双语阅读：带你欣赏世界上最美的宗教圣地

原来美丽的景色不仅局限于大自然的鬼斧神工，更有人类智慧的巧夺天工。看完

这些叹为观止的建筑，将刷新你对美的定义。我们一起看看那些世界最美的宗教建筑。

　　With their awe-inspiring architecture, magnificent facades and sheer size, places of worship are often some of the most beautiful buildings in the world. No matter the religion, travellers from around the world can appreciate the work that led to their creation.

　　宗教场所通常是一些世界上最漂亮的建筑，他们令人惊叹的建筑架构，宏伟的外观和精确的尺寸，无论宗教信仰是什么，世界各地的游人都可以欣赏这些导致他们产生的作品。

　　To find out which spots are most spectacular, we turned to question-and answer site Quora.com to ask: “What is the most beautiful place of worship in the world?”

　　为了弄清哪个景点是最壮观的，我们在问答网站Quora.com抛出了问题：“世界上最美的宗教场所是哪里?”

　　Users’ responses ranged across continents and across religions, including mosques, temples, synagogues and basilicas. Though perhaps forged by a single faith, each of these buildings has a beauty that transcends any single belief and brings together visitors from every creed and culture.

　　用户的回答涵盖不同的大洲、不同的宗教，包括清真寺、寺庙、犹太教会堂和长方形基督教堂。尽管这些建筑可能只因某一个信仰而建，但是它们每一个都有着自己的魅力：它们超越某一个单独的信仰，把不同信仰和文化的观光者聚到一起。

　　1.Brihadeeswara Temple, India

　　1.印度的布里哈迪锡瓦拉寺

　　Known locally as “The Big Temple”, this enormous granite Hindu sanctuary in Tamil Nadu was built in 1010 by then emperor Rja Rja Chola I, known as one of India’s greatest leaders.

　　当地人称其为“大寺庙”，这个巨大的花岗岩圣殿，坐落于泰米尔纳德邦，是朱罗皇帝一世于1010年建立的，他也是印度最伟大的领袖之一。

　　“I visited this temple for the first time when I was in ninth standard as a part of our school tour,” wrote Sharmila Ashraf from New Delhi. “My love for architects and architecture started here. This temple is not only beautiful, but has a fascinating history.”

　　来自新德里的米拉.阿什拉夫说：“我第一次参观这个寺庙是在九年级，当时作为我们学校巡演的一员来参观。我对建筑和建筑学的喜爱也从这里开始。这座寺庙不仅漂亮，而且拥有一段令人着迷的历史。”

　　Part of that history is the mystery of how the single stone kumbam (the structure on top of the temple) was transported to the site. The solid piece of rock weighs more than 70,000kg – and the nearest granite sources are more than 60km away.

　　这段迷人的历史，其中一部分就是：寺庙顶端那块单独的大石头是如何运过来的。这块固体块岩超过70000kg重——而且最近的花岗岩资源也远在60km以外。

　　The huge temple grounds, more than 320,000sqm, deserve their own time for wandering contemplation. “The temple is so wide and so large that one has to rest while seeing the ancient carvings on the gigantic walls,” Ashraf said. “It’s the finest example of our architecture achieved during Chola dynasty. A magnum opus.”

　　这个巨大的寺院，面积超过320000平方米，有足够的时间让他们用来漫游、沉思。阿什拉夫说：“这座寺院是如此宽广和宏大，以至于人们不得不一边休息，一边欣赏巨大墙壁上的古代雕刻。这是我们在朱罗王朝代表我们建筑水平的最好例证，一个很有力度的作品。”

　　2.Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem

　　2.耶路撒冷的圆顶清真寺

　　One of the world’s best-known places of worship, the Dome of the Rock is “quite the sight”, said Jennifer Alam from Dhaka, Bangladesh.

　　来自孟加拉首都达卡的詹妮弗·阿拉姆说，世界上最著名的宗教场所之一，就是圆顶清真寺，“非常值得一看”。

　　Located on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, the 7th-century shrine is one of the city’s most recognised landmarks, particularly for its impressive dome that was refinished in the 1990s with more than 80kg of gold. The octagonal design and colourful mosaics are thought to be modelled on Byzantine churches and chapels.

　　这个七世纪时的神殿坐落在耶路撒冷圣殿山，是这个城市最易识别的地标，尤其是它那令人印象深刻的圆顶，曾在20世纪90年代用80kg多的黄金重新修缮过。八角形的设计和多彩的镶嵌画被认为是模仿了拜占庭教堂和小教堂的样子。

　　The Dome of the Rock is significant across religions. The Foundation Stone, located in the shrine’s floor, is one of Judaism’s holiest sites, thought to be where the world was first created. It’s also known to be the site of sacrifices by biblical figures such as Adam, Abraham and Noah. Many who follow the faith continue to pray in its direction. In Islam, the site is thought to be Muhammad’s final destination during the Night Journey from Mecca to Jerusalem.

　　圆顶清真寺在宗教上意义重大。清真寺的基石，位于神社的地板，是犹太教的圣地之一，被认为是世界产生的地方。它也因那些牺牲的圣经人物如亚当、亚伯拉罕和诺亚而闻名。很多追寻信仰的人依然朝着这个方向祈祷。在伊斯兰教中，这个地方被认为是穆罕默德从麦加到耶鲁撒冷的夜旅中的最后一站。

　　3.Shwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar

　　3.缅甸仰光大金塔

　　Though historians believe that this Buddhist pagoda was built between the 6th and 10th Centuries, legend has that the structure is more than 2,500 years old. Relics of all four Buddha are said to be housed in the structure.

　　尽管历史学家认为这个佛塔是在6~10世纪建立的，但是印字显示这个建筑已经有2500年了。

　　Regardless of its true origin, people have a deep-seated reaction upon entering the site.

　　无论它的起源是什么，人们对进入这座寺庙有一种根深蒂固的反应。

　　“Even though the pagoda lies at the heart of Yangon, the busiest centre of the city, once you walk inside the place, you almost hear no noise,” wrote Dzung Dang, who lives in Boston. “The feeling of calm and peace traverse and embrace me. I could just sit there for hours, either to meditate, to admire the beauty of the pagoda or to think about nothing.”

　　住在波士顿的单格说：“尽管大金塔位于仰光的中心，最繁华的城市中心，一旦你漫步其中，你却不会听到任何噪音，安静平和的感觉包围了我。我可以在那里坐上几个小时，或者进行冥想，或者在心底赞美金塔的美丽，或者什么都不想”

　　Genuine gold plates cover the base of the stupa, giving the structure its nickname the “Golden Pagoda”; people across the country have regularly donated the precious metal to keep its appearance over the years. The gilded exterior continues its way up to the top of the pagoda; the crown is decorated with more than 5,000 diamonds and 2,000 rubies, and the tip features a single 76-carat diamond.

　　由于佛塔的底部由真金覆盖，使得它有了一个“金塔”的昵称;这么多年来，这个国家的人们会捐献珍贵的金属来保持佛塔的外观。佛塔从底部到顶端都是镀金的;顶部的皇冠装饰有超过5000颗钻石和2000颗红宝石，而且顶端单独装饰了一颗76克拉的钻石。

　　4.St Peter’s Basilica, The Vatican

　　4.梵蒂冈的圣彼得教堂

　　It may be constantly overrun with tourists, but even that doesn’t take away from the magnificence of this Catholic and Christian cornerstone. “I don’t think that anyone could argue against its beauty,” wrote Robert Carbury.

　　可能这里游客过多，但是这也不会使天主教和基督教基石的宏伟壮丽稍显逊色。罗伯特.卡布瑞写到：“我认为没有任何人可以质疑它的美丽。”

　　One of the largest churches in the world, St Peter’s is considered to be the pre-eminent example of Renaissance architecture, designed in part by Donato Bramante, Michelangelo Buonarroti and other notable Italian architects.

　　圣彼得教堂作为世界上最大的教堂之一，被认为是文艺复兴时期建筑的杰出代表，它是由多纳托·伯拉孟特、米开朗琪罗和其他著名的意大利建筑师设计的。

　　Though a church has been on this site since the Roman Empire, the current structure was completed in 1626. It features the tallest dome in the world – more than 130m high – and is lavishly decorated with marble, architectural reliefs and some of the world’s most detailed sculptures, include Michelangelo’s Pietà.

　　尽管自罗马帝国以来，这个地方就有教堂，但现在的教堂结构是在1626年完成的，它是世界上最高的教堂——有130多米高——而且它装饰有丰富的大理石、建筑浮雕和一些世界最精细的雕刻，包括米开朗基罗的《圣殇》。

　　“No photographs in any way truly capture the beauty, grandeur or even the vastness of St Peter’s,” Carbury added.

　　卡布瑞补充说：“没有照片能够用任何方式真正的展现它的美丽、庄严，甚至是它的巨大都不能如实展现。”

　　5.Lotus Temple, India

　　5.印度的莲花庙

　　Religious architecture does not have to be ancient to be beautiful. In fact, one of the most stunning and interesting buildings was built in 1986. The Lotus Temple, a Bahá’í House of Worship in New Delhi, India, gets its name from the 27 blooming "petal" structures that shape the skyline.

　　宗教建筑不一定非要拥有复古的美丽。事实上，最令人震惊而有趣的建筑之一则建成于1986年。莲花庙，是巴哈伊教在印度新德里的教堂。得名于27多盛开的“花瓣”结构，这种花瓣结构形塑了其空中轮廓。

　　Notable for its flowerlike shape, it has become a prominent attraction in the city, wrote Murali Krishnan from Chennai in a similar Quora thread. "It has won numerous architectural awards and has received wide range of attention in architectural, fine art, religious, governmental and other venues."

　　来自金奈的穆拉里.克里斯南写道：“因其形似花瓣而著名，莲花庙已经成为城市中一个著名的景点。它已经获得了无数个建筑奖，而且在建筑上受到广泛的关注，比如精细工艺、宗教的、政府的和其他场地方面。”

　　Open to people of all faiths, the white-marble temple can hold up to 2,500 people in its domed interior and has even surpassed the Taj Mahal in annual visitors.

　　这座由大理石建成的寺庙向各种信仰的人开放，可以在它的圆顶内部容纳2500人，而且它的年游客量甚至超过了泰姬陵。

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