Skip to main content Skip to Search Box

Definition: shrine 1 from Merriam-Webster's Collegiate(R) Dictionary

(bef. 12c) 1 a : a case, box, or receptacle; esp : one in which sacred relics (as the bones of a saint) are deposited b : a place in which devotion is paid to a saint or deity :sanctuary c : a niche containing a religious image 2 : a receptacle (as a tomb) for the dead 3 : a place or object hallowed by its associations


shrine

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Place regarded as holy due to an association with a divine figure, relic, or event. Shrines are important places in most religions, and are often a focus of worship or meditation . Buddhist shrines In Buddhism, a shrine may be established anywhere – in a temple adjacent to a monastery, in a pagoda or stupa , in the home, by the roadside, or in a place either of particular natural beauty or connected with an important event in the Buddha's life. It contains an image of the Buddha , which serves as a focus for worship (puja), as well as offerings and symbolic objects. In Mahāyāna Buddhism, the shrine may contain images of other Buddhas, bodhisattvas (those who put off their final liberation to help other beings, and to whom believers may pray for help), and devas (divine beings). In Mahāyāna Tibetan Buddhism, or Lamaism , the images may include a thanka , a wall hanging depicting the lives of the bodhisattvas. Tibetan Buddhists place offerings at their shrines to symbolize the five…
3,756 results

Full text Article shrines

From Chambers Dictionary of the Unexplained
Originally, containers for sacred relics, or the tombs of saints or other holy people. Now also applied to a place of worship hallowed by its association with a religious figure, or a structure for public or private worship dedicated to a particular deity or holy person. The word ‘shrine’ comes from…
| 361 words
Key concepts:

Full text Article shrine

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Place regarded as holy due to an association with a divine figure, relic, or event. Shrines are important places in most religions, and are often a focus of worship or meditation . Buddhist shrines In Buddhism, a shrine may be established anywhere – in a temple adjacent to a monastery, in a pagoda…
| 339 words
Key concepts:

Full text Article shrines.

From The Oxford Companion to British History
These pilgrimage centres, claiming to house either relics of Jesus’ life or of the saints or statues of the Virgin Mary, to be visited either for more effective prayer, to obtain indulgences, or for healing, were a central element in medieval life. England could not emulate Jerusalem, the ultimate…
| 309 words

Full text Article Ise Shrine

From Encyclopedia of World Religions: Encyclopedia of Buddhism
This part of the Ise Shrine is the Kaguraden, a...
Also known as: Ise-jingu; Jingu Shrine There are two major Shinto shrines in Ise, on Japan's eastern coast in Mie Prefecture. The Inner Shrine (Naiku) contains Amaterasu, said to be the grandmother of Ninigi, who unified Japan. Six kilometers distant, the Outer Shrine (Geku) houses the Ise deity, …
| 262 words , 1 image
Key concepts:

Full text Article Meiji Shrine

From Encyclopedia of World Religions: Encyclopedia of Buddhism
Today the Meiji Shrine is a popular location for...
The Meiji Shrine, a major center of Japanese Shintoism, was constructed to memorialize Emperor Meiji (1851–1912) and his wife, Empress Shoken (1850–1914). Emperor Meiji was the first ruler of Japan after the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate at the end of 1867. In previous centuries, while Japan was…
| 441 words , 1 image
Key concepts:

Full text Article Tenmangu shrines

From Encyclopedia of World Religions: Encyclopedia of Buddhism
Tenmangu refers to the shrines built to honor the Shinto god of scholarship and learning, Tenman. Since success in school has much importance in Japan, the more than 12,000 Tenmangu shrines across Japan are visited frequently. Tenman developed from a historical figure, Sugawara no Michizane…
| 551 words
Key concepts:

Full text Article Jongmyo Shrine

From The World's Heritage
T’aejo, founder of the kingdom, transferred the...
Korea, Republic of Criteria - Significance in human history Jongmyo is the oldest and most authentic of the Confucian royal shrines to have been preserved. Dedicated to the forefathers of the Choson dynasty 1392-1910, the shrine has existed in its present form since the sixteenth century and houses…
| 175 words , 2 images
Key concepts:

Full text Article shrines, Buddhist

From Encyclopedia of World Religions: Encyclopedia of Buddhism
The shrine developed as an extension of Buddhist practice centered on the posadha. The posadha was a form of sabbath. In ancient India, it was one night on which a community of ascetics ( sramanas ) assembled to discuss doctrine. It took place on the eighth, 14th, and 15th days of each lunar…
| 388 words
Key concepts:

Full text Article shrine

From The Macquarie Dictionary
a receptacle for sacred relics; a reliquary. Plural: shrines a structure, often of a stately or sumptuous character, enclosing the remains or relics of a saint or other holy objects and forming an object of religious veneration and pilgrimage. Plural: shrines any structure or place consecrated or…
| 110 words
Key concepts:

Full text Article shrine

From The American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language
A place of religious devotion or commemoration, such as: a. a place where devotion is paid to a deity or deities, as in Shinto. b. the tomb of a saint or other venerated person. c. a location where an important event in the life of a holy person is thought to have occurred. A container or receptacle…
| 114 words
Key concepts:
Mind Map

Stack overflow
More Library Resources