveys respect for Nature as

228 References Borsa, M., Chifelea, C., Egerer, H., Gal, Z., Glowacki, W., Halas, M., Hopfgartner, V., Illes, I., Niewiadomski, Z., Ptacek, P. and Wiederwald, D. (2009), VASICA - Vi- sions and Strategies in the Carpathian Area, Bolzano: Printeam, pp. 93-115.

Daicoviciu, H. (1991), Dacii, Chis¸ina˘u: Hyperion. Eberhardt, P. (2003), Ethnic Groups and Population Changes in Twentieth-century Central-Eastern Europe, London: M. E. Sharpe.

Geticus (2003), La Dacie Hyperboreenne, Puiseaux: Pardes.

Gorovei, A. (2003), Credinti si superstitii ale poporului roman [Beliefs and superstitions of the Romanian people], 2nd edn, Bucuresti: Grai si suflet-Cultura Nationala.

Nikitin, A.G., Kochkin, I.T., June, C.M., Willis, C.M., McBain, I. and Videiko, M.Y. (2009), Mitochondrial DNA sequence variation in Boyko, Hutsul and Lemko populations of Carpathian highlands. Human Biology 81 (1): 43–58. http://www.2012en.wordpress.com/2008/07/20/misterele-Ceahla˘ului-fenomene- paranormale-pe-muntele-lui-zamolxis/, accessed 28 October 2010. http://www.docstoc.com/docs/46748553/Pulsating-stone-(Dobogk)--where-the- hearth-of-the-Earth-beats, accessed 28 October 2010.

229 230 The ‘sacredness’ of natural sites and their recovery: Iona, Harris and Govan in Scotland Alastair McIntosh

Science and the sacred: with which science can, and even a necessary dichotomy? should, meaningfully engage? It is a pleasing irony that sacred natural In addressing these questions science sites (SNSs), once the preserve of reli- most hold fast to its own sacred value – gion, are now drawing increasing rec- integrity in the pursuit of truth. One ap- ognition from biological scientists (Ver- proach is to say that science and the schuuren et al., 2010). At a basic level sacred cannot connect because the for- this is utilitarian. SNSs frequently com- mer is based on reason while the latter prise rare remaining ecological ‘is- is irrational. But this argument invariably lands’ of biodiversity. But the very exist- overlooks the question of premises. ence of SNSs is also a challenge to sci- Those who level it make the presump- ence. It poses at least two questions. tion that the basis of reality is materialis- Does the reputed ‘sacredness’ of these tic alone. The religious, by contrast, ar- sites have any significance for science gue that the basis of reality, including beyond the mere utility by which they material reality, is fundamentally spiritu- happen to conserve ecosystems? And al. Both can apply impeccable logic is this reputed ‘sacredness’ a feature based on these respective premises

< Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris)

231 and as such, both are ‘rational’ from cie rule themselves out of court from a within their own terms of reference. scientific perspective. For example, idea that God (as the ‘ground of be- This leads some philosophers of sci- ing’) created the world in six days is ence to the view that science and reli- manifestly preposterous. But scratch a gion should co-exist in mutual but little deeper and most modern theolo- compartmentalised respect, separat- gians view such imagery as poetic or ed, as it were, by an impermeable metaphorical truth rather than literal membrane. The evolutionary biologist truth. The one speaks the truth of the Stephen Jay Gould advanced this view ‘heart’, the other of the ‘head’, and we where he wrote: need both to be fully human and there- ‘No such conflict should exist [be- by to engage the ‘hand’ in active man- tween science and religion] be- agement. Every time a scientist speaks cause each subject has a legiti- of ‘parallel universes’, or even of the mate magisterium, or domain of school textbook construction of the teaching authority - and these atom, they too are using metaphor. magisteria do not overlap (the prin- More than just reflecting on the struc- ciple that I would like to designate tures of logic and language, we might as NOMA or ‘non-overlapping also ask, if we are to be scientific, magisteria’). The net of science whether the sacred might actually be covers the empirical realm: what is amenable to scientific inquiry. If people the universe made of (fact) and claim that the sacred is something ‘ex- why does it work this way (theory). perienced’, and if it appears to be an The net of religion extends over experience with consistencies, why questions of moral meaning and should that not be studied empirically value. These two magisteria do not like any other perceptual phenomenon overlap. (Gould 2007: 594)’. that purports to shed light on reality? But is such a position good enough, Who said that religion must be confined especially when the scientist is invited to being the straw man of blind faith? to engage with the ‘sacred’ because What interests are served by keeping it sacred groves, mountains, lakes, etc. there? Is it not so that, as with other sci- might be just about the only remaining entific phenomena, if you don’t look you semi-intact areas of biodiversity won’t see? Is it therefore not incumbent around on account of the ravishes of upon science at least to entertain inves- materialism? Such a scientist will tigation of the claims derived from reli- doubtless have the generosity to con- gious experience, especially where cede the biological utility of the sa- these appear to find a measure of con- cred, but is there also ground for her or sensual validation? This is increasingly him to entertain the root phenomenon being undertaken in medicine where of ‘sacredness’ itself? It is true that advances in neuroscience have opened many of the claims of religion prima fa- up new vistas of research into spiritual

232 experience as part of the healing of the subsequent experiences reported by body (Clarke 2010). Why should it not visitors. The theologian may speak of also be a new field for conservationists experiences as ‘visionary’ or ‘mystical’. who have a responsibility for planetary Rudolf Otto used the word ‘numinous’ health? So doing can allow park manag- in popularising ‘the idea of the holy’. ers to optimise their assets. It can syner- The humanistic psychologist Abraham gise benefits across an extended spec- Maslow, best known for his hierarchy trum, thereby ultimately strengthening of human needs, devised the term the political will to sustain and resource ‘peak experience’. This latter term al- nature conservation. lows the inclusion of experiences that may not have an explicit religious con- In hinting that ‘nature is good for the notation but is still perceived as uplift- soul’ the hard-pressed biological scien- ing to the ‘spirit’. All of these comprise tist should not be expected to become an area of study known as ‘transper- an authority in spiritual matters. Howev- sonal psychology’ For our purposes it er, it may be useful to know that an ex- is helpful to follow Wulff (in Cardena et tensive body of research and literature al. 2000: 397–460) in recognising a has build up over the past century, cul- continuum from mild to extreme (or minating in the field of consciousness weak to strong) transpersonal experi- research. An early milestone was Wil- ences – so-called because they sug- liam James’s classic study, The Varieties gest a realm of experience that lifts of Religious Experience, first presented consciousness beyond normal ego- as the Gifford Lectures in ‘natural reli- bounded limitations. gion’ at Edinburgh University between 1900 and 1902. The twentieth century Weak peak experience (to use Mas- saw further experimental and conceptu- low’s term) is very common outdoors. al advances. A fine review of the litera- These include mildly intensified aes- ture is Varieties of Anomalous Experi- thetic experiences with nature and ence: Examining the Scientific Evidence close bonding with fellow humankind. published the American Psychological For example, a mildly euphoric feeling Association (Cardena et al. 2000). Es- of closeness to one’s friends might be pecially relevant is the last chapter by memorably felt while mutually witness- Wulff on mystical experience. ing a breath-taking sunset. Ringer and Gillis (1995) have indicated Weak and strong sacred the importance of outdoor trainers understanding that such weak experienc- experience es can readily escalate to strong levels A range of terms have been devised to of psychological depth. They propose describe religious and related ‘anoma- an eight-point scale ranging from sur- lous’ experiences such as might be as- face-level aesthetic experiences, sociated with either the founding through deepening levels of identity for- ‘saintly’ figures behind SNSs, or with mation, all the way to the ‘universal lev-

233 el’ of mystical experience – something black in the depths.... We knew that is widely experienced by indige- without speaking that we had found nous people. They suggest that levels ‘the place’. We fell silent at the sight, of depth should be managed during knowing that this would be the turn- adventure training in order to respect ing point, ‘the most sacred’, the the implicit contract of what groups place of deepest wilderness, for this have signed up for. In an important an- day, for this trip, for this time in our thology Grof and Grof (1989) also high- lives, and perhaps in our entire light the importance of recognising that lives.... We swam, crawled onto the ‘spiritual emergence’ can become a hot rocks ... most of us slept for a ‘spiritual emergency’; an ontological time. Later some spoke of amazing- crisis. This, perhaps, is one reason why ly vivid dreams.... Distance disap- the sacred is often held at arms length. peared and there was an openness into ourselves that was an openness That recognised, some people actively to each other that embraced the seek out strong experience. Robert pool, the river, and further out into Greenway, a pioneer of ecopsychology, the wilderness, the ‘other world’, the invoked what he calls the ‘wilderness whole Earth, the universe’. effect’ to facilitate this with some of his students. In his studies covering 1380 Such an example is not tied to any people, 90 percent described ‘an in- specific religion. An example of a creased sense of aliveness, well-being, strong mystical experience that is tied and energy’ and 38 percent described would be the following from George life-changes that ‘held true’ five years Fox, the founder of the Quaker after their return from what he led them movement. through. Greenway offers as fairly typi- ‘I now came up in the spirit past the cal the following account from a group flaming sword into the paradise of of twelve people near the end of a two- God. Everything was new. And the week trip up the Eel River in northern whole creation gave off another California (Greenway 1995). smell to what I knew before, be- ‘We had gone as deep into the cent- yond what I could ever express in er of the wilderness as we could, words. I knew nothing but purity and as deep into our hearts and and innocence and rightness as I minds. We had adopted games and was renewed in the image of God structures we knew would open us by Jesus Christ, so that, as I say, I beyond our familiar constraints. entered the state that Adam was in Now, in the fullness of our opening, before he fell. The creation was our ability to feel and understand opened up to me…. Great things I reached unexpected depths.... We was led to [see] by the Lord and came upon a huge pool that wonderful depths were revealed to seemed bottomless - shadings of me, beyond what I could ever put blue-green darkening almost too in words’ (Ambler 2001: 101).

234 Fox’s experience wears very different cient for us to note that the association clothing than Greenway’s more eclectic of a natural site with sacredness has a example. However, both share a sense phenomenological significance that of ‘cosmic consciousnesses’ such as might take it beyond mere utility from a has caused mystical experience to be conservationist’s point of view. It is described as ‘the perennial philoso- possible that such sites are important phy’. Walter Stace identifies such cos- not just for the biodiversity of non-hu- mic unity and up to eight other charac- man species, but also for the evolution teristics with mystical consciousness and health of the human condition in a (Pahnke and Richards 1969): troubled world.

• Undifferentiated unity – sometimes called ‘the hallmark of mystical Sacred natural sites and spiritual experience’. presence in varying traditions • Objectivity and reality – the experience seems more real than real. If ‘spirituality’ broadly consistent with • Space and time – feel as if they have Stace’s criteria might be on the cards, been transcended. what might this suggest for the human • Sacredness – pervades the experience. ontological significance of SNSs? A spir- • Deeply-felt positive mood – joy, itual worldview is one that considers the blessedness and especially love. world, and specifically, human life, to be • Paradoxicality – normal categories of ensouled. The spiritual is that which logic seem to fall away. gives life and specifically, life as love • Ineffability – cannot adequately be made manifest. It is the ‘interiority’ of that expressed in words. which is exterior; the knowing con- • Transiency – The intense aspects of sciousness behind the known. Several the experience usually pass fairly major religions consider such con- quickly (one of the features that dif- sciousness to be personified, thus the ferentiates it from psychosis). Kena Upanishad of Hinduism asks: ‘Who • Positive change – to life in attitude sends the mind to wander afar? Who first and/or behaviour, often permanent. drives life to start on its journey? Who im- pels us to utter these words? Who is the Like other contemporary scholarly ap- Spirit behind the eye and the ear?’ proaches, Wulff’s review (op. cit.) ex- plores a range of ways that might ac- The Manduka Upanishad underscores count for such states and their fre- the suck-and-see empirical approach quent generalised consistency with to spiritual consciousness, thus: ‘In the one another. These include neurophys- union with him is the supreme proof of iological theories, psychoanalytical his reality’. The Mundaka Upanishad and other psychological perspectives, says: ‘In truth who knows God becomes and all the way to face-value accept- God’ (Mascaro 1965: 51, 83, 81). These ance of spirituality. But that debate concepts have their equivalents in other need not concern us here. It is suffi- religions, for example, the deification or

235 theosis in Orthodox Christianity based count the practice, strange though it is around the mystical notion that St Atha- in the wider context of Islam, is not con- nasius expressed in the words, ‘God sidered to be idolatrous. became man so that man might be- Amongst many of the world’s indigenous come God’. Christian associations be- peoples the sacredness of nature is cen- tween nature and the sacred are also tral to the conservation of biodiversity. seen in such teachings of Jesus as This also applies in Western Europe ‘Consider the lilies of the field…’, in the where, for example, faerie hills in con- totemic designations of the gospels temporary Scotland have been noted as where Mark is the lion, Luke the ox and depositaries of indigenous lore and local John the eagle, and in panentheistic taboos that contribute to the conserva- passages such as John 1, Psalms 104 tion of biodiversity within them (Laviolette and the twelfth chapter of the Book of and McIntosh 1997). In a major assess- Job which says: if in any doubt about ment edited for UNEP’s Global Biodiver- the divine ‘Ask now the beasts … and sity Assessment, Posey emphasised the the fouls of the air, and they shall tell spiritual basis of biodiversity amongst thee. Or speak to the earth, and it shall many indigenous peoples, surmising: teach thee’. To borrow another term from Orthodox theology, higher con- ‘Although conservation and manage- sciousness interacts with nature in ment practices are highly pragmatic, apocatastasis – the revelation (apoca- indigenous and traditional peoples lypse) of what is actually to be found generally view this knowledge as there (stasis). From this we might derive emanating from a spiritual base. All the hypothesis that SNSs are of vital im- creation is sacred, and the sacred portance because they show us more and secular are inseparable. Spiritu- deeply what nature actually is. ality is the highest form of consciousness, and spiritual consciousness is It might additionally be noted that the the highest form of awareness. In most sacred site in Islam, the Kaaba at this sense, a dimension of traditional Mecca, holds at its epicentre the Black knowledge is not local knowledge, Stone. Encased in silver, this is about but knowledge of the universal as thirty centimetres in length. Pilgrims on expressed in the local. In indigenous the Hajj process around and, if they can and local cultures, experts exist who get close enough, kiss it. According to are peculiarly aware of nature’s or- tradition, Umar, the second caliph and ganizing principles, sometimes de- companion of Prophet Muhammad scribed as entities, spirits or natural (p.b.u.h.), said to this stone: ‘No doubt, law. Thus, knowledge of the environ- I know that you are a stone and can nei- ment depends not only on the rela- ther benefit anyone nor harm anyone. tionship between humans and na- Had I not seen Allah’s Apostle kissing ture, but also between the visible you I would not have kissed you’ world and the invisible spirit world’. (Bukhari 2007: 2:26:667). On such ac- (Posey 1999: 4, his emphasis).

236 The word, sacred, has an etymology from Old Latin, saceres, that connects Orknay Mt Roineabhal it to concepts of protection and of be- 2 Isle of Harris ing ‘set aside’. The etymology of the word ‘holy’ derives from the Old Eng- Lewis lish, halig, connected to hal meaning Harris ‘health’. To return again to the medical Inverness analogy, we need such health-restor- Benbecula Skye Aberdeen ing set-aside if we are to seek regener- Scotland ation of what is broken in the Earth and Govan old parish church 3 Glasgow its peoples. This is biological but it is Mull also cultural, for there is something Jura Edinburgh about timeworn practice associated 1 Jay Glasgow with particular sites that seems to be connected with their effect on con- Isle of Iona sciousness. T.S. Elliot puts it thus in Four Quartets (1959: 50–51):

‘If you came this way, Taking any route, starting from an- ywhere, show that SNSs can potentially benefit At any time or at any season, from, and not be destroyed by critical It would always be the same: you empirical enquiry. would have to put off From this position I now want to suggest Sense and notion. You are not that SNSs should be understood not just here to verify, as static entities that have long been Instruct yourself, or inform curiosity recognised and often protected – albeit Or carry report. You are here to sometimes in a rather fossilised muse- kneel um-piece manner. They should also be Where prayer has been valid’. understood as dynamic processes. This allows for sites to be reactivated in cultural recognition, and even imaginatively Static and dynamic concepts of recreated in consciousness. The follow- sacred natural sites ing three case studies from Scotland il- Thus far in this paper I have explored lustrate these three positions of recognition, reactivation and recreation. SNSs generally as phenomena that, through impacting on consciousness to varying degrees, connect natural Recognised sacred natural sites – Example: the Isle of Iona nature to human nature. Here in West- ern Europe these links have become Iona is said to have been established attenuated. Science is sometimes as a monastic site by St Columba of blamed for this, but I have tried to Ireland in A.D. 563. To stand beside the

237 ‘One should take notice of this story, and carefully think about the extent and nature of the sweet visits by angels that no one could know about but which, without doubt, were very frequent, for they generally came to him as he remained awake on winter nights or as he prayed in isolated places while others rested’. (Adomnán 1995: 218).

Reactivated sacred natural sites – Iona Abbey. Example: Mt Roineabhal, Isle of Harris This site hosts the medieval church of eighth century St Martin’s Cross at the St Clement on the lower slopes of Mt Abbey entrance is to witness Biblical Roineabhal (Roin-e-val). Local tradition scenes carved in stone that have with- dates it back to the Culdees and the stood nature’s elemental blast for near- Druids. Although Roineabhal is only ly two-thirds of Christian history. The is- 460m in height, it rises directly out of land is owned for the nation by the Na- the sea. With stunning views in all ditional Trust for Scotland. It is a well-es- rections it has the awe-inspiring char- tablished and highly protected SNS acter of a much larger mountain. It is with 130 000 pilgrim and tourist visitors the highest in south Harris, a designat- a year. We can therefore view it as ‘rec- ed National Scenic Area. ognised’ and its status is secure. Between 1991 and 2004 a battle raged George MacLeod who founded the to stop Roineabhal from being turned Iona Community described Iona as a into a ‘superquarry’ to export roadstone place where the boundary between the (McIntosh 2001). One part of the protest spiritual and the material worlds is ‘tis- involved my bringing Stone Eagle, the sue thin’. Writing just a century after Mi’Kmaq war chief from Canada, and Columba’s death in 597 Adomnán, the Donald Macleod, a Calvinist professor of ninth abbot describes how Columba theology, to testify at the government went to a knoll and prayed all night with public inquiry. Our witness focussed on his arms outspread towards the heav- the ‘creation’ reflecting the majesty of ens. A monk witnessed a host of angels the divine and this helped to reactivate gather around the saint, ‘flying down local awareness of this. A wide-ranging with amazing speed, dressed in white campaign led to the quarry being robes’. The knoll is to this day known as stopped. Today visitors speak of their Cnoc nan Aingel, the Hill of the Angels. ‘pilgrimages’ to the mountain. As one na- An interesting feature is Adomnán’s en- tive tradition bearer has said: ‘If it wasn’t dorsement of empiricism. He says: a sacred mountain before, it is now.’

238 tle-known collection of ninth century carved stones. The pilgrimage guide, Britain’s Holiest Places, states that ‘Govan Old Church has no equal when it comes to telling the story of Scottish Christianity’ (Mayhew Smith 2011, 499). From here the Rev Dr George MacLeod, Lord MacLeod of Fuinary, led the re- building of Iona Abbey in the 1930s. His Iona Community became a platform that transformed the position of the Church of Scotland on urban poverty, ecumenism St Clement’s Church and Mt Roineabhal, Isle and nuclear weapons. of Harris. Today Govan Old Parish Church seeks Today Presbyterian clergy on both Harris to recover its history as an ancient site and the adjoining Isle of Lewis show a of pilgrimage, spurred by a new ferry new openness to ecotheology. One link across the River Clyde to Glas- leading conservative evangelical wrote gow’s new Riverside Museum of Trans- in the local newspaper: ‘My theology port, opened in 2011. There is a palpa- tells me that the things that are seen de- ble sense amongst key segments of clare the things that are unseen: that the the community of a sacred natural site details of the creation declare the gran- being not only revitalised, but also, im- deur of the Creator … without [whom] … aginatively recreated. More than just a I am at a loss to explain what I see of na- reactivation of the past such recreation ture at close range’ (Campbell 2010). of a wider sense of being an SNS Such re-activation of sensitivity to ‘crea- speaks from today’s people to their tion’ and ‘providence’ helps to legitimise present needs with one eye on the conservation consciousness in a com- past and the other on the community’s munity. It could serve as ongoing insur- future. ance policy for the mountain’s protec- An example is the GalGael Trust. It tion. Strikingly, in 2009 the island’s resi- draws inspiration from the Christian dents voted by a 2/3 majority to support symbolic and nature imagery on the exploring national park status for Harris church’s carved stones in reconnect- with the Scottish Government.

Recreated sacred natural sites – Govan, City of Glasgow

Govan is an economically deprived area of Glasgow with high incidences of drug Deer hunting scenes and Celtic eternity abuse and unemployment. Its Old Parish knotwork on St Constantine’s Sarcophagus, Church is the repository of a fine but lit- Govan Old Parish Church.

239 history of Govan manifests as a potent factor in the local sense of identity and belonging.

Conclusion To be able to maintain its social function the spirituality of SNSs must be allowed to breathe. Scientific rigour can GalGael Trust Workshop – Participants on and should be paired with the motiva- ‘Navigate Life’. tional drivers of ethical vigour. To enter into a dynamic relationship with SNSs ing disaffected urban youth with their is to participate in the responsibility – natural environment. In a programme the ability to respond – that can heal the world. called Navigate Life, young people work with retired shipyard workers. Ac- Based on the above examples the Cy- tivities include building traditional cle of Belonging (McIntosh 2008) pos- boats that are sailed down the river, its community of place as the starting both actually and symbolically reconnecting coastal communities while mending lives traumatised by violence, addictions and poverty.

GalGael’s trainees start with a block of wood, a hammer and a chisel, and are taught to see and express the beauty of nature in what could be seen as applied apocatastasis. It builds social conviviality and draws out the beauty of each human being. Participants describe the process as ‘a transformation’. Pride in people and place is re- kindled in a triune expression of community with soil, soul and society (McI- ntosh 2008). A community garden project also produces local food, thereby widening dietary horizons and awareness of the carbon footprints. Most participants are not people who would go to church, yet a community consultation in October 2010 showed that a spiritual awareness drawing from the The GalGael Trust on the Firth of Clyde.

240 point of human ecology. From here a sense of place informs a sense of identity, which carries with it a sense of values, which motivates the sense of responsibility. That, in completion of the cycle, reinforces sense of place. Community degeneration happens if this cycle is damaged at any point. Community regeneration is promoted when it is strengthened at any point.

A spiritual understanding, one that is predicated on love both immanent and transcendent, mandates that community of place should be inclusive rather The ‘Cycle of Belonging’. than exclusive. There must be profound respect for the indigenous, for what is found there, but not xenopho- ninth century Scotland. The Gall is the bia. In Celtic tradition such inclusive- stranger and the Gael are the heart- ness reflects in the twin sacred duties land indigenous people. Metaphorical- of hospitality for the short term, and ly there is something of both of these in fostership (or adoption) for perma- most of us today and both must meld nence. This is reflected in the name in recreating indigeniety to care for the ‘GalGael’ – a term that originated in Earth.

241 References

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243 244 Synergies between spiritual and natural heritage for habitat conservation in the Barents Euro-Arctic Region Alexander N. Davydov

Barents Euro-Arctic Region: a components to its work on nature con- tool for international cooperation servation and, especially, on protected in the North of Europe areas. On 11 January 1993 in Kirkenes, Nor- BEAR is managed by the Barents Euro- way, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Arctic Council (BEAC) which is repre- Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, sented by the Ministers of Foreign Af- Russia and Sweden signed a Declara- fairs of Finland, Norway, Russia and tion of the Establishing of International Sweden. BEAC elaborates the general Organisation Barents Euro-Arctic Re- strategy of cooperation. Practical ques- gion (BEAR). BEAR has several mech- tions are delegated to the Barents Sec- anisms to promote the cooperation retariat, which is located in Kirkenes. among the northern regions of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. One of For practical reasons, the Barents Pro- them is the Habitat Contact Forum gramme was organised into ten work- (HCF). Gradually, HCF has started to ing groups on culture, environment, ed- incorporate cultural and even spiritual ucation, indigenous peoples, agricul-

< Remnants of a sacred grove next to the chapel of Saint Spirit in Glazovo village, Kenozero, Kenozersky National Park (Archangel Region, Russia).

245 ture, reindeer-breeding, economics, the need for further establishment of science and development, health-care, new protected areas, proper manage- and transport and communications. ment of existing ones, and other relevant issues (HCF II, 2003, Appendix 2: Nowadays, BEAR unites the Northern 1). At HCF I, a mandate was defined provinces of Norway (Nordland, Troms, and a list of international projects was and Finnmark), Sweden (Våsterbotten, developed. Norrbotten), Finland (Finnish Lapland, Oulu including North Ostrobothnia and The second HCF was organised in No- Kainuu), and Russia (Republic of Kare- vember 2001 in Petrozavodsk, Repub- lia, Republic of Komi, Murmansk Re- lic of Karelia (Russia). A work plan for gion, Archangelsk Region and Nenets conservation issues of protected areas Autonomous Area). in BEAR was prepared on a 3-year basis to meet the obligations set by the Arctic Council (CAFF/CPAN), IUCN Habitat Contact Forum: a tool for and the CBD. New projects were dedi- international environmental and cated to designing and establishing cultural cooperation in BEAR new protected areas, biosphere reserves, ‘green belts’, and transbound- The cooperation of the Nordic Coun- ary protected areas, as well as to sus- tries with North-West Russia in the field tainable tourism development in proof nature protection started with the in- tected areas, but there were no special ternational environmental expeditions in sessions or projects dedicated to their this region. All these expeditions includ- cultural and spiritual values. ed scientists connected with nature conservation and cultural heritage pro- The third HCF was organised in Kuhmo tection (Davydov, 2003). The first expe- (Finland) on November 2003. There dition was organised around the Onega was a session on ‘Nature and Man’ Peninsula in summer 1997 (Onezhskoe and a working group created on ‘Cul- tural and Ethnical Questions and Local Pomorje 1997). Inspired by the second Participation’. The working group stat- expedition (Belomorsko-Kuloiskoe Pla- ed that a deeper understanding of pro- teau 1998), a group of experts started tected areas, including the cultural planning an international workshop on heritage, is an essential part of HCF protected areas in BEAR. work. It suggested that cultural com- The first International Contact Forum ponents should be incorporated into on Habitat Conservation in the Barents the work on habitat conservation, es- Region (or Habitat Contact Forum) pecially the ideas of people living or was established in Trondheim, Norway near protected areas. HCF empha- in November 1999 (HCF I, 2000). HCF sised that ‘although the natural herit- was meant to be an arena for coopera- age is relatively well-studied, the cul- tion on habitat conservation issues in tural heritage has not been sufficiently BEAR to achieve increased focus on investigated and classified in relation

246 A map of the Barents Euro-Arctic Region. to the environment’ (HCF III, 2004: 14). of the local population and indigenous In the paper by Davydov (HCF III, people in habitat conservation. In this 2004:66-67) the term spiritual habitat respect the cultural heritage of indige- was formulated based on the investi- nous peoples living on protected natu- gations of the holy groves tradition in ral territories is of vital importance. It is Kenozero National Park. also important that the peoples and local population themselves should be in- The fourth HCF was organised in Sykty- volved in the system of direct consulta- vkar, Republic of Komi (Russia) in Sep- tion and decision making process con- tember 2005. There were five working cerning protected natural territories.’ groups, including one on ‘Ethic and (HCF IV, 2006: 233). It also recom- Cultural Problems’. At the resolution, the mended to include an item connected role of the environment and indigenous with local population into the pro- and local populations was underlined gramme of the next HCFs and to devel- (HCF IV, 2006: 235). The working group op a long term international ethnic and proposed that: ‘In connection with eco- ecological project on natural, cultural nomics globalisation and human inter- and historical heritage in BEAR (HCF IV, ference in natural, cultural and histori- 2006: 233). Unfortunately, the project cal sphere, we are greatly anxious was never realised. about the matters of cultural and ethnic development and also the participation The HCF themes were affected by the

247 work of the Delos Initiative. The SNS of activities developed so far. (HCF VI, Ukonsaari Island was presented at the 2010: 70–71, 157–158). A.L. Fedyaev first Delos workshop (Norokorpi and and O.V. Churakova touched the ques- Ojanlatva, 2007) and the Solovetsky Is- tions of the reasonable practicality, and lands SNS at the second Delos work- the spiritual and moral need to restore shop (Davydov et al, 2009). At the Nor- technologically damaged Northern dic-Russian conference on ‘The last areas (HCF VI, 2010: 156). S. Sohlberg large intact forests in North-West Rus- discussed the RAIPON/CAFF Sacred sia: protection and sustainable use’ Natural Site project (2001–2004), the (Steinkjer and Lierne, 2007), the Delos RAIPON seminar (2007), and UNESCO Initiative was introduced by Davydov. meetings in Copenhagen (2006). He The conference recommended intro- proposed that HCF VI should initiate a ducing the ideas of Delos Initiative to kick off meeting for a project of synergy the next HCF. of SNSs on natural and cultural heritages (HCF VI, 2010, 162). The fifth HCF was held in Umeå, Swe- den, on October 2008. HCFs had be- The synergy was also emphasised in came a part of the official Barents co- the cases from Finnish Lapland by operation and they were organised Norokorpi (HCF VI, 2010: 158–159, the with the participation of local people, Russian North by A. Davydov (HCF VI, NGO’s, scientific institutes and federal 2010: 155) and Svalbard/Spitsbergen and regional authorities of BEAR (HCF by W. Gorter and T. Minaeva. Finally, V, 2008: 3). At a session dedicated to N. Skytte presented results of a fieldtrip forest biodiversity conservation, Davy- to Pym-Va-Shor, the SNSs and unique dov presented a paper on SNSs in the hot water springs in Bolshezemelskaya forests of North-West Russia, introduc- tundra of the Nenets Autonomous Area ing the Delos Initiative to HCF (HCF V, (HCF VI, 2010: 161–162). V. Sahi intro- 2008: 54). It was noted that SNSs offer duced folk music as a tool of express- an opportunity to integrate cultural and ing the spiritual values of nature (HCF natural values. The approach may lead VI, 2010: 160–161). to a combination of conservation efforts that result in a synergy of benefits for both values (HCF V, 2008: 6). The Hyperborean dimension of the Delos Initiative The sixth HCF was held in Archangelsk from 31 May to 5 June 2010 (HCF VI, BEAR represents the northern most sa- 2010). It included, for the first time, a cred sites in Europe: holy crosses session on the synergy of spiritual and scattered on Svalbard/Spitsbergen, natural values in the BEAR. Franz-Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya Archipelagos, which are now protect- A paper by J.-M. Mallarach and Th. Pa- ed areas of different kinds. payannis on the Delos Initiative explained the idea of the Initiative and the In the mythology of many peoples North

248 is associated with an area filled with cold and purity, a place where ‘the edge of the world’ is located, or the border of oekumene, territory on the Earth occupied and developed by humans. North is also a ‘country of spirits’, the land of the dead. This mythological image of the North is emphasised by its geography. The North is truly an ex- traordinary land: winter night last for Rock carvings (rock paintings) in Alta (Finn- many months and the flashes of polar mark, Norway). lights flare up in the sky. In the summer the sky remains light during the nights, and the sun and the moon can be seen feeling of fate is believed to become at the same time. For centuries ‘North- sharper in the extreme conditions, ern dimension’ has been surrounded by which makes the attitude to the sacred the odour of sanctity in the cultures of places also keener. different peoples. In the Greek tradition, All these factors bring people closer to the legendary Leto (Lada), mother of each other, promoting mutual under- Apollo and Artemis, who gave birth to standing among the people of BEAR. them on the island of Delos, came from The North of Russia traditionally was a the North. The Hyperboreans loved by country for monks, hermits, and saints; Apollo and many times visited by him, the land associated with purity and ho- lived in an ideal country located ‘behind liness for centuries. The spiritual im- Boreas’. (HCF VI, 2010: 155). portance of the North for all Russia The concept of sacred is enriched by was proclaimed by scholars and phi- the extreme geography and climate in losophers, such as Georgy Fedotov: BEAR. The sailing in the Arctic Ocean is ‘Not only for us, but let the Russian more dangerous compared to warm North become a Country of Sacred waters. The image of St. Nicholas, as a Miracles, a Holy Land, in common with patron of sailors’ revival on the coasts Ancient Hellas or Medieval Italy, call- of the White and Barents Seas became ing pilgrims from all sides of the Earth’ popular. Crosses and chapels on is- (Fedotov, 2005:142). lands and coasts are reflected in the However, the fragile nature of BEAR in Pomor sayings: ‘There are 33 (St.) Nich- under an increasing pressures of mili- olases from Kholmogory to the Kola tary and industrial activities. Gas and Bay’ (sailing route by White and Barents oil deposits, gold and diamonds are of Seas), or ‘That man who has not visited a growing economic interest in BEAR. a Sea has not really prayed to God’.

To be a hermit in the taiga is incredibly hard, especially in winter time. The

249 Sacred natural sites and World tower (1862) on Kizhi Island. The is- Heritage Sites in the North land was considered sacred in the local folklore tradition. The museum has Some SNSs have been designated about 20 branches and there are World Heritage Sites (WHS) and in- chapels on the small islands and on cluded into the Field Guide to protect- the shores around Lake Onega. Some ed areas in BEAR (Günther, 2004). of these islands are also considered sacred in local folklore. Christian churches protected as World Heritage Sites The Church Village Gammelstad in Norrbotten, Sweden is a unique exam- The Cultural and Historic Ensemble of ple of a medieval church village in the Solovetsky Islands in Archangel North Scandinavia, established in Region consists of more than a hun- 1621. There are 424 small wooden dred islands (312.8 sq km). The area is houses around the stone church, cre- protected by Solovetsky State Histori- ating a SNS complex. The houses be- cal, Architectural and Natural Muse- longed to families from remote coun- um-Reserve since 1967. The monas- tryside places, which stayed at Gam- tery architecture complex of Transfigu- melstad for some days participating ration Cathedral (built in 1558–1566), weddings and church ceremonies. The the Church of Assumption (1552) and Gammelstadsviken Nature Reserve other buildings surrounded by the wall (435 hectares) was established in were included in the UNESCO World 1973, including Lake Gammelstadsvik- Heritage List in 1992. In addition, there en and its surrounding. are the holy mountain Golgofa (Calva- ry) and the holy lake Svyatoe ozero. In Archaeological World Heritage Sites spite of the ethnic and cultural changes, the geography of SNSs hardly Alta Rock Drawings in Finnmark, Nor- changed. Sacred stones -seidas- and way, include a group of petroglyphs on labyrinths are found on Zayatsky Is- the rocky coast of the Alta Fjord. land side by side with Christian Ortho- dox crosses and hermitages. Since the Sacred natural sites within the World revival of 1990, Solovetsky Islands are Heritage Sites as significant for the Orthodox Russia Virgin Komi Forests (about 30 000 sq as the Holy Mount Athos (Davydov et km) is the common name of the WHS of al, 2009). Pechoro-Ilychsky Natural Biosphere Re- Kizhi Pogost (Kizhi enclosure) is a part serve (11 346 sq km) and Yugyd Va Na- of the State Historic-Architectural Mu- tional Park (18 197 sq km) in the Komi seum Kizhy in Republic of Karelia. Republic, Russia. It is the largest main- There is an ensemble of the wooden land protected area in Russia. The east- Church of Transfiguration (1714?), ern border of the Park goes along the Church of Intercession (1708) and bell- ridge of the Ural Mountains. The pro-

250 tected area was included in the UN- the Northern Island of Novaya Zemlya ESCO World Heritage List in 1995. Archipelago (6320 sq km) and water There are numerous well-known SNSs area (7939 sq km); in total, it covers in the WHS: the Old Master, Stone 14 260 sq km. There are Pomor Holy Woman, Tel’pos-Iz Mountain, Arch grot- Crosses of Promise to God. to, Erkusey Mountain, Saran-Ded of Vodlozersky National Park (about 5000 Nenets people, and Man’ Pupy Ner of sq km, Republic of Karelia and Arch- Mansi people. angel Region) is the biggest wetland The Laponia World Heritage Site in protected area in BEAR, including sev- Norrbotten, Sweden, includes Stora eral SNSs such as the Petunij/Lyulyu- Sjöfallet (1278 sq km), Padjelanta ostrov Island (connected in local folk- (1984 sq km), Sarek (1970 sq km) and lore with vodyanoy, a spirit of water), Muddus National Parks (493 sq km) the Dechy Island (according to local and several nature reserves, valleys folklore, a place of sacrifice) and the and lakes. According to F. Forsmark Maly Kolgostrov Island with Il’insky Po- (County Administration of Norrbotten, gost - St Elias main church. pers. comm.) the Sámi people have several SNSs on the mountains, such Vaigachsky Nature Reserve (3330 sq as in Kvikkjokk and in Sarek, as well as km) lies in the Nenets Autonomous in the forest landscape, for example, in Area, Russia. The Vaigach Island has Gällivare close by (Akkavaara/Saivo). been a sacred place for all of the Nen- ets people from Yamal to Kanin peninsula for hundreds of years. Among Nationally protected areas with Nenet shamans there was a custom to sacred natural sites visit Vaigach and to build there a sacred place of their own. The name of The protected areas in the Spitsbergen this island in Nenets language is Archipelago, Norway, include the north- Heibedya Ya (Holy Land). The most ernmost Christian Crosses of Promise SNSs were: Cape Vesako (Old Man, to God in the world, which were erected Grandfather), Cape Hadako, (Grand- . there by the Russian Pomores mother), the stony cliff Nyuheh (Son) A protected area called Franz Josef and the island of Zinkovy with Semikiky Land Federal Zakaznik was estab- (Seven-Faces Spirit) wooden figure. lished in the Archangel Region in 1994, Inarijärvi Natura 2000 Area (900 sq km) with a total of 62 600 sq km of land and covers the biggest part of Lake Inari in water area. The Christian Crosses of Finland (1043 sq km). There are several Promise to God were built there by the islands which are the old cemeteries. Russian Pomores The famous Ukonsaari is a sacred rocky Russkaya Arktika (Russian Arctic) Na- island differing from of the other is- tional Park, Archangel Region, was lands. ‘The God of Thunder Ukko (Äijih) established in 2009, including a part of was the most powerful of all the male

251 Fell). Deer and their antlers were sacrificed on Uhriharju Ridge in hope of a successful hunt. (Y. Norokorpi, pers. comm.).

Kenozersky National Park in Archangel Region has 45 svyatye roschi (sacred groves) on its territory, most of them very discernible in the landscape. Some of these sacred groves look like a forest (Vershinino), whilst in other cases there are only a few trees surviving (Glazovo). The wooden crosses and Orthodox Christian chapels have remained in the sacred groves, but the old rites and folklore traditions show existence of the pre-Chirstian Fenno- Ugric spiritual substrate and a parallel with sacred groves of the Khanty and Mansi people in Siberia (Davydov, 2009).

In Muddus National Park in Norrbotten, A scheme of the location of sacred groves in Kenozersky National Park (Archangel Re- Sweden, there is Måskosårså, the sa- gion, Russia). cred natural site of the Sámi people. In Bonden and Snöan Islands Nature Sÿmi deities and his most important Reserve in Västerbotten, Sweden, in sacrificial site was Ukonsaari (Äijih)’ in the Gulf of Bothnia of the Baltic Sea, Inarijärvi (see Norokorpi and Ojanlatva, there are eight stone labyrinths. There 2007). are labyrinths also on Linskär and Stenskär Nature Reserves (Norrbotten, Pyhä-Luosto National Park, Finland, in- Sweden). cludes the Pyhätunturi area which means a sacred fell. Pyhänkasteen- Pasvik Nature Reserve in the Murmansk lampi Pond is located in its centre be- Region includes the sacred Kalkupya/ tween steep cliff walls. A stream flow- Kalkuaivve Sámi mountain. ing down into the lake forms a high In Saltfjellet-Svartisen National Park in shower-like waterfall, the Pyhäkaste. Nordland, Norway there are several The names tell of the beginnings of sacrificial sites of the Sámi people. Christianity and the old beliefs of the Forest Sámi (Pyhänkasteenlampi – In Hossa Hiking Area in Kainuu, the Holy Baptism pond, Uhriharju – Sacri- Värikallio rock paintings are amongst fice Ridge, and Noitatunturi – Witch the largest prehistoric rock paintings in

252 Finland. The pictures on the rock wall used as places for monastery build- rising from Lake Somerjärvi were paintings (e.g. Kozhozersky Monastery on ed about 3500 – 4500 years ago, and Lake Kozhozero). River and lake is- are located along a water route that lands were favourite places for soli- was used in ancient times, and include tude of Orthodox monks who started numerous separate figures depicting monasteries on islands, such as Nele- scenes of hunting and shamanic ritu- zin (River Volkhov), Kamenny (Lake als. The pictures in the rock paintings Kubenskoye), Valaam and Kon’-Ostrov are usually linked to hunting magic. Island (Lake Ladoga), Roschinsky Painted rock walls could also have (River Svir), Moug (Lake Mougozero) functioned as cult places of shamanic and Kiy-Ostrov Island (the Onega Bay worship (Y. Norokorpi, pers. comm.). in the White Sea). As an example, on the islands of Lake Onega, there are more than twenty Orthodox chapels. Sacred natural sites under Sacred capes: Svyatoy Nos (Sacred the protection of monastic Cape), is located on the Kola Peninsula communities in Russia. There are dangerous mael- Valaam Island in Ladoga Lake, Repub- stroms and in order to avoid shipwreck, lic of Karelia, is surrounded by several sailors would made sacrifices (e.g. small islands with skets. Since the food, flour, butter) near Svatoy Nos and twelfth century it became a hermitage pray to God to pass the place. and then, in 1160, a monastery. Now Sacred mountains: At Tjamstanberget the entire archipelago is managed by in Västerbotten, Sweden, there are the renewed Valaamsky Monastery. The many Sámi legends connected to sa- first monk of Valaam Island was Greek cred mountains, e.g. ättestupa, a steep monk Sergius, who came there as a rock face where old and infirm people hermit and also to proclaim the Gospel were thrown or threw themselves down to the pagans. Now the Valaam Archi- (Karlsson, 1999: 172–173). According pelago is managed by the revival mo- to a medieval legend, on the Witches nastic community of the Valaamsky Mountain on Vardø Island, in Finnmark, Monastery. witches were burned. Minisey, the leader reindeer, (Russian name Konstanti- Sacred natural sites protected by nov Kamen’) is a sacred mountain of Nenets people on the North Ural Moun- religious or folklore tradition tains. According to the legend, the Sacred islands: Spildra is a famous Daughter of Num (Num is a supreme burial site of noitta/noaidi (Sámi sha- spirit of the Nenets), was attacked by mans) in Finnmark, Norway. Monaster- Na (evil spirit) and all reindeers of her ies built on islands are typical of the argish (relay, team) were turned into Orthodox tradition of the Russian stones, which became the Ural North. Old Sámi shaman places were Mountains.

253 Sacred stones: In the Republic of Ka- Sea. A pilgrim path around Lake Ke- relia, special attention is paid to foot- nozero started and finished by the mark-stones, e.g. those near villages, walls of the Pahomiev Kensky Monas- such as Kokorino, Vojnitsa, Rinnoyarvi, tery. There was also a non-Christian Hvoyny, Volkostrov, Vidany, Masheze- traditional pilgrimage of the Nenets ro, Tarzhepol’, Ladva, Kurkieki, people on the tundra and then, using Pogrankondushi, Kinelahta, Viglitsa, traditional sledges drawn by swimming and Andrusovo. There are stones and reindeers, over the ice or on the water mountains which have lacunas in the of the Yugorsky Shar Gulf, to Heibidya forms of feet, hands, arrows, rings, Ya (Vaigach Island). footmarks of reindeers, bears, etc. These stones were used as places of Seidas of Sámi: include different geo- sacrifice, which were made famous by graphic/natural objects. In Finland, legends and local folklore. e.g. Taatsi in Kittilä, Näkkälä in Enon- tekiö, Sieiddakäedgi in Utsjoki, Koski- Sacred springs: Pym-Va-Shor is a SNS kaitiojoen suu in Inari, and Kirkkopahta with hot springs in the tundra of the and Porviniemi in Muonio (see Äikäs, in Nenets Autonomous Area in the Re- this book). public of Karelia, there are famous sacred springs like Tri Ivana (Three men Place names. North-West Russia: nu- with the name Ivan), Kamenny Bor merous place names include terms like (Stone Pine Forest). Some sacred svyatoy (holy), besov (devil’s), bolvan- springs in the Archangel Region have sky (idol’s), e.g. Svyatoe ozero (Holy chalybeate water (Matyora on Lake Lake), Svyatoy Nos (Holy Cape), Bes- Kenozero, Gavrilovo on River Vya), but ov Nos (Devil’s Cape), Bolvansky Mys some of them do not (Lyavlya on River (Idol’s Cape), Bolvanskaya Gora (Idol’s Severnaya Dvina). mountain), etc. Place names with the Sacred groves and trees: the Koz’min Karelian prefixpig- in the Republic of Perelesok sacred grove of the Nenets Karelia (look pyhä in Finland). In the people is situated on the Kanin Penin- Nenets language there is the prefixhe- sula, Russia. Sacred pines are found (sacred), like Hebidya Ya, hekur (sa- near the Myagozero Village, Republic cred small stone ‘pyramid’), Yau- of Karelia. mal He, etc. Northern Finland: see Pilgrimage paths and routes: In North- Väisänen (in this book) and Norokorpi West Russia there was a pilgrim path and Ojanlatva (2007). Northern Nor- on the Onega Peninsula from Archan- way: Mortensnes (Cape of Dead), the gel to the Letnyaya Zolotitsa Village prefixtroll , a mythology giant and spirit and then by sea to the Solovetsky Is- of mountains, e.g. Trollfjord. Northern lands. However, the most popular was Sweden: Trollsjön. For all of the territo- the sailing pilgrimage from Archangel ry of Sámi Land there are seid (seida, to Solovetsky Monastery by the White seidi).

254 Concluding remarks spiritual values into consideration when establishing protected areas, Sometimes common mythology and and to encourage the use of folk art cultural heritage can be used as an ar- expressing the intangible values of na- gument in developing the transbound- ture and society. The HCF VI wel- ary cooperation. For instance, the comed the application of the IUCN/ Finnish/Karelian epic Kalevala gave UNESCO Guidelines on Sacred Natu- name to a large protection area com- ral Sites and the Delos Initiative, and plex, the Kalevala Parks, situated in expressed the support for the next Finland and Russia, including places workshop to be convened in Inari, where this epic poem was collected Finland’. from the local people in the nineteenth century by Elias Lönnrot. The territory However, despite all that has been ex- contains SNSs on capes and islands, plained on SNSs, research and inven- where posts with bear skulls used to tory of SNSs in BEAR are still largely stand even at the beginning of the neglected, and the implementation of twentieth century (Metsähallitus, 2005: the Delos Initiative in the North of Eu- 336). rope is vital. This gap is reflected in the publications about protected areas in Both Pasvik-Inari and Interpark Kaleva- the BEAR which have not devoted spe- la will be included in the international cial attention to SNSs, or to the spiritu- project on the Green Belt of Fenno al heritage in general. scandia, a new form of networking of forests, mires and fell areas spanning The North can be seen as a kind of re- the borders of Northern Norway, East- frigerator of cultural values, which let ern Finland and North-Western Russia us start a international project which (HCF VI, 2010: 91,176; Günther, 2004: could be the identity of the BEAR in 50). synergy of natural and spiritual values - a Hyperborean projection of the De- The Resolution of the sixth HCF stated los Initiative. that ‘the need to take the cultural and

255 References

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HCF III (2004), Habitat Contact Forum in Kuhmo 2003. In Lindholm T. and Keinon- en E. (eds), Proceedings of the 3rd Meeting of the International Contact Forum on Habitat Conservation in the Barents Region. Helsinki.. HCF IV (2006), Международный контактный форум по сохранению местообитаний в Баренцевом регионе: Материалы IV совещания (Сыктывкар, Республика Коми, 19-25 сентября 2005 г.). Сыктывкар. International Contact Fo- rum on Habitat Conservation in the Barents Region. Fourth meeting. Proceedings. Syktyvkar.

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257 258 Part Six: Other related issues

259 Applicability of the IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines for Protected Area Managers on Sacred Natural Sites: first assessment Josep-Maria Mallarach

Introduction and context Two guidance documents presented at the 2008 World Conservation Congress Since the last World Congress on Pro- deserve special recognition in this re- tected Areas in Durban, South Africa, spect: the UNESCO-IUCN Guidelines for 2003, the discussion about the rele- Protected Area Managers on Sacred Nat- vance of sacred naturals sites on nature conservation in general, and protected ural Sites (Wild and McLeod, 2008) and areas in particular, has gained momen- the Guidelines for Applying Protected tum within IUCN and related organisa- Area Management Categories (Dudley, tions. The efforts undertaken by several 2008). Among the significant improve- working groups within the World Com- ments that the last document includes in mission on Protected Areas and the relation to the previous guidelines for ap- Commission of Environmental, Econom- plying protected area management cate- ic Policies of IUCN, in particular the gories (IUCN, 1994) is the inclusion, for Specialist Group on Cultural and Spirit- the first time, of SNSs in all categories of ual Values of Protected Areas, have al- protected areas, with a large table that ready introduced the concept of sacred provides examples of all of them, and natural site (SNS) in some significant also the inclusion of the governance di- guidance documents and succeed in mension, which allows the consideration mainstreaming this topic in the broader of traditional custodians and religious or- international conservation agenda. ganisations related to SNSs.

260 On the other hand, the UNESCO-IUCN The decision to prioritise the SNSs of in- Guidelines for Protected Area Manag- digenous peoples and local communi- ers on Sacred Natural Sites was a mile- ties in the Guidelines was fully justified, stone, which substantially developed since these are the sites, and the peo- previous IUCN documents dealing with ples, that have been suffering the worse the concept of sacred areas, such as impacts and facing the greatest threats the Guidelines for Mountain Protected and challenges, deserving, therefore, Areas (Larry et al., 2006). The Guide- all possible support and attention from lines on Sacred Natural Sites have al- IUCN. As a matter of fact, most mem- ready been translated into Spanish bers of the Specialist Group on Cultural and Russian and are currently been and Spiritual Values of Protected Areas translated into other major world lan- are involved in activities supporting in- guages, since the topic is of global indigenous peoples and local communi- terest. They address managers of pro- ties in impoverished countries. tected areas that have been estab- On the other hand, most of the work lished on SNSs, providing guidance on that has been done at the international ways to integrate this pre-existing pro- level during the last few years, fo- tection, based on spiritual values, so cussed on indigenous peoples. This as to avoid potential conflicts, and pro- was already apparent in the UNESCO mote the conservation of both the natu- workshop of Xishuangbanna, 2003, ral and spiritual heritage. where the proceedings, entitled ‘The The Preamble of the Guidelines states Importance of Sacred Natural Sites for that: ‘during the process of guideline Biodiversity Conservation’ (Lee and development, it was recognised that Schaaf, 2003) do not discuss case mainstream faiths also care for numer- studies related to the three largest ous sacred natural sites and many world religions. Similarly, in the have profound teachings related to the UNESCO-IUCN Tokyo International relationship between humans and na- Symposium on the role of SNSs and ture. We have endeavoured to develop cultural landscapes (Schaaf and Lee the guidelines in such a way that they 2006), sacred natural sites related to Christianity and Islam were also are broadly applicable to the sacred absent. natural sites of all faiths. (...) This attempt to incorporate limited experienc- Within the Specialist Group on Cultural es of mainstream faiths should be con- and Spiritual Values of Protected Areas sidered preliminary. Further work is it was agreed that the purpose and needed to analyse and understand the scope of work of The Delos Initiative diversity of sacred natural sites re- was well suited to completing the exist- vered by mainstream faiths, which ing UNESCO-IUCN Guidelines on Sa- comprise the great majority of human- cred Natural Sites, so that the comple- kind. Of course, efforts to put such ide- mentary guidelines could be better ap- as into categories fail at some point’. plicable to SNSs related to mainstream

261 religions, as well as to SNSs where open, recognising the limitations of the there is an overlapping of religions and/ western words ‘sacred’, ‘natural’ and or spiritual traditions. For this reason, ‘site’, and, as a consequence, it has during the Inari workshop a session been argued that ‘it is important than was devoted to discuss the applicabili- the concept remains open for further ty of the existing Guidelines. articulation’ (Vershuuren et al, 2010).

Before going further, it is appropriate to The importance of SNSs for nature briefly ponder the concept of sacred. conservation is extremely significant The English word ‘sacred’ comes from and has been widely discussed during the Latin word ‘sacer’ and its derivative the last years (Dudley et el. 2005; ‘sacratum’ which means ‘set apart to, Thorley and Gunn, 2007; Verschuuren or for, some religious purpose’, or ‘con- et al, 2010). It suffices to say that sa- secrated’. For this reason, sacred sites cred natural sites are the oldest type of are separated, protected, from out- protected areas that have been around ward, ‘profane’ influences, and for mil- for many centuries, even millennia in lennia, on all continents, they have some regions, showing an amazing re- been the predecessors of modern pro- silience to different civilisations or reli- tected areas. The concept of sacred gions. In some parts of the world, land or water can be found, in one way SNSs continue to effectively protect of another, in most, if not all, the reli- critical elements of the natural herit- gions of the world; although in some of age, in some cases more significant or them there is no specific word for it (Eli- extensive than those protected by le- ade, 1959; Nasr, 1989, 1996). It is also gally established modern protected ar- applied, beyond religious frames, in eas, and often more efficiently. different forms of spirituality (Mann and Davis, 2010)

The IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines pro- Context of sacred natural sites vides the following simple working def- for mainstream religions inition of sacred site: ‘A sacred site is According to the best estimates avail- an area of special spiritual significance able, over 80% of humankind is either to peoples and communities’, which affiliated to or influenced by main- was first proposed by Oviedo and stream religions. Christianity and Islam Jeanrenaud (2007). Another operation- alone encompass more than 50% of al definition is ‘a sacred site is a place the world population, and both reli- in the landscape, occasionally over or gions are globally growing in relative under water, which is specially revered and absolute terms (O’Brien and Palm- by people, culture or cultural group as er, 2007). a focus for spiritual belief and practice or likely religious observance’ (Thorley Although the concept of the sacred, and Gunn, 2007). These working defi- and by consequence, that of SNSs, nitions are deliberately broad and has continuity across cultures, all over

262 the world (Eliade, 1959), there are also the form of SNSs, although many of significant differences among SNSs, them have been making significant ef- which cannot be underestimated if one forts to recover and reformulate the an- is to produce guidelines well suited to cient Christian teachings on nature the characteristics of the main types of (Hessel and Ruether, 2000) and some SNSs. have a better environmental record than other Christian churches. The Most religions share basic principles Catholic Church is in between, usually towards nature, resulting in the need closer to the eastern branches of Chris- for respect. However, when we take a tianity in the countryside and natural ar- closer look we find quite different atti- eas. Moreover, within each branch an- tudes towards nature, and natural sa- other distinction needs to be made be- cred manifestations, resulting in very tween the outward and the inward di- diverse types of SNSs. An important mension, the last usually associated distinction can be drawn between ‘in- with mystical teaching, always much tact’ SNSs, where the natural compo- closer to nature and all living beings. nents have not been modified, and access is usually restricted, and sacred On the other hand, religions are not sites that have been consecrated, in- static. Over the centuries religions cluding shrines or sanctuaries, whose change the interpretation of their spirit- shape usually symbolises or synthesis- ual teachings and, to an even greater es the entire cosmos, attracting faith- extent, how these are translated into so- ful, in some cases in limited numbers, cial, economic and environmental poli- in other cases by the millions. Made cy and practices, to adapt to new cir- following the rules of traditional scienc- cumstances and challenges. The way es, these sacred buildings often in- in which mainstream religions are re- cluding relics or other sacred objects, sponding to current global challenges, which add significant value to the with increased environmental aware- sanctity of the site (Burckhardt, 1958). ness, and renewed responsibilities towards the natural world, is one example Diversity exists not only between reli- of such a change. It is also important to gions, but within all of them. Different underline that new SNSs are continually branches of a single world religion may recognised, either because the percep- have quite different views regarding the tion of a place changes, or because the sanctity of nature. Christianity pro- faithful move (Dudley et al., 2005). vides a good example of that. The Eastern, Coptic and Orthodox church- Although the exact figures are not es are those that retain the clearer known for any of the world religions, teaching about the sacredness of na- and will probably never be known, the ture, and, at the other end of the spec- number of SNSs related to mainstream trum, the Reformed or Protestant religions is extremely high. In the case churches are among those that have of the Indian subcontinent, for instance, the weakest links with nature, at least in the number of sacred groves related to

263 Hinduism has been estimated at changes, being reused by consecutive 100 000 to 150 000 (Malhotra, 1998), religions or spiritual traditions, either not to mention the numerous sacred historic and/or current, displaying mountains, like Mount Khailas, sacred overlapping values which often show rivers, like the Ganges, etc. In Ethiopia, complex relationships. Even if the spir- the second most populated country of itual tradition has vanished, contempo- Africa, where Christianity has been the rary society often displays respect for main religion for about two millennia, it ancient SNSs. is estimated that over 35 000 ‘church Some protected areas include a high forests’ have been conserved, usually diversity of SNSs, which are still highly located next to modest church build- relevant for the local population and ings, huts or caves where hermits have provide powerful incentives for respect been living, providing vital biodiversity and conservation, even if they are re- reservoirs in the context of extensive lated to extinct civilisations, which are deforestation and deteriorated land- still accessible in both tangible and in- scapes (Tree Foundation, 2010). tangible manner. On the other hand, many countries do Last, but not least, one has to recall not have SNSs related to indigenous or that mainstream religions and related local peoples, but only SNSs related to organisations are among the oldest mainstream religions. This is the case and more resilient social structures in of many European and Middle Eastern the world. All world religions have sig- countries. However, in most of the nificant teachings on cosmology, and a world, SNSs related to mainstream reli- long experience in nature conserva- gions coexist with SNSs related to in- tion, in diverse forms, including SNSs, digenous spiritual traditions, in differ- and most of them are increasingly in- ent degrees of harmony. terested in nature conservation in the SNSs related to mainstream religions face of the global losses of biodiversi- are found in protected areas belonging ty. Moreover, some religious organisa- to all IUCN categories (Vershuuren et tions are significant landowners and al., 2007). In some countries, individual they properties include valuable natu- protected areas or even entire systems ral areas. For all these reasons they of protected areas, are owned and/or could be significant agents and also managed by religious organisations. A influential allies of conservation organi- case in point is South Korea, where a sations, as has been widely acknowl- large portion of the system of national edged (Palmer and Finaly, 2003). parks was established over the properties of Buddhist monastic communities (Hugh Kim, personal communication) Validation aims and process

A considerable number of SNSs have What follows is a brief description of been resilient to cultural and spiritual the methodology used in the workshop

264 to assess the applicability of the exist- plicability of the existing Guidelines for ing IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines, fol- Protected Area Managers on Sacred lowed by the conclusions that were Natural Sites. Therefore, the validation attained. method itself was put into test. Partici- pants were organised into three Some weeks before the workshop, a groups. The first group dealing with document was sent to all the partici- SNSs of indigenous peoples; the sec- pants explaining the purpose and the ond one with mainstream SNSs and the methodology of the exercise, and asking them to prepare the participatory third one with a subset of the former, session. In particular, they were in- namely SNSs related to monastic com- formed that in a previous analysis, dur- munities. Each participant filled in a ta- ing the elaboration of the Guidelines, a ble with the existing guidelines, where number of concepts and related key he or she should indicate, whether terms had been found to be missing to each particular guideline was either ful- be fully applicable to the main world ly applicable to all SNSs, need- religions, including ‘faithful, guest ing some new wording/language to be houses, holy people, holy sites, mon- applicable to all cases, or needing con- asteries, monastic communities, reli- cepts not included in the existing gious authorities, religious organisa- Guidelines. The participants were also tions, religious values, shrines, tem- told that they should explore, whether ples, tombs and worshippers’. During additional guidelines, if any, should be the subsequent exchanges of corre- included to cover the diversity of SNSs spondence, it became clear that addi- related to mainstream religions. In each tional significant concepts were miss- group there was one person able to an- ing, including those of: pilgrimages, swer the doubts of the participants. sanctuaries, processions, and reli- One of them was Rob Wild, co-author gious landscape. of the Guidelines.

The Inari/Aanaar workshop was at- As one could expect, the range of re- tended by some 30 experts from 14 sponses obtained during this exercise countries, with very diverse experi- was very wide, reflecting the range of ence and backgrounds. They all had in expertise of the participants, their par- common a working experience in deal- ticular experience, and also their dif- ing with SNSs in Europe. However, the ferent backgrounds. experience of some experts was Whilst some participants considered based in a limited number of SNSs, of that most guidelines are applicable, the the same type, whilst in others it was majority considered that a good num- based in hundreds of sacred sites re- ber of guidelines are not applicable as lated to diverse religions. they are, and suggested various chang- The session devoted to this exercise es. The most experienced participants was the first attempt to assess the ap- considered that between 20–50 per

265 cent of the existing Guidelines are not Christian, and some related to pre- applicable as they are to the SNSs in Christian traditions, it was consid- which they have been working. ered that seven guidelines are not applicable as they are, and need to modify their language. Results on the applicability of • Based on the diverse types of SNSs Guidelines of Finland, 16 guidelines are not applicable as they are, and it was sug- Participants considered that some gested to modify the concepts in missing concepts and related key seven of them. terms would be useful for the guide- • Based on the experience of SNSs lines to be fully applicable to the world from Mexico, mainly related to indig- religions. These concepts include enous traditions, with some Catholic faithful, guest houses, holy people, and mixed sites, 17 Guidelines are holy sites, monasteries, monastic com- not applicable as they are, and it was munities, religious authorities (only ap- suggested to modify the concepts on pears once, in table 2), religious or- seven guidelines and there is need ganisations, religious values (only ap- to modify the language on the re- pears in two case studies), shrines, maining ten guidelines. temples, tombs, worshipers. • Based on the experience of SNSs of Guidelines for SNSs devoted to main- Italy, mostly Catholic, between 16 stream religions and sites with overlap- and 20 guidelines – according to dif- ping faiths / spiritual traditions may de- ferent experts – are not applicable as cide to use alternative concepts. For they are, and it was proposed that instance, instead of SNSs, holy natural the concepts need modification, sites or holy natural places may be while in some cases it was also sug- preferable to several branches of gested that the language needs Christianity and Islam. This nuance modification. may seem minor, but in their respective • Based on the experience of SNSs of theologies it is significant, because the Romania, mostly Christian Orthodox, concept of sacred is reserved to the 14 guidelines are not applicable as divine order. For this reason, guide- they are, requiring modification of lines that include new concepts may their language. change their very title. In addition, a preliminary assessment Next, the results of the first assessment was done for SNSs tied to specific based on the experience of certain world religions, with the following countries (Belarus, Finland, Italy, Lithu- results: ania, Mexico and Spain) have been • Based on the experience of SNSs re- summarised. lated to Christianity and Islam in 20 • Based on a large number of SNSs countries from Europe, Africa and from Lithuania and Belarus, mainly Asia, 13 Guidelines are directly ap-

266 plicable as they are, eight would re- ers to adopt measure seeking for si- quire modifying somewhat their lan- lence, solitude and beauty, as prereq- guage, and 20 would require modify- uisites for experiencing sacredness of ing at least one concept. nature in all spiritual traditions. • Based on the Christian Orthodox • In the process of revitalisation it is im- SNSs in several European countries, portant to be aware of the cultural it was found that 19 guidelines were appropriation, and to avoid ‘theft’. not applicable as they are, of which • SNSs can be social and even politi- five need to modify some concepts. cal drivers or motivators of conserva- Other comments: tion by connecting urban people with nature in deeper ways than non-sa- • The distinction between indigenous cred protected areas can. and mainstream faiths is an oversim- plistic dichotomy. There is a need to include ‘cultural’ or ‘folk’ variants and Discussion and conclusions the enrichment of mainstream faiths, and also the inner or mystical dimen- The significance of this validation exer- sion of the religions. cise reflects the limitation of the partici- • Some custodians fear of ‘New Age’ pants to the workshop and their exper- spiritual movements, because they tise. This was the first validation exer- may interfere with traditional practic- cise, which hopefully will be followed es and create disruptions. by other assessments, in other re- • Intellectual property rights (Access and gions, to obtain a better understanding Benefit Sharing, CBD) are not well cov- of the aspects of the existing Guide- ered in the existing Guidelines. lines that would be desirable to review • Psychological wellbeing should also or complement. be included, because SNSs are con- The existing IUCN-UNESCO Guide- sidered to be life givers, both biologi- lines for Protected Area Managers of cally and spiritually. Sacred Natural Sites are both relevant • Landscape symbolism is often very and useful. All the participants of the significant, has many implications for assessment agreed that the Guide- nature conservation and should be lines are very significant. Were they im- better discussed. plemented, a large number of the • The relations between spiritual con- problems and conflicts affecting SNSs nectivity (pilgrimages paths and in many countries, especially those re- trails) and ecological connectivity lated to indigenous peoples and local should be better explored. communities, could have been either • Identifying, layering and the implicit prevented or addressed and solved. meaning of local practices is their underlying (but possibly forgotten) The main conclusion of the exercise ecological or social function. conducted in the workshop is that the • The need for protected area manag- existing guidelines have to be further

267 tested, refined, adapted and comple- Like any other natural or human organ- mented. At least about one third of the isation, religion and spiritual traditions guidelines were considered directly are a dynamic and evolving, and so applicable as such to SNSs related to are SNSs, at the interface of nature mainstream religions, and a similar and the deepest aspirations of human- proportion could be applicable with kind. Analogously with deteriorated limited adaptation of language of con- landscapes or habitats, there may be a cepts. Taking into consideration the need of recognition and revitalisation global scope they have, and the ex- of SNSs that have been neglected. In traordinary diversity included, this fact those cases a holistic approach that is very positive. embraces all dimensions of heritage seems highly advisable. The results attained further prove the need to continue working on analysing Having said all that, one has to ac- additional case studies related to knowledge that the diversity of SNSs of mainstream religions so that either the the world is such that any global guide- next version of the Guidelines, or per- lines, no matter how developed or re- haps complementary guidelines that fined they may be, will always need may be produced in the near future, some degree of adaptation to the re- may better cover the existing diversity gional or national characteristics, or to of SNSs of the world. particular religious or spiritual traditions. Human diversity in this respect is When guidelines for SNSs for main- bewildering. A number of key concepts stream religions are produced, it will of the existing Guidelines – including be necessary to take into considera- sacred and nature – are absent in tion representative case studies, care- many of the world languages and fully analysed, not only from all world worldviews. religions, i.e. their different branches, their mystical dimensions, as well as Global Guidelines on Sacred Natural their combination with folk religions, Sites could hopefully inspire regional and/or other religions or local spiritual or national guidelines. In some Euro- traditions, because of the significant pean countries, like Spain, a participa- differences that exist among them in tory process is being planned by the this respect. national section of the EUROPARC Federation to produce national guid- Guidelines related to living SNSs prob- ance to managers of protected areas ably have to be better emphasised as for incorporating the intangible herit- a dynamic process. As suggested by age in protected area planning and ICCROM (Stovel et al., eds. 2005), liv- management. ing religious heritage is a crucial component of SNSs that also has to be safeguarded.

268 References

Burckhardt, T. (1958). Principes et Méthodes de l’art sacré. Lyons: Derain [Sacred Art in East and West]. Bedfont, Middlesex, England: Perennial Books, 1967

Coomaraswamy, A.K. (1934). The transformation of Nature in Art. Harvard Univer- sity Press. Dover Publication, New York.

Dudley, N.; Higgings-Zogib L. and Mansourian, S. (2005). Beyond Belief: Linking faiths and protected areas to support biodiversity conservation. World Wildlife Fund for Nature, Equilibrium and Alliance of Religions and Conservation.

Eliade, M. (1945). Le Sacré et le Profane. [The Sacred and the Profane]. Ed. Gal- limard, Paris.

Hessel, D.T. and Ruether, R.R., eds. (2000). Christianity and Ecology: Seeking the Well-Being of Earth and Humans. Cambridge, Mass.: Distributed by Harvard Uni- versity Press for the Harvard University Center for the Study of World Religions.

IUCN/WCPA. (1994). Guidelines for Protected Area Management Categories. Gland and Cambridge: IUCN.

O’Brien, J. and Palmer. M. (2007). The Atlas of Religions. Mapping Contemporary Challenges and Beliefs. The Earthscan Atlas Series.

Lee, C. and Schaaf, T. (eds.) (2003). The importance of sacred natural sites for biodiversity conservation. Proceedings of the International Workshop held in Kun- ning and Xishuangbanna Biosphere Reserve, People’s Republic of China, Febru- ary 2003. UNESCO Paris.

Mallarach, J.-M. and Papayannis, T. (eds.) (2007). Protected Areas and Spiritual- ity. Proceedings of the First Workshop of The Delos Initiative – Montserrat 2006. Gland, Switzerland: The World Conservation Union (IUCN); Barcelona, Spain: Pub- licacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat.

Malhotra, K.C. (1998). Cultural and ecological value of natural sacred sites in Oris- sa, India: Threats and opportunities. In ‘Natural sacred sites, cultural diversity and natural diversity’ International Symposium UNESCO-CNRS-MNHN, Paris, Septem- ber 1998.

Mann, A.T. and Davis, L. (2010) Sacred Landscapes. The Threshold Between Worlds. Sterling Publishing, New York / London. Nasr, S.H. (1989). Knowledge and the Sacred. New York, USA: State University of New York Press.

Nasr, S.H. (1996). Religion and the order of nature: the 1994 Cadbury Lectures at the University of Birmingham. New York; Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996.

269 Oviedo, G. and Jeanrenaud, S. (2007). Protecting Sacred Natural Sites of Indige- nous and Traditional Peoples, in Mallarach, J.-M. and Papayannis, T., eds. Protect- ed Areas and Spirituality. Proceedings of the First Workshop of The Delos Initiative – Montserrat 2006. Gland, Switzerland: The World Conservation Union (IUCN); Barcelona, Spain: Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, pp. 77-100.

Palmer, M. and Finlay, V. (2003). Faiths and Environment. Faith in Conservation. New Approaches to Religions and the Environment. World Bank, Washington, D.C.

Papayannis, T. and Mallarach, J-M, eds. (2009). The Sacred Dimension of Protect- ed Areas: Proceedings of the Second Workshop of the Delos Initiative - Ouranoup- olis 2007. IUCN; Athens, Greece: Med-INA.

Schaaf, T. and Lee, C. (eds.) (2006) Conserving cultural and biological diversity. The role of sacred natural sites and cultural landscapes. Proceedings of the UN- ESCO-IUCN International Conference, Tokyo, Japan, UNESCO, Paris.

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270 Inputs and comments from the workshop

The participants of the Delos3 Inari/ needs. Thus, the following main Aanaar workshop have made the fol- categories of SNSs could be inden- lowing significant comments during tified: the workshop sessions and while dis- a) Recognised SNSs that are al- cussing the Inari/Aanaar Statement at ready celebrated and protected, the closing session of the workshop: b) Revitalised SNSs where historical recognition has lapsed, but is 1. Participants confirmed that sacred being regenerated, and natural sites are places, in their c) New SNSs, where there has been broader sense, both historical and little or no traditional recognition re- contemporary, that express the bio- lated to acknowledged spiritual logical, cultural and spiritual diver- signs, and sity of life and form an integral part d) Ancient SNSs that do not have of the cultural identity of many hu- religious significance for contempo- man communities and societies in rary society. Europe, as elsewhere. 3. Recognition of SNSs may help in 2. SNSs should be understood not just building up a wider constituency for as static entities, rooted in the past, nature conservation and filling gaps but also as being dynamic and in protected area systems. Protect- evolving with changing human ed areas, SNSs and other natural

271 features and landscapes with a 6. Hermitages and hermit domains strong spiritual dimension contrib- are in need, hence in synergy, of ute to human wellbeing, mental and strictly protected areas, with very physical health, by providing se- limited public use. They are endan- rene and beautiful places where gered and threatened in many people can slow down, and experi- countries, despite the fact that her- ence peace, harmony, beauty and mits can be seen as prototype of the interconnectedness with the in- human beings in harmony with Na- tangible or spiritual dimensions of ture. Promoting the implementation Nature. of the concept of hermit reserves is, therefore, fully justified. 4. The significant differences that exist within religions or with SNSs of pre- 7. SNSs should be inventoried in or- vious religions and spiritual tradi- der to avoid involuntary damage to tions, as well as their practices in them and irreversible losses of cul- relation with the environment and tural, spiritual and natural heritage. nature conservation can be seen as However, some SNSs are widely opportunities for developing more known, while others are private and effective approaches for conserv- only known by a limited number of ing threatened SNSs. Additionally, people. In order to respect the pri- the reconciliation between faiths vacy and to take into account the and religions that have been in con- sensitivity of the spiritual values and flict is of utmost importance, espe- the risks involved, special attention cially in SNSs where there has been should be paid to the appropriate conflicts among different religions level of public access to the data- or spiritual traditions. bases and other information on sacred sites. This approach is analo- 5. Attitudes of deep respect for nature gous to that followed for areas vital conservation in Christianity are for critically endangered species. linked in many regions to the outstanding example set up by holy 8. There is a need to develop tools people, like St Francis of Assisi in and techniques to communicate Southern Europe and the Middle and interpret the spiritual, holy or East, St Cuthbert in England, St sacred dimension of protected are- Patrick in Ireland, and St Seraphin as to the visitors and the public at of Sarov in Russia. The attempts to large. In this respect, traditional lo- recover nature conservation theolo- cal songs, arts, crafts, etc should gy and conservation implications, be used as the preferred tools to such as those from Celtic Christian- convey the spiritual and intangible ity, or Celtic saints, for instance in values of Nature to the visitors of the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, are protected areas, especially in the very important. visitor centres. In addition, intangible values and the arts can be an

272 equally effective tool as interpreta- significant species (symbolic, iden- tion and communication activities, tity, etc) should be incorporated in while involving locals in conserva- the study, planning and manage- tion activities. ment of SNSs.

9. SNSs and other sites with special 14. Special attention needs to be paid spiritual and cultural value should to and significant support is to be be incorporated into the national offered equally to those sacred nat- legislation. When necessary, public ural sites of indigenous people that access, construction and other hu- have already been recognised as man activities should be limited, well as to those that are not yet both inside and around SNSs, to known as sacred natural sites. ensure the values of the sites. Spir- 15. In various countries of Europe, nat- itual values should also be legally ural sites considered sacred since recognised as arguments for estab- prehistoric times and which are of- lishing protected areas. ten located in areas of high natural 10. The message of religious traditions heritage value have been recog- and wisdom that foster a deep, nised and inventoried. Several case meaningful, and lasting bond with studies from the Baltic countries nature and carry out respectful showed that these sites still have practices on nature conservation significance for current societies and sustainable environmental (identity, iconic, symbolic, etc.). In management should be more wide- Estonia, where the heritage con- ly disseminated. nected to sacred natural sites is significantly rich, a state level con- 11. Transboundary, regional and sub- servation plan (Estonian National regional co-operation, such as the Conservation Plan for Sacred Natu- Barents Euro-Arctic region and the ral Sites) has been prepared and Carpathian region, are very impor- adopted to instruct conducting the tant and should be encouraged inventories and saving the sacred when promoting synergies between natural sites. In order to ensure effi- the conservation of natural heritage cient conservation of sacred natural and spiritual heritage. sites appropriate legal status and 12. The significance of the United Na- management measures are tions Declaration on the Rights of needed. Indigenous Peoples (UN DRIP) was 16. The Delos Initiative could explore stressed, as well as the Principle of whether other international instru- Free, Prior and Informed Consent ments (such as the Habitat Contact and Indigenous Peoples (FPIC). Forum, the Barents Region Protect- 13. The concepts of animal spirits, to- ed Areas Network and the Car- temic species and other cultural pathian Network of Protected Are-

273 as) can make contributions to SNSs Documentation that demonstrates the and to the inclusion of the general important contributions of sacred or spiritual values of Nature to nature holy natural sites created and main- conservation strategies, plans and tained by religious communities, includ- programmes. ing monastic communities and other groups of believers of the world, make 17. A first assessment on the relevance to the conservation of biodiversity and of the 2008 IUCN-UNESCO Guide- to the long-term maintenance of eco- lines for Managers on Sacred Natu- systems that provide many benefits to ral Sites (which focus on indigenous communities, peoples and countries. Sacred Natural Sites) performed during the workshop showed that Our recommendation that measures to between 20-50% of the existing value and protect sacred natural sites guidelines would need to modify ei- of all peoples and communities be ther the concepts or the language adopted by the CBD Parties at national to be fully useful and applicable to and international level, with due re- SNSs related to mainstream reli- spect to the traditional governance gions. This result justifies the Delos systems that have taken care and Initiative goal to developing addi- maintained such sites for centuries or tional guidelines for natural sacred millennia, and with due and meaning- sites related to mainstream religions ful involvement of their custodians at all relevant levels. 18. It is recommended that the Delos Initiative should bring to the atten- Our request to CBD Parties and other tion of the Contracting Parties of the stakeholders involved in the implemen- CBD at their 10th Conference to be tation of the Convention to work to- held in Nagoya, Japan, in October gether with religious organisations and 2010 the following: the traditional custodians of sacred sites to support the improvement of Our concern that the important contri- tools and approaches, as well as ap- butions of sacred natural sites, land- propriate policy frameworks, to en- scapes and waters of indigenous peo- hance the resilience of sacred natural ples and local communities to the ob- sites in the face of global changes that jectives of the Convention are in dan- bring new and unprecedented chal- ger because of threats represented by lenges to their present and future not acknowledging the role they play maintenance. as protected areas, unsound developments and lack of recognition of the rights of their custodians to decide on the present and future management of such sites.

274 Conclusions

Results rooted native and local communities. In spite of the ubiquitous impacts of ho- The Delos3 Workshop in Inari/Aanaar mogenisation and globalisation, they at- of Finland proved to be rich in contri- tempt to maintain their ancient beliefs butions concerning the diversity of sa- and traditions, most of which are imbued cred natural sites (SNSs) of Europe, by deep and pervasive spirituality. In their ancient origins, their fascinating fact, these traditions are being regener- history, the challenges and threats they ated and strengthened in quite a few face in the contemporary context and cases, creating hope for the future. their prospects for the future. These contributions generated lively discus- While some of the most prominent SNSs sions and led to conclusions through a related to major faiths in Europe are be- process of structured debate. ing recognised and efforts for their integrated management are on the way, In spite of the diversity of opinions pre- much less has been done about the sented and defended, certain generally natural sites with spiritual relevance for accepted currents permeated the whole indigenous peoples and local commu- process. A strong element was the reali- nities, with some highly interesting ex- sation that the old continent of Europe in- ceptions presented during the work- cludes vibrant indigenous peoples (such shop. Thus, the main conclusions of the as the Sámi in Finland, Sweden, Norway event were incorporated in the Inari/ and NW Russia) and numerous well- Aanaar Statement, included below.

275 The Inari/Aanaar Statement protection with an appropriate legal on the diversity of sacred natural status and management measures. sites in Europe 3. Some protected areas of Europe in- The 30 participants from 14 countries clude a high diversity of SNSs from (Estonia, Finland, Greece, Italy, Latvia, consecutive civilisations, as Majella Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, National Park in Italy exemplifies. Romania, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Swit- Many of these sacred sites are still zerland, and United Kingdom) in the highly relevant for the local popula- Third Workshop of the Delos Initiative, tion and provide powerful incen- held in Inari, Finland on 1-3 July 2010, tives for respect and conservation. arrived at the following conclusions 4. Christian and Buddhist organisations and recommendations: involved in land management in Eu- 1. The indigenous Sámi peoples and rope are gradually adopting atti- their traditions – as well as the tradi- tudes and practices of increased tions of most indigenous religions – respect for the natural environment. are of great importance in the con- Such positive developments must text of the cultural, spiritual and nat- be made known widely to encour- ural heritage of Europe. In particu- age their faithful and other religious lar, their views emphasising the in- organisations along these lines. terconnectedness of human beings 5. In this positive context, a number of and nature, and deep respect for European Christian and Buddhist nature, can provide invaluable les- monastic communities are taking the sons of global significance and en- lead, with effective and innovative sure the well-being of indigenous approaches to the ecological man- communities and the viability of agement of their lands, be they for- their cultures. mally declared as protected areas 2. In various countries of Europe, natu- or community conserved areas or ral sites considered sacred since not, such as the Orthodox monastic prehistoric times, often located in ar- communities of Mt Athos, Greece. eas of high natural heritage value, 6. Closer collaboration in the conser- are being recognised and invento- vation of SNSs between their custo- ried, such as the Estonian National dians and conservationists is slowly Conservation Plan for Sacred Natu- growing, but greater efforts are re- ral Sites. Several case studies from quired before synergy is estab- the Baltic countries showed that lished and positive common goals these sites still have significance for for safeguarding the natural, cultur- current societies (identity, iconic, al and spiritual values are attained. symbolic, etc.), which may encourage conservation measures. Howev- 7. In spite of some positive trends, er, many of these ancient SNSs need threats against SNSs appear to be

276 growing, even within legally de- need to developing additional clared protected areas, especially guidelines for SNSs related to main- against those that are the most stream religions. modest and natural, because of 12. Networks of SNSs in particular re- changing land use patterns, ex- gions must be recognised and panding urbanisation and insensi- strengthened, or re-established tive development initiatives. Mobi- where feasible. In this sense, an im- lising international public opinion portant role may be played by the may help in averting such threats pilgrimage trails or paths, which and the Delos Initiative is requested may be enhanced when they also to play a role in this process. provide landscape linkages, like 8. Tourist and visitor pressures on the Way of Saint James (Spain and SNSs may often be a threat, caus- France) or Via Lauretana (Italy) and ing physical and spiritual degrada- many others in the Carpathian tion. Public use, when acceptable, Mountains. needs to be addressed through ap- 13. Studies conducted by Metsähallitus propriate visitor management showed that most visitors to protect- measures and greatly improved ed areas of Finland are attracted to public awareness. them not to view or observe species, 9. SNSs should be inventoried to habitats or landscapes, but to have avoid damage and irreversible loss- a personal experience of peace, es of cultural, spiritual and natural harmony, grandeur... in Nature, heritage and to be incorporated in- which shows that, even in some to national planning and legislation. highly secularised countries of Eu- The process of the National Inven- rope the immaterial values of nature tory of Estonia is a good example. have the priority for society at large. Those that are private must also be The participants expressed their pro- protected, regulating public access found gratitude to the Finnish Saami to the sites and to the databases Parliament and to the Natural Heritage and other relevant information. Services of Metsähallitus for hosting 10. Effective conservation of SNSs re- the Workshop in Inari, with the support quires the active and informed partic- of the Ministry of Environment and the ipation of all stakeholders in system- IUCN Committee of Finland, and con- atic efforts to reach consensus on tributing with the Delos co-ordination objectives and required measures. to the organisation of the workshop. 11. The first assessment on the rele- Inari, Finland, 3 July 2010 vance of the 2008 IUCN-UNESCO Guidelines for Managers on Sacred Natural Sites (which focus on indi genous SNSs) clearly showed the

277 Complementary points those from Celtic Christianity, based on the example of Celtic nature saints, for In addition to the points captured in instance in the Holy Island of Lindis- the Statement, other pertinent points farne – are very important. were discussed and they are worth adding to the conclusions of the meet- On the other hand, significant differing complementing the Statement ences exist within religions or with above. SNSs of previous religions and spiritual traditions, as well as their practices in Theoretical issues relation to the environment and nature conservation. These can be seen as The workshop participants confirmed opportunities for developing more ef- that SNSs – in their broader sense – are fective approaches for conserving places, both historical and contempo- threatened SNS. Additionally, the rec- rary, that express the spiritual, cultural onciliation between faiths and religions and natural diversity of life and form an that have been in conflict is of utmost integral part of the cultural identity of many human communities and socie- importance, especially in SNSs where ties in Europe, as elsewhere. there has been conflicts among different religions or spiritual traditions. Thus, the message of religious traditions and wisdom that foster a deep, It should be also noted that there is dif- meaningful, and lasting bond with na- ficulty in distinguishing between cultur- ture and carry out respectful practices al and spiritual aspects of natural sites, on nature conservation and sustainable as they often coexist. Often, cultural environmental management must be aspects are easier to identify, while understood and more widely dissemi- spiritual ones are more elusive. Thus, nated. In addition, when applicable, the the Sámi people are more comfortable concepts of animal spirits, totemic spe- in speaking about their cultural tradi- cies and other significant species (with tions than about their beliefs. their identity and symbolism) should be taken into account in the study, plan- Role and conservation of sacred ning and management of SNSs. natural sites

It should be also noted that attitudes of Recognition of SNS may help in build- deep respect for nature conservation ing up a wider constituency for nature in Christianity are linked in many re- conservation and filling gaps in pro- gions to the outstanding example set tected area systems. Protected areas, up by holy people, like St Francis of SNSs and other well-conserved natural Assisi in Southern Europe and Middle features and landscapes contribute to East, St Cuthbert in England, St Patrick human wellbeing, mental and physical in Ireland, St Seraphim of Sarov in Rus- health, by providing serene and beau- sia, etc. The attempts to formulate a tiful places where people can slow nature conservation theology – such as down, and experience peace, harmo-

278 ny, beauty and the interconnectedness • Ancient SNSs that may not have any with the intangible or spiritual dimen- religious significance for contempo- sions of Nature. rary society, may foster, though, attitudes of respect based on its past Hermitages and hermit domains are in character and significance. need, hence in synergy, of strictly protected areas, with very limited public SNSs should be inventoried in order to use. They are endangered and threat- avoid involuntary damage to them and ened in many countries, despite the irreversible losses of cultural, spiritual fact that hermits can be seen as proto- and natural heritage. However, some types of human beings in harmony with SNSs are widely known, while others nature. Promoting the implementation are private and only recognised by a of the concept of hermit reserves is, limited number of people. In order to therefore, fully justified. In the contem- respect their privacy and to take into porary context, wilderness areas pro- account the sensitivity of the spiritual vide opportunities for solitude and values and the risks involved in publi- spiritual concentration. cising vulnerable or fragile SNSs, spe- Special attention should be paid to cial attention should be paid to the ap- and significant support shall be of- propriate level of public access to the fered equally to those SNSs of indige- databases and other information on nous people that have already been SNSs. This approach is analogous to recognised as such, as well as to that followed for areas vital for critically those that are not yet known as sacred endangered species. natural sites. In parallel, there is a need to develop tools and techniques to communicate Implementation and operational and interpret the spiritual, holy or sa- aspects cred dimension of protected areas to SNS should be understood not just as the visitors and the public at large. In static entities, rooted in the past, but this respect, traditional local songs, also as being dynamic and evolving arts, crafts, and other means of expres- with changing human needs. Thus, the sion should be used as the preferred following main categories of SNSs tools to convey the spiritual and intangi- could be identified: ble values of Nature to the visitors of protected areas, especially in the visitor • Recognised SNSs that are already centres. In addition, intangible values celebrated and protected. and the arts can be an equally effective • Revitalised SNSs where historical tool in interpretation and communica- recognition has lapsed, but is being tion activities, while involving local in- regenerated. habitants in conservation actions. • New SNSs, where there has been little or no traditional recognition relat- Further, SNSs and other sites with speed to acknowledged spiritual signs. cial spiritual and cultural value should

279 be incorporated into the national legis- The way forward lation. When necessary, public access, The 2008 UNESCO-IUCN Guidelines construction and other potentially for Managers on Sacred Natural Sites harmful activities should be limited, (which focus on indigenous SNSs) both inside and around SNSs, to en- were considered a document of great sure the values of the sites. Spiritual value. A first assessment of its rele- values should also be legally recog- vance performed during the workshop, nised as complementary arguments however, showed that between 20-50 for establishing new protected areas, per cent of the existing guidelines or enlarging the existing ones. would need to be modified either in concept or in language to be fully use- The European and international ful and applicable to SNSs related to dimension mainstream religions. This result justi- Transboundary, regional and sub-re- fies the Delos Initiative goal of devel- gional cooperation in Europe, such as oping additional guidelines for SNSs the Barents Euro-Arctic Region and the related to mainstream religions within Carpathian region, is very important the next few years. and should be encouraged when pro- It was also recommended that the De- moting synergies between the conser- los Initiative bring to the attention of vation of natural heritage and spiritual the International community, and par- heritage. Thus, the Delos Initiative ticularly of the Convention on Biologi- could explore, whether other interna- cal Diversity (CBD), the following: tional instruments (such as the Habitat Contact Forum, the Barents Region Pro- • A concern that the important contri- tected Areas Network and the Carpathi- butions of SNSs, sacred landscapes an Network of Protected Areas) could and waters of indigenous peoples make contributions to the SNSs and to and local communities to the objec- the inclusion of the general spiritual val- tives of the Convention are in danger ues of Nature to nature conservation because of the threats represented strategies, plans and programmes. by ignoring the role they play as protected areas, the unsound develop- Further, the significance of the United ments and the lack of recognition of Nations Declaration on the Rights of the rights of their custodians to de- Indigenous Peoples (UN DRIP), as well cide on the present and future man- as the Principle of Free, Prior and In- agement of such sites. formed Consent and Indigenous Peo- • Documentation that demonstrates ples (FPIC) were considered of partic- the important contributions that sa- ular importance in dealing effectively cred or holy natural sites, created and sensitively with SNSs. and maintained by religious communities, including monastic communities and other groups of believers of

280 the world, make to the conservation ans of sacred sites to support the im- of biodiversity and to the long-term provement of tools and approaches, maintenance of ecosystems that pro- as well as appropriate policy frame- vide many benefits to communities, works, to enhance the resilience of peoples and countries. SNSs in the face of global changes • A recommendation that measures to that bring new and unprecedented value and protect SNSs of all peo- challenges to their present and future ples and communities should be conservation, which includes mainte- adopted by the CBD Parties at a na- nance, restoration, preservation and tional and international level, with protection (according to the 1980 due respect to the traditional govern- IUCN-PNUMA definition). ance systems that have taken care of This was not possible at the 10th Con- and maintained such sites for centu- ference of the Convention on Biologi- ries or millennia, and with due and cal Diversity held in Nagoya, Japan, in meaningful involvement of their cus- October 2010. However, the mandate todians at all relevant levels. of the Delos Initiative remains valid for • A request to the Parties of the CBD other related international meetings in and other stakeholders involved in the near future, including the IUCN the implementation of the Convention Congress in Busan (of the Island of to work together with religious organ- Jeju, Republic of Korea) in 2012. isations and the traditional custodi-

Participants of the Workshop at the opening of a cave on Ukonsaari Island.

281 Delos 3 Workshop Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe 1 to July 3, 2010 at Inari, Lapland, Finland

1.7. Thursday Venue: Auditorium of Siida, The Sámi Museum and Nature Centre

09.00-10.00 Opening Session Chair: Thymio Papayannis 09.00-09.20 Opening of the Workshop Rauno Väisänen, Director, Natural Heritage Services 09.20-09.40 Welcoming Words Tarmo Jomppanen, Museum Director, Sámi Museum 09.40-10.00 Greetings from the Sámi Parliament Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi, President of the Sámi Parliament

10.30-12.30 Session 2: The Sámi People and Their Relation to Nature Chair: Rauno Väisänen 10.30-11.45 Sámi Faith and Nature Concept Jelena Porsanger, Assoc. Professor, Sámi University College 11.45-12.30 Sacred Places in Sámi Culture Tiina Äikäs, Reseacher, University of Oulu

13.30-15.30 Session 3: Indigenous Sacred Lands Chair: Matti Määttä 13.30-14.30 Maavalla Koda, the National Strategy Ahto Kaasik for SNS Protection and the Sacred Hill of Hiiemägi, Estonia 14.00-14.30 Žemaitija National Park and the Vykintas Vaitkevicˇ ius Ancient Sacred Places of Mikytai, Lithuania 14.30-15.00 Mayo Lands and Communities, Bas Verschuuren Mexico

16.00-17.30 Tour of the Sámi Museum and Nature Centre

282 2.7. Friday

09.00-10.30 Session 4: Minority Faiths in European Countries and Safeguarding Their Natural and Spiritual Heritage Chair: Gonzalo Oviedo 09.00-09.30 Alevi-Bektasi Communities in Eastern Irini Lyratzaki Europe: their Natural and Spiritual Heritage 09.30-10.00 Uvac- Milesevka Special Nature Svetlana Dingarac Reserve and Mileseva Monastery, Serbia 10.00-10.30 Zilais kalns - Blue Hill in Latvia Juris Urtaˉ ns

11.00-12.30 Session 5: Managing Lands of Mainstream Religions Chair: Bas Verschuuren 11.00-11.30 Sacred Sites of Majella National Park, Vita de Waal Italy

11.30-12.00 Lindisfarne Holy Island, UK Rob Wild

12.00-12.30 Wetland of Colfioritto, a RAMSAR Site Chiara Serenelli Connected with Via Laurettana, Italy

13.30-15.00 Session 6: Managing Lands of Monastic Communities in Europe Chair: Vita de Waal 13.30-14.00 Mt Athos (N. Greece): Towards an Thymio Papayannis integrated approach 14.00-14.30 New Trends on the Management of Josep-Maria Mallarach Monastic Lands in Europe and Middle East 16.30 Boat to Ukonsaari (Delos Montserrat case study), an Island with Old Burial Site Boat to Pielpavuono and a Tour of Pielpajärvi Wilderness Church Tour Guide Eija Ojanlatva

283 3.7. Saturday Venue: Auditorium of Siida, The Sámi Museum and Nature Centre

09.00-10.30 Session 7: The Diversity of Sacred Natural Sites in Europe Chair: Rob Wild 09.00-09.30 Sacred Natural Sites in the Carpathian Sebastian Catanoiu Mountains 09.30-10.00 The Recovery of Sacred Sites in Alastair McIntosh Scotland

10.00-10.30 Synergies between Spiritual Alexander Davydov and Natural Heritage for Habitat Conservation in the North

11.00-13.00 Session 8: Evaluating the UNESCO-IUCN Guidelines for Managers of Protected Areas on Sacred Natural Sites Chair: Josep-Maria Mallarach 11.00-11.30 Evaluating the Applicability of the Josep-Maria Mallarach Guidelines on SNS: Identification of Topics and Issues 11.30-13.00 Parallel Working Groups

14.00-16.00 Closing Session 9 Chair: Thymio Papayannis 14.00-15.00 Presentations of the Three Working Groups. Discussion and Conclusions 15.00-16.00 Workshop Conclusions and the Inari Statement

16.00-16.30 Recent Developments of the IUCN Rob Wild WCPA Specialist Group on Cultural and Spiritual Values of Protected Areas (CSVPA) 19.30 Dinner at Hotel Inarin Kultahovi including Cultural Programme

284 Appendices

Appendix I: Workshop Tarmo Jomppanen participants and authors Museum Director SIIDA - National Museum of the Finn- Sebastian Catanoiu ish Sámi Park Manager Inarintie 46 National Forest 99870 Inari, Finland Administration-Romsilva Vanatori Neamt Nature Park Ahto Kaasik Administration Elder str. Zimbrului nr.2, Vanatori-Neamt, Estonian House of Taara and Native jud. Neamt, 617500, Romania Religions Pepleri 5-17 Alexander N. Davydov 51003 Tartu, Estonia Head of the Laboratory of Protected Areas and Ecology of Culture, Irini Lyratzaki Institute of Ecological Problems of the Social Anthropologist North, Med-INA Secretariat Ural Branch of the Russian Academy 23, Voukourestiou Str. of Sciences 106 71 Athens, Greece 23, nab. Severnoy Dviny 163061 Archangelsk, Russia Alastair McIntosh Fellow of the Centre for Human Svetlana Dingarac Ecology Freelance Photographer Visiting Professor of Human Ecology, Bilecka 35 University of Strathclyde 11000 Belgrade, Serbia 25 Luss Road Glasgow G51 3YD, United Kingdom Arja Jomppanen (née Hartikainen) Head Curator Josep Maria Mallarach SIIDA - National Museum of the Finn- Environmental consultant ish Sámi Silene Association Inarintie 46 P.O. Box 148 99870 Inari, Finland 17800 Olot, Catalonia, Spain

285 Matti Määttä Dimitrije Pesic* Development Director Phylologist Metsähallitus, Natural Heritage UNHCR Serbia Services Krunska 58 Akselinkatu 8 11000 Belgrade, Serbia 57170 Savonlinna, Finland Nadezda Pesic* Liisa Nikula Environmental Activist Senior Advisor, International Centre for Sustainable Development Cooperation ‘Kamena Gora’ Metsähallitus, Natural Heritage Matice Srpske 67 I Services 11000 Belgrade, Serbia P.O. Box 94 01301 Vantaa, Finland Thymio Papayannis Architect, planner, environmentalist Yrjö Norokorpi Director of Med-INA (Mediterranean Area Manager, Nature Conservation Institute for Nature and Anthropos) Metsähallitus Natural Heritage 23 Voucourestiou Street Services 10671 Athens, Greece P.O.Box 8016 96101 Rovaniemi, Finland Jelena Porsanger Rector Riitta Nykänen Sámi University College Senior Advisor Hánnomaras 45 Metsähallitus Natural Heritage 9520 Guovdageaidnu/Kautokeino, Services Norway Syväyksenkatu 22 89600 Suomussalmi, Finland Pirjo Rautiainen Senior Advisor, Cultural Heritage Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi Metsähallitus Natural Heritage President Services Finnish Saami Parliament P.O. Box 8016 Skierri 96101 Rovaniemi, Finland Peuratie 15 99400 Enontekiö, Finland Chiara Serenelli Landscape Architect, PhD candidate Gonzalo Oviedo in Landscape Planning, IUCN Senior Advisor, Social Policy Department of Urban and Regional Rue Mauvernay 28 Planning, University of Florence 1196 Gland, Switzerland Via Micheli, 2 50121 Florence, Italy

286 Pirjo Seurujärvi Vita de Waal Park Superintendent Cultural Environmentalist Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Working Group Sacred Sites and Cul- Services tural Heritage Inarintie of CSVGC at UN Geneva and 99870 Inari, Finland Foundation for Gaia 7 Leighton Road Juris Urtaˉns Southampton, SO19 2 FS, United Professor, Culture historian, Kingdom Latvian Academy of Culture Ludzas 24 Robert Wild LV1003 Rīga, Latvia Specialist in Biodiversity Conservation and Communities Vykintas Vaitkevicˇius Chair, CSVPA Klaipe˙da University, Amberley Institute of Baltic Sea Region History Kingsmuir Drive, Peebles and Archaeology Scottish Borders, EH45 9AA, United Herkaus Manto street 84 Kingdom 92294, Klaipe˙da, Lithuania Tiina Äikäs Mikhail Verevkin Post doctoral researcher Research Officer University of Oulu St. Petersburg State University Archaeology Chlopina str. 7-3-39 P.O. Box 1000 194021 St.Petersburg, Russia 90014 University of Oulu, Finland

Bas Verschuuren Co-Chair , IUCN WCPA Specialist Group on Cultural and Spiritual Values For further information please contact: of Protected Areas [email protected]. Coordinator for the Sacred Natural NOTE: These contact details were up- Sites Initiative dated in December 2011. Some may Biocultural Researcher and Consultant have changed since then. Bennekomseweg 164-1 6704 AK, Wageningen, Netherlands * Author, not present at the workshop.

Rauno Väisänen Director Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services P.O. Box 94 01301 Vantaa, Finland

287 Appendix II: Photo credits by chapter

All creation sighs… Humanity and borders P. 13 Josep-Maria Mallarach

Introduction to the proceedings of the third workshop of the Delos Initiative in Inari, Lapland, Finland Pp. 14, 18 and 22 Liisa Nikula

Part One: The Sámi people and their relation to nature P. 24 Metsähallitus/Pasi Nivasalo

Greetings from the Saami Parliament P. 27 Svetlana Dingarac P. 31 Josep-Maria Mallarach

Words of welcome P. 32 Svetlana Dingarac

Indigenous Sámi religion: General considerations about relationships P. 36 Josep-Maria Mallarach

Archaeology of sieidi stones: Excavating sacred places P. 46 Anssi Malinen Pp. 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53 and 54 Tiina Äikäs

Part Two: Ancient, indigenous and minority sacred natural sites P. 58 Josep-Maria Mallarach

Conserving sacred natural sites in Estonia Pp. 60, 62, 69 and 70 Ahto Kaasik P. 64 Heiki Maiberg

Use and reuse of ancient sacred places in Mikytai, Žemaitija National Park, NW Lithuania Pp. 74, 76, 78, 79 and 80 [right] Vykintas Vaitkevicˇius P. 80 [left] A. Dubikaltiene˙

Zilais kalns – Blue Hill in Latvia Pp. 84 and 88 Juris Urtāns P. 87 Metsähallitus/Hannu Sipinen P. 90 Metsähallitus/Tiina Laitinen

Alevi-Bektasi communities in Eastern Europe: their natural and spiritual heritage P. 94 FunkMonk: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tempulli_i_bektashinjve_ne_vlore. jpg#globalusage P. 96 commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Allah-eser2.jpg

288 P. 102 Ggia: el.wikipedia.org/wiki/Αρχείο:20100328_Seyyid_Ali_Sultan_Tekke_ Dervish_Lodge_Evros_8.jpg P. 103 Metsähallitus/Hannu Sipinen (from original by Magnus Manske: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Alevis_in_Turkey.gif

Part Three: Managing lands of mainstream religions P. 108 Liisa Nikula

The Great Mother, the sacred mountain of the Abruzzo: The cultural and spiritual sites of the Parco Nazionale della Majella, Italy Pp. 110, 112, 119, 120 and 121 Vita de Waal

Holy Island of Lindisfarne and the modern relevance of Celtic ‘nature saints’ P. 124 Robert Wild P. 126 Natural England. P. 128 William R. Shepherd, 1923: www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/shepherd/ british_isles_802.jpg P. 131 the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scot- land and illustrated in Fraser, 2008

Landscape linkages between cultural and spiritual values: The wetland of Colfiorito and the Lauretana pilgrimage route in the Plestian Plateaus P. 138 Chiara Serenelli and Silvia Minichino Pp. 141, 142 [left] and 145 Chiara Serenelli P. 142 [right] Federica Santoni P. 151 Chiara Serenelli from various authors

Part Four: Managing lands of monastic communities P. 154 Josep-Maria Mallarach

Monastic communities and nature conservation: Overview of positive trends and best practices in Europe and the Middle East Pp. 156, 158, 160 and 167 Josep-Maria Mallarach P. 170 Isabel Soria

Managing the heritage of Mt Athos Pp. 174, 177, 180, 182 and 185 Thymio Papayannis P. 176 Metsähallitus/Hannu Sipinen (from original by Holger Behr)

Special Nature Reserve Milesevka and the Mileseva Monastery P. 188 Dragan Bosnic P. 190 Fadil Sarki P. 191 the Institute for Nature Protection of Serbia P. 192 Svetlana Dingarac P. 194 by Branislav Bozovic

289 Part Five: Europe: a wealth of sacred natural sites P. 202 Liisa Nikula

Diversity of sacred lands and meanings in Northern Europe: Challenges for the managers of protected areas P. 204 Mikael Hintze/Metsähallitus P. 207 Finland’s National Board of Antiquities Pp. 208 and 210 Jari Kostet/Metsähallitus Pp. 213 and 214 Liisa Nikula

The Carpathian Mountains, a realm of sacred natural sites P. 216 and 224 Sebastian Catanoiu P. 218 Carpathian Ecoregion Project of WWF’s 2012 Protected Areas Programme P. 220 Basarab Birladeanu P. 227 Marian Jiplea

The ‘sacredness’ of natural sites and their recovery: Iona, Harris and Govan in Scotland P. 231 Liisa Nikula P. 237 Metsähallitus/Hannu Sipinen (from original by author) P. 238 Ewan Mathers Pp. 239 and 241 Alastair McIntosh P. 239 Nick Mayhew Smith P. 240 www.GalGael.org P. 240 Andy Bowman

Synergies between spiritual and natural heritage for habitat conservation in the Barents Euro-Arctic Region P. 244 Alexander Davydov P. 247 Habitat Contact Forum P. 249 Knut Helskog P. 252 Habitat Contact Forum

Part Six: Other related issues P. 258 Josep-Maria Mallarach

Conclusions and the Inari Statement P. 281 Liisa Nikula

NB. The authors of the articles in this publication are responsible for the acquirement of the right to reproduce the images.

290 The ecological footprint of the Delos Proceedings

Environmental concerns were a top priority during the production of the Delos Pro- ceedings. At every stage of the production, the most ecological materials and methods appropriate for the publication were selected. Nevertheless, the publication left its print on the environment, as making it required energy and raw materials and produced waste and emissions.

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Dimensions: A5, 148 x 210 mm. Only 10% of the surface area of the printing sheets was wasted as shearings.

Copies: 1000 copies

Paper and chemicals The paper chosen is Galerie Art Silk which is certificated by the FSC and approved for the Nordic Ecolabel. The timber used for producing the paper was sourced from sustainably managed forests. No chlorine gas was used to bleach the paper. The paper factory is certificated according to the ISO 14001, PEFC and FSC standards.

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291 To make one copy of the publication, the following was generated: Waste: 620 g, of which recyclable waste 600 g (540 g paper, 55 g aluminium, 5 g cardboard), combustible waste 10 g and hazardous waste 10 g

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292 for Conservation ofNature 1196 Gland,Switzerland Fax +41229990002 Tel +41 229990000 International Union World Headquarters Rue Mauverney 28 Rue Mauverney www.iucn.org

The Diversity of Sacred Lands in Europe Inari/Aanaar 2010 The Diversity ofSacredinEurope Lands Edited by Mallarach, Josep-Maria Thymio Papayannis andRauno Väisänen the DelosInitiative 2010 –Inari/Aanaar Proceedings ofthe Third Workshop of