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Sacralization of the Self

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Encyclopedia of Latin American Religions

Part of the book series: Religions of the World ((REWO))

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Definition

The expression refers to a status reached by the individual in the New Age, based on which the individual is considered a source of authority and truth, maker of his or her destiny, and bearer of the divine spark. The notion of self comprehends the distinct dimensions of the individual (mind, emotions, body, and spirit) and conceives of the individual as a divinity-bearing totality; self-consciousness presupposes awareness in a spiritual sense that goes beyond the merely psychological: it integrates the individual with the universe. Divinity resides in each person as a reflection of the transcendence of the cosmos.

Introduction

“Sacralization” is a process by which an object is invested with the dignity associated with divinity, transcendence, or the unknowable (Hammond 1985). Sacred objects are inviolable and cannot be profaned, that is, they cannot be mixed with the mundane or placed in doubt, given that they do not coincide with any objective justification nor with any...

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Correspondence to Vanina Papalini .

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Papalini, V. (2019). Sacralization of the Self. In: Gooren, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Latin American Religions. Religions of the World. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27078-4_75

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