A manifestation of the sacred in the ordinary world, where divine or transcendent reality breaks through into profane existence. The term describes any revelation of sacred power or presence that transforms ordinary objects, places, or experiences into something holy.
Coined by religious historian Mircea Eliade from Greek 'hieros' (sacred) and 'phainein' (to show or appear). Eliade developed this concept in the mid-20th century to describe how the sacred reveals itself across all religious traditions, making the invisible divine visible in material form.
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