Throughout history, people have created
gardens for many reasons. Religious cultures are no different. We have looked
at three cultures: Roman, Mediaeval, and Muslim. Each of these cultures has in
some way connected their creation of gardens to their respective religions.
The Roman religion is based on worshiping
their gods and goddesses. The gardens became a place for the Romans to worship
and pay tribute to them. Throughout the Roman gardens you could find statues of
the gods and goddesses. These allowed the people to connect with their gods
while relaxing in the gardens. The Roman culture had an appreciation for otium,
which meant relaxing while doing something to better yourself. The gardens
became a place for them to relax while worshiping their gods or talking with
others about religion.
In the mediaeval ages, there was a
transition to Christianity. The hierarchical structure of mediaeval society put
the church at the top. Across all art forms, religious art dominated. This
transferred over to gardens as well. The monastic gardens were utilitarian.
They were sensibly designed to allow each community to be self-sustainable. However,
within the heart of the cathedrals they created cloisters. These gardens had
religious meaning. Within the cloisters you could see imagery and symbolism of
the Garden of Eden. For example, many of the gardens were divided into four
parts representing the four rivers in the Garden of Eden. There was also
tribute to the Virgin Mary in the mediaeval gardens. There were statues of Mary
as well as plant symbolism. The Madonna lily, the red rose and violets were
symbols for the Virgin Mary and could be found inside the gardens. The
cloisters found in the cathedrals were truly a place of religion for the
Christians during the mediaeval times.
The Muslin culture also incorporated their
religion into the formation of their gardens. Muslims believe that when you
died, you went to a paradise. There are over 120 references to garden paradises
in the Quran. For Muslims, the Quran was the verbal divine guidance, the word
of God meaning that they take what the Quran says very literally. On Earth they
created this paradise through their gardens. Muslim gardens were often
intricate with water being a very big part of it. There were often four
watercourses that represented the four rivers of life. They had beautiful
flowers with many colors. They truly created paradise on Earth. Muslim gardens
also incorporated calligraphy that quoted pieces from the Quran, expressing
even more of heaven in the gardens. All together one could see that heaven was
a part life in all places for the Muslin culture.
In their own way, each culture expressed their religion through the conception of the types of gardens that they made. It was a way for them to feel connected to their respective religions in a place other than temples, churches or mosques.
For more information on gardens and religion
throughout Europe’s history, check out this link: http://project.eghn.org/downloads/EGHN_Story%20of%20gardens
Photograph Sources:
Griffin,
Kylie. 2010. Photograph. Kylie Griffin's BlogWeb. 23 Feb 2014.
<http://kyliegriffinromance.blogspot.dk/2010/06/italy-trip-part-4.html>.
Queen Eleanor's Garden. N.d. Photograph. The Great
HallWeb. 23 Feb 2014.
<http://www3.hants.gov.uk/greathall/queen-eleanors-garden.htm>.
N.d.
Photograph. North South GuidesWeb. 23 Feb 2014.
<http://www.northsouthguides.com/>.
