Sacral architecture

Sacred buildings (from Latin sacer 'holy') are structures used for sacred, ritual or cultic acts such as worship or sacrifice by religious communities. Sacred buildings are interpreted as places of presence of a higher power and are therefore colloquially also referred to as houses of worship.

The term sacred building originates from the cultural and art sciences and is used there as a distinction from the secular building, a building for secular tasks. In particular, the term cult site (cult place) also exists for structural facilities and places from prehistory or prehistoric times. A frequent designation for sacral buildings of many religions, partly also Christian churches is "temple". In addition, there are numerous more or less free-standing buildings (shrines, altars) and monuments that were erected for religious reasons. A special type of sacred buildings are tombs and burial structures.

There are a variety of different sacred buildings, some examples from the literal religious cultures are:

• In Buddhism, the pagoda, stupa or chörten is a symbol of Buddha.
• Judaism knew until 70 the Jerusalem temple as well as since Hellenistic times the synagogue, which since the reform movement of the 19th century is also called "temple" again.
• In Christianity, mainly churches and chapels are to be mentioned. Free churches occasionally also use the term Bethaus, often also Gemeindehaus or Gemeindezentrum.
• For Islam, the sacred buildings where believers gather for prayer are mosques. Members of Sufi brotherhoods also gather at a tekke. Islamic mausoleums include the Qubba and Türbe.
• Fire temple in Zoroastrianism.
• The Bahai build houses of worship and shrines (sacred burial places).
• Hindu temples in Hinduism
• In Ancient Egypt, besides temples, the Egyptian pyramids as well as the tents of God are to be understood as sacred buildings in addition to their function as burial places.
• The same applies to the ziggurat in Mesopotamia.

In the architectural and religious history of various religions (Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism), monasteries are also generally regarded as sacred buildings.

See also

• Category:List (sacral sites)