Why are monasteries so fascinating? Spanning different cultures, nationalities and religions... 1. Consider the Armenian Tatev Monastery of the Armenian Apostolic Church. 2. Simon Petra of Greece, one

Why are monasteries so fascinating?

Spanning different cultures, nationalities and religions...

1. Consider the Armenian Tatev Monastery of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

2. Simon Petra, Greece, an Orthodox monastery.

3. Or The Zen Kinkaku-ji Temple in Japan.

This may have something to do with the purpose of their religious inspiration. The theological views of these monasteries are different. They are very different. But in a sense, they're all places built in pursuit of something more...

This is not to say that secular architecture cannot be beautiful; This is clearly not true. So what is it? The essence of the monastery seems to have something intrinsic to it, which encourages a special form of fascinating beauty ...

Most importantly, I think it has to do with their isolation. Monasticism is defined as loneliness and distance from the whole world. As a result, they are often built far from other settlements in remote, wilderness areas...

Thus, they embody certain longings and doubts that are essential to the human condition: mystery, effort, and loneliness.