Meaning of hierophanic | Babel Free

Definitions

Of or pertaining to (a particular) hierophany; hierophanical.

Examples

“Among primitive peoples whatever appears unusual, singular, horrendous, frightening, outside the pattern of habit and social life, becomes transferred into the sphere of the hierophanic. Whatever is in some way 'perfect' is also considered to be hierophanic, […]”

“To borrow from the vocabulary of the history of religions, cloud seems to have a hierophanic significance; in other words, it is an object that manifests that which is sacred, or contributes to its manifestation. However, the identification of an isolated hierophanic element is not, in itself, interesting.”

“For the Catholic Church, priesthood is the structural mechanism by which the believing community normally gains access to its foundational hierophanic faith-events. By means of the socially constructed hierarchic power invested in it, priesthood accesses, coordinates, and controls hierophanic power. The only authentically religious use of priestly hierarchic power, however, is to produce, disseminate, and maintain the ascetical and mystical means of fostering awareness and submission to the Ultimate Source of hierophanic power: Divine Being.”

“The tornado could be added to the list. Its characteristics and shape certainly place it in the more hierophanic phenomenon of the sky, for what better metaphor for a tornado than the finger of God, that appendage that links the celestial to the terrestrial?”

“Imaginal players are normally from an a-historical realm of "reality." They tend to appear in accounts of hierophanic history rather conventional history. Some people claim to perceive these figures through the creative imagination. And though the existence of imaginal players cannot be verified through scientific methods, they live in the world of meaning of religious people. Imaginal players may be anthropomorphic (with human form), theriomorphic (with animal form), or polymorphic (with multiple forms). For instance, (1) the Hebrew patriarch Jacob wrestled with an angel who looked like a man; (2) A buffalo may appear in the visions of Native Americans performing the Sun Dance; and (3) Hindu Arjuna saw Kṛṣṇa display countless heads and arms in an astounding panoramic vision of "time itself" while in his chariot on the battlefield.”

CEFR level