RELIGIONS AND FIGURATVE REPRESENTATION

In such a mandala, the deities are given a tri-dimensional shape in sculpture or relief with a view to stress their active dimension.

Agadir (pl igoudar): Berber (or Amazigh) term for the collective granary. This noun, ubiquitous throughout the Souss, in southern Morocco, and whose original meaning is wall enclosure refers to the site reserved for the storage of agricultural produce, and fortified in consequence.

To reflect (as in a mirror)

Literally, “the book”. In this context, the word refers to the Quran, that is, to Muslims, the book of divine revelation.

Table often of monumental proportions placed in the church choir and at which the priest celebrates the Eucharist and enacts the transubstantiation of the bread (becoming the Body of Christ) and the wine (becoming the Blood of Christ). The altar is the most sacred place in the church where saints' relics are preserved. As early as the 16th century, the Protestants rejected the notion of an altar (with occurrences of destruction of altars by iconoclasts).

Made of wood and often in several panels, it is set behind the altar (reredos Anglo-Norman areredos, which in turn is from arere behind +dos back, from Latin dorsum). Altarpieces show biblical scenes or the life of saints with portraits of figures whose memory is to be preserved (notably the donor).

mythic people of warrior women who fought many wars against several Greek heroes (Achilles, Heracles, Theseus). Amazonomachy scenes (literally ‘Amazon fighting') represent a much favoured theme in Greek sculpture.

formal ban on figurative representation (i.e. not applying to patterns or plants but specifically to animals, humans or divinities). In Greek, the word eikôn (whence icon in English) refers to an image (e.g. a statue).

An ornamental appendage made of several slender wooden elements at the stern of a Roman ship, usually spreading out lotus-like.

The rounded or polygonal eastern far end of church choirs.

the language the Jews spoke in the Greek-Roman era.

Litteraly “being of awakening”, "being destined to enlightenment"; refers to a person so deeply engaged on the Buddhist path that their enlightenment is certain. In Mahayana Buddhism they are often described as having renounced enlightenment for themselves for as long as it is denied others.

any non-historic figure of the Buddhist pantheon.

Qualifies the period of the 8th and 9th centuries marked in Latin Christendom by the domination of the Frankish kingdom, a stable and powerful entity, which reached a kind of apotheosis with Charlemagne's reign. A Christian prince, protector of the pope, defender of the Church against the “unbelievers”, he brought under his authority the Gaulish, German and Italian territories. His imperial coronation in Rome on Christmas day 800 was the consecration of his domination. Reclaiming a title fallen out of use in Europe since 476, it marks the rebirth of the Latin world as a political, military and economic force. This political and military domination found an echo in an unprecedented intellectual, spiritual and artistic flourishing (the “Carolingian renaissance”). The monarch's fame was such that the dynasty is named after him even though he did not found it.

In scripture, cherubim were given as creatures with a human face and an animal body. They rank second in the celestial hierarchy. Superior beings acting, according to Christian tradition, as executors of divine might or as symbols of it. Cherubim are represented as bodyless angels, reduced to a winged head. Saint Paul sees them as vectors of God's glory.

In scripture, cherubim were given as creatures with a human face and an animal body. They rank second in the celestial hierarchy. Superior beings acting, according to Christian tradition, as executors of divine might or as symbols of it. Cherubim are represented as bodyless angels, reduced to a winged head. Saint Paul sees them as vectors of God's glory.

Wisdom or cognition acquired through practice and ascesis. It arises from the awareness of innate reason then from its development.

A cloak of variable thickness fixed over the shoulder with a fibula or brooch or tied up, Falling loosely around the body, it could easily be pushed back over the shoulders. During his Passion, Jesus is exposed to the jibes of the soldiers in a red mantle – chlamys occinea ((Mt 27: 27 ; Mk 15: 16 ; Lk 22: 63 ; Jn 19: 2).

A select group of early centuries writers and teachers of the Church who contributed through their works and debates to the definition of the founding terms of Christian doctrine and spirituality. Their authority is not set at the same level as Biblical authority, reserved to authors thought to have been inspired by God, yet their input enjoys profound authority the more so when they are unanimous on a point.

  Aselect group of early centuries writers and teachers of the Church who contributed through their works and debates to the definition of the founding terms of Christian doctrine and spirituality. Their authority is not set at the same level as Biblical authority, reserved to authors thought to have been inspired by God, yet their input enjoys profound authority the more so when they are unanimous on a point.

In the 50s and 60s, research by Robert Fossier and Charles Higounet suggested that Cistercian norms regarding economics bestowed on their estates a particular profile explaining their economic success and benefitting the whole of Latin Christendom's rural society. The 1981 Journées de Flaran, though they entrenched the concept of “Cistercian economy”, showed that their norms were already being transgressed at the end of the 12th century. Other historians have since shown that the Cistercians' role had been overestimated and that their estate management praxis was not universal.

Founded in 909 or 910, was notable in early days for its independence from lay rulers and for its intellectual achievements. It became acknowledged as the leader of western monasticism in the late 10th and 11th centuries, and spearheaded the movement of ecclesiastical reform. Enjoying considerable privileges and evolving a centralized structure with subsidiary houses called priories under the supervision of the Abbot of Cluny, it became hugely influential. Cluniac monks devoted themselves to almost constant prayer and were therefore accused by the so-called New Orders of the 11th century of shunning manual work. An exceedingly wealthy monastic house, Cluny Abbey was denounced by its antagonists for straying from the Benedictine ideal by spending huge amounts of money in ostentatious artworks and buildings.

The day when, according to the Quran, humans will be judged by God and will, in accordance with their action, be sent to Heaven or Hell.

The Greek name for the Ten Commandments given in the Biblical tradition as handed down by God to Moses on Mount Sinai (cf. Exodus Chap 20 and Deuteronomy chap. 5).

Meaning ‘supplication', the deesis shows a Christ in Majesty between Mary His mother and John the Baptist interceding for humanity in the company of saints and apostles. Icons of the deesis have notably reached the regions peripheral to the Byzantine Empire (Cappadocia, Georgia, Armenia)

“Secret teaching”. Ryūichi Abé, one of the leading experts on the subject offers this definition: “Esoteric Buddhism, or mikkyō in Japanese, consists of complex systems of icons, meditative rituals, and ritual languages, all of which aim at enabling practitioners to immediately grasp abstract Buddhist doctrines through actual ritual experiences.”

Ancient form of the Syriac alphabet.

A citron variety ancestor to the lemon, traditionally used in the Jewish festival of Sukkot

benefit, gain

the temple dedicated to the worship of YHWH that was built by the early kings of Judah (Solomon according to scripture) and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon in 587.

Annual gathering held at the Abbey of Cisteaux which Cistercian abbots must imperatively attend. As a political, legislative and judiciary assembly it enables the Order to define its position church affairs, to set the norms applying in all the abbeys and to discipline defaulters. Considered a model institution by the papacy, its principle was imposed on other religious orders, notably by Innocent III (1198-1216).

First book of the Bible accounting for the origins of the World and the history of the Patriarchs. The quote is as follows: “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness “ (Genesis 1: 26) see also chap I of this module

The most common figuration, in which Buddhist deities figure under human guise, in two dimensions.

Account. Elements of the “prophetic tradition” recording the recorded “saying” or “deed” attributed to the Prophet of Islam. The term Sunna may also be used.

Report. In this context, the “prophetic tradition”, that is the sayings and deeds ascribed to Prophet Muhammad. The term Sunna may also be found.

The rededication of the Temple. After regaining control of Jerusalem in 168, the Maccabees had the temple purified and rededicated during a splendid eight day ceremony. This festival is still celebrated, marked by the kindling of a nine branch menorah.

the language used by the Jews for liturgical purposes

Judaic trend instigated by the Sadducees. Very much the dominant trend during the Roman and Byzantine period, the destruction of the temple notwithstanding, it gradually bowed out to Rabbinic Judaism and represents today only a minority group known as the Karaites. Their religious practice is founded exclusively in the five books of the Torah (Written Torah or Pentateuch and rejects Talmudic commentary (Oral Torah)

the first among the priests (kohen) making up the priestly class. They were assisted by the Levites who took up the roles of musicians, choristers or craftsmen.

the most important part of the Jerusalem Temple. According to Jewish scripture, it contains the Ark of the Covenant, where the tablets of the covenant were held. Only the High Priest could enter it, once a year on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).

The Iliad and the Odyssey are epic poems traditionally attributed to Homer. They represent references of the highest significance in Greek culture

sacred site, by extension sanctuary, refuge

Nickname given to 16th and 17th century French Calvinist Protestants.

literally the act of breaking images. In its broadest sense, the term refers to violent occurrences of image destruction, notably religious images. In the Christian world the term speaks against the adoration of images, sometimes considered idolatrous (iconodule). This opposition between two extreme positions culminates in the iconoclastic crisis or struggle over images (iconomachy), that is the very long crisis that shook the Byzantine Empire from 717 to 843.

The destruction of images. Byzantine iconoclasm refers to the destruction of ritual images taking place in the Eastern church in the 8th and 9th centuries (see chap I, C of this module)

A person promoting the destruction of images used in worship, or indeed all images.

A person who favours the use of images in worship

Hatred of images and representation.

Berber (or Amazigh) term for ksar

The consensus or agreement of the first generations Muslim scholars, and the third source of Islamic law after the Quran and the hadith.

Cult reserved to the Emperor. Set up by Augustus (27 BCE-17 CE), it expressed the civitates (city-states)'s loyalty towards the emperor and ensured the cohesion of the Empire around the central power. (See Module 3, III A)

« Islam » avec I majuscule lorsqu'il s'agit des civilisations marquées par la religion musulmane, et « islam » avec i minuscule lorsque référence est faite à la religion (comme catholicisme ou bouddhisme). Dans les citations, l'orthographe choisie par l'auteur est respectée.

“Cube”. Name given to the great temple in Meca because of its shape, as it stood already in pre-Islamic times when it reportedly housed 360 idols. Since the advent of Islam, henceforward empty, the building is at the centre of the circumambulation that must be practiced during the Hajj, or pilgrimage.

God, deity or spirit. The Encyclopedia of Shintō online defines kami as beings close to humans though transcending their nature; nearly any thing or being can be a kami in as much as they inspire reverence. While being invisible kami may manifest their presence, sometimes temporarily, in the shape of natural elements (trees, rocks, fire, water, etc. or ritual objects (mirrors, paper, votive objects etc.). They may also bewitch humans or animals, speak through them to transmit oracles. Kami are essentially concrete: when not incarnated, their potency remains invisible and undetectable. Their potency may be exercised in positive or negative ways with no more moral implications than are sought in natural phenomena. However, when properly treated kami can be propitiated, pacified, made to grant favours upon those who serve them.

according to tradition as relayed by scholars from the kingdom of Judah, the kingdom of Israel was sited to its north over the Galilee, the Golan, Samaria and the Jordan valley. It had several capital cities the last one of which was Samaria.

Judea, capital Jerusalem where the Judean kings built the Temple dedicated to the worship of YHWH. It is within the royal court of these kings, enemies of the kingdom of Israel that scholars compiled the Torah. Jerusalem fell before Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon in 587.

A type of dwelling widespread in North-Africa, notably in the pre-Saharan zone. It is designed to protect oases dwellers from nomadic raids as well from the wind and the heat. It is to be related to the noble Qasr found in literary Arabic. The Maghrebi ksar is closer to the fort or the fortified village.

Anyone who is not bound by religious vows and/or does not belong to the clergy.

This term covers all the kingdoms and territories acknowledging the religious authority of the Church of Rome, adopting Roman rituals and Latin as the liturgical language. It broadly corresponds to the Western bloc of the European continent. It is distinct from Greek Christendom, which accepts the joint authority of the emperor and the patriarch of Constantinople and uses Greek rituals and language. This Greek Christendom spilled out and beyond the Byzantine Empire to include the churches of the near and Middle East, of the Balkans and, from the 10th century, the Russian plain. This distinction became pronounced during the period under review most notably between the 8th and 12th century.

A 40-day period preceding Easter during which self-denial – notably in the form of dietary restrictions – is demanded of the faithful.

a closed frond of the date palm tree. It represents one of the four species required for the celebration of Sukkot. In Greek civilisation the palm is the attribute of the goddess Nike, impersonating victory

(or meleke) is a lithologic type of white, coarsely crystalline, thickly bedded limestone

Circle or “full ensemble” with an underlying idea of demarcation and sacrality. In esoteric Buddhism, mandala also refers to clarified butter, the upper and purest part of butter, in the image of a buddah who has achieved enlightenment. Originally, mandalas were ritual meditation platforms which practitioners could enter physically. Later the term mandala was used to designate the altar at the centre of the ritual space, before referring to an image representing Buddhist deities in a group or by themselves. In India and Tibet mandalas were devised on the ground or on a platform with coloured sand, then destroyed after the rite they had been intended for.

The deities are represented in the shape of their attribute, corresponding to their original vow (hongan 本願and symbolizing the manner in which they achieved Enlightenment (for instance, the sword or the diamond for knowledge, the lotus for compassion, etc...)

The prelate in the Syriac Orthodox Church who ranked second in the hierarchy after the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch.

standing stone or wooden pillars. Massebot were probably not ulike Betyls (from the Hebrew 'bet el' meaning 'house of God'), stones reflecting some features of the divinity, frequently extant in the beliefs of ancient peoples, notably in the Middle-East. Massebot may sometimes look more like wooden pillars.

Religious orders founded towards the beginning of the 12th century the members of which lived in the world (specifically in the towns) rather than in monasteries. The mendicants observe a rule (they thus belong to the regular clergy) but they are not monks. They live of their work, predication to the faithful and from alms (hence their name). They rejected property, be it collective. The best known mendicant orders are the Franciscans (Friars Minor) and the Dominicans (Friars Preacher).

Religious orders founded towards the beginning of the 12th century the members of which lived in the world (specifically in the towns) rather than in monasteries. The mendicants observe a rule (they thus belong to the regular clergy) but they are not monks. They live of their work, predication to the faithful and from alms (hence their name). They rejected property, be it collective. The best known mendicant orders are the Franciscans (Friars Minor) and the Dominicans (Friars Preacher).

a seven branched candelabrum.

festival dedicated to saints and marked by a night-long praising of Prophet Muhammad through contemplation, prayer and festivities. In this instance the pilgrimage gathers Ksour populations. It is a moment when the convergence of the sacred, the site and the fervour, merging tutelary saints with prophetic commemoration blurred together in a memorial ceremony summons up the times of these communities' birth around their founding saints

cf Module 1 I D 1 note 7

The 1860 massacres drove the Powers (France Great Britain, Austria-Hungary, Prussia, Russia) and the Ottoman Empire to devise a special administrative regulation establishing the autonomy of Mount Lebanon. This organic statute comprised of 16 articles was signed on 9 June 1861. The governor (Mutasarrif), a Christian but not a Lebanese was to be supported by a central administrative council made up with 12 members giving equal weight to the six main communities: Maronite, Druze, Greek-Catholic, Greek-Orthodox, Sunni and Shia.

cf Module 4 I D 4 note 1

Literally translates as awakening in Arabic . The term refers to a full range of reforms brought about in the political, literary, artistic, social and religious fields in the Arab Middle East in the second half of the 19th century as a result of contacts with Europe.

scenes of sailing on the Nile frequently to be found on Roman mosaics. The most famous is in Palestrina (ancient Praeneste) in Italy.

Preparatory rite carried out for a newly enshrined (or restored) statue with a view to invite the soul of the deity it represents to come and join or inhabit the image. The rite usually includes offerings and donations as well as the drawing of the deity's pupils, hence its name of “opening of the eyes”.

Small chapel, often to be found in the countryside, intended for private prayer.

an orb is in this context a globe mapping the earth, omnipresent in Roman iconography.

Small stone chests, used for the secondary interment of human bones after the flesh has decayed. This practice is attested during the Second Temple period, i.e., between c. 40 B.C.E. and 135 C.E.

According to the dictionary of Shugendō (Shugendō jiten), this Other World may take different guises, varying according to diverse, though not mutually exclusive, origins. Among the variations found in ancient Japanese myths one finds Takamagahara 高天原 ("High Celestial Plain"), Yomi no kuni 黄泉国 ("Land of the Yellow Springs" according to the Chinese characters, a Chinese underworld, the Japanese reading of which means "Land of darkness") or even a world beyond the seas named Tokoyo 常世 (“Eternal World”). All three examples reflect the idea of an Other World, heavenly in one case underground in another and marine in the third. In ancient Japan, the Other World is that of the dead and/or kami and immortals, which could be visited by humans under certain conditions. This ancient model was superimposed with the Buddhist cosmology and its own images of hells that chime in with the idea of underworldly Other Worlds and paradises that become celestial or marine Other Worlds like for instance the Pure Land of Bodhisattva Kannon 観音, (Skr. Avalokiteṣvara), Mount Fudaraku補陀洛山 (Skr. Potalaka). Mountains and seas are the preferred places for either the representation of Other Worlds or points of contact between humans and an Other World inhabited by the dead and/or deities. The people living or practicing in these liminal spaces, such as shugenja (Shugendō practitioners), are perceived as different and endowed with specific powers.

Relating to the Church Fathers (see that entry), early century Christian authors whose doctrine is a reference.

considered in the Bible as a Judean fruit (Nb 13: 23; Dt 8: 8), it adorns the golden menorah (Flavius Josephus Antiquities of the Jews III, vii, 7) and the capitals of the temple (1Ki: 7-18).

Set of wars opposing Rome to Carthage during just over a century. First Punic War (264-241): Rome broke its treaties with Carthage to intervene in Sicily where the Greeks were exposed to Carthaginian pressure. An initial naval victory was followed by the failure of the African expedition that followed (255) and further naval defeats but Rome won a decisive battle in 241. Carthage signed a peace treaty, paid a war tribute and renounced a part of its territories among which Sicily. Rome seized the opportunity of a revolt of Carthaginian mercenaries to seize Sardinia and Corsica but Carthage undertook the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula. Second Punic War (218-201): resulting from the growing rivalry between the two powers this conflict - which saw Italy invaded by Hanibal and Rome's legions thoroughly trounced (see chapter on The cult of Apollo) – still concluded on a second Carthaginian defeat at the hands of Scipio Africanus. Carthage must pay a tribute, surrender Spain, and its fleet and commit to never undertaking a war without Rome's assent. Third Punic War (149-146): The conflict between Carthage and Massinissa (c.238-c148) king of a unified Numidia lead to Carthage rearming in breach of the 201 treaty. Isolated, Carthage was defeated and raised to the ground.

small palace, Country residence or desert castle. Some Umayyad caliphs and emirs had such establishment built away from the cities, where to relax and enjoy leisurely pursuits.

A trend in Judaism that appeared during the 2nd century, that is after the destruction of the Temple in 70 but that only developed fully during the early centuries of the High Middle Ages. It is a prolongation of the Pharisaic movement. It rests on the view that the five books making up the Torah (Written Torah) must be enlarged with commentary (Oral Torah). The comments are compiled by the rabbis (scholars and teachers) in the Talmud, of which two versions are known as Jerusalem and Babylon . That current has become the mainstream in the modern era.

Arabic term that embraces drawing and painting

Name given to the Buddhist spiritual attainment, which is effected through the fusion of the individual with the cosmos understood as a transcendental whole.

Reason as innate it corresponds to the potential for Buddhahood extent in every being; it also refers to the fundamental equality between all beings.

The “divine infusion of life.”

Ooften translated as "the endless cycle of birth and death", the roots of the term carry meanings of "confluence", “coming together” as well as “wandering through”. As for the Chinese characters, they both translate as “going around in circles”. The idea is of cyclical rebirth within the Threefold world (desire, form, and formlessness) and among the Six paths (the realms of hell, hungry spirits, animals, asuras, human beings, and heavenly beings).

Each divinity is represented by the Sanskrit letter (bīja) that represents them.

In the Bible, Serphim are represented as snakes with six wings, as drawn from Egyptian mythology. They watch over sanctuaries and thrones.

In the Christian tradition, they are celestial beings belonging to the highest rank of the angelic hierarchy.

In the Bible, Seraphim are represented as snakes with six wings, as drawn from Egyptian mythology. They watch over sanctuaries and thrones.

In the Christian tradition, they are celestial beings belonging to the highest rank of the angelic hierarchy.

The Way or Path. By extension the word is understood as Sunni Islam's legal framework founded in four sources in the following hierarchical order: 1. Quran 2. The Sunnah of Muhammad (hadith) 3. Idjma: the consensus of Islam's early jurisconsults 4. Qiyas or deductive analogy whereby earlier rulings are adapted to new circumstances.

“highly born” the term refers to the descent of the Prophet Muhammad in the Muslim tradition. Shorfa enjoy great respect in Morocco

The main current of esoteric Buddhism in Japan, along with the Tendai 天台 school, named after the Chinese mountain (T'ien T'ai ‘Heavenly Terrace') where its founder Zhiyi智顗 (538-597) lived. The Shingon school is entirely founded in the doctrine of esoteric Buddhism whereas the Tendai school includes esoterism as one of several aspects of its teaching.

musical instrument created from the horn of a ram. It is used notably to mark the end of fasting on Yom Kippur.

“the path of powers through practice”. This tradition appeared at the turn of the 13th and 14th century, a time when mountain practice was formalised to the point of representing an independent religious movement. Though it adopts many theoretical and doctrinal notions from esoteric Buddhism, Shugendō is built around the practice of religious activities in the mountains, arising from both autochthonous and continental traditions. Its main characteristic is the quest for mostly thaumaturgic “powers”, with a view to attain Buddhist enlightenment and simultaneously to trade these powers in society at large. The very quest of these powers and of the charisma that often goes with them, sets Shugendō in an ambiguous situation both central and marginal, where it remains to this day.

Southern Levant: the southern regions of the Near-East, roughly covering contemporary Israel, Jordan and the Occupied Territories.

According to Japanese art historian Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis, it is possible that a connection between these sūtras had been set up in China specifically for the purpose of both mandalas' doctrinal foundation.

Likeness, image

Sermons (or aphorisms) of the Buddha; one of twelve sections in the Buddhist canon.

place where the scrolls of the Torah are kept. It served a number of purposes (e.g. study rooms), was at the social heart of the community and bore no resemblance to the Temple where a number of rites were to be performed exclusively, notably sacrifices. After the destruction of the temple under Tiberius, Judaism grew from the synagogues' network.

Allegory of the four winged animals in the book of Ezekiel “ Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. [...] As for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man; each of the four had the face of a lion on the right side, each of the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and each of the four had the face of an eagle.” (Ez 1: 5, 10). The Church Fathers refer to it in the context of the authors of the canonical gospels. The angel-like human face is for Matthew, the face of an eagle for John, the face of an ox for Luke and the face of a lion for Mark.

The Berlin wall was erected in 1961 to separate East Germany (German Democratic Republic) under Soviet occupation from West Germany Federal Republic of Germany. Its fall in 1989 remains the symbol of the collapse of the Soviet Empire.

Branch of Buddhism dismissively known as “Lesser Vehicle” (Skr. Hīnayāna; Jp. Shōjō 小乗) by the followers of the "Great Vehicle" (Skr. Mahāyāna; Jp. Daijō 大乗). In Theravāda schools, the possibility of enlightenment is the preserve of monks.

the set of 5 books drafted for the most part between the 8th and the 5th century BCE: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

Adjective applied to Christian communities from Orthodox churches who choose to come into communion with the Roman Church, as has happened since16th century. They should properly be known as Eastern Catholic Churches, or more technically, "ritual Church" or "ritual Church sui iuris"

In a religious context, a holy, wise inspired man capable of interceding to God, a protector, a “saint”. The word can also be found applied, by extension, to the complex built around his reputation to provide facilities and training for students and shelter for travellers and beggars, all enhanced by the saint's benefic influence.

A city in Lower Saxony on the river Elbe. Luther taught at the university of Wittenberg, city where he nailed his 95 theses against the selling of indulgences at the door of All Saints', the mighty Castle Church. This act kicked off the Reformation.

A Zawiya (originally corner) was a prayer space. The word acquired a broader meaning that reflected its religious, educational and political roles. As a result of its implication in social change from the beginning of the 16th century, the Zawiya became a multi-purpose entity.

circle split into twelve divisions, each of which harbours an astrological sign corresponding to a living creature, often a small animal. It stands for one of the constellation the sun appears to travel through over the year.