Hello World! Welcome Friends! To quote St. Ignatius of Loyola, “God can be found in all things”. And according to the great philosopher George Bernard Shaw, “The best place to find God is in a garden. You can dig for Him there.” Indeed! In my garden, I discover God over and over again.
Tending to my landscape and getting to sit still and take in the air surrounded by my own efforts bring me enormous pleasure. Butterflies, ladybugs, bees, and all kinds of songbirds frolic amid the petals. They enjoy themselves as well. And it is in all of this that I find God.
The garden is also used by St. Teresa of Avila as a metaphor for the act of living. She tells us that we must “cultivate a garden on very barren soil full with weeds” and “take pains to water the seeds so they do not wither but blossom and flower”.
That said, many people strive to make their gardens a spiritual space where serenity and tranquillity reside and where they can meditate on life and find comfort. And statues and sculptures of religious figures are perfect for achieving that.
Tapping Into Your Spiritual Side with Religious Garden Statues
Religious statues and sculptures have been put in gardens for ages to serve as reminders of faith and to create a sense of calm in outdoor places. In fact, the most notable feature of the ancient Roman gardens was that they were decorated with statues depicting various gods and sacred objects. Some of these statues remain put even today.
While the Barbarian and Ottoman invasions wiped off Roman gardens, during the Renaissance a new concept of the garden arose in Italy. As the Renaissance promoted an increased interest in art and ancient Roman practices, there was a reemergence of the Roman garden. The gardens of aristocracy throughout Italy started to incorporate statues of religious figures and fountains combined with hedges and tree-lined walks.
Religious garden ornaments made exclusively for outdoor usage can help you carry on that tradition today. Garden centers and specialized statuary stores around the UK offer a variety of religious statues and sculptures to pick from, honoring all kinds of faiths.
From deities to nymphs and fauns that honor old Greek and Roman religions to Christian saints and Buddha, religious statuary is quite popular. The garden reverts to being a sacred space for divinities, a snug and pleasant setting in which it is easier to communicate with our inner selves, pray, or meditate.
How to Choose Your Statues
The statues at the garden centre all look amazing until you actually bring them home and see that they don’t quite fit and you can find any adequate space for them. Garden statuary that doesn’t quite fit right can make your outdoor space look crowded, chaotic, and even tacky, just like clutter or odd furniture placement inside your home. Everyone knows at least one house that looks like that.
However, if you plan ahead of time before going shopping, you can fully prevent the cluttered look. Here are a few questions to ask yourself when selecting religious statues with which to adorn your garden.
Where Will the Statue or Sculpture Be Displayed?
Religious sculptures and statues exist in a variety of sizes. Some are small and can be placed on an outdoor table, ledge, or wall to blend in with the surroundings. Others are rather huge and easy to notice from a distance. Consider the size of the available space in order to make sure the statue fits proportionately and there’s no risk of it falling over.
Do You Require a Light-up Sculpture or Statue?
Even at night, lights allow religious garden statuary to be viewed properly. Sculptures and statues that are illuminated can be plugged into an outdoor wall socket or powered by changeable batteries. Solar choices are environmentally beneficial, and they illuminate at night by storing energy from the sun throughout the day.
What Material Is the Statue Made Of?
A more precise form of this question would be: How much time are you willing to devote to caring for your garden ornaments? Like any décor, statues and sculptures require cleaning. And because they’re placed outside, they require more care than your regular indoor décor. Luckily, some statue materials are durable, can resist the elements with grace and are low-maintenance.
If placed fully in the open and exposed to sunlight for most of the day, statues and sculptures made of painted wood or metal statues may require refinishing, while concrete and stone options should be sealed on a regular basis for weather protection. Resin sculptures are low-maintenance and come in a variety of finishes, including stone, wood, metal, and other materials.
What Type of Religious Statue Suits Your Landscape Best?
Buddhist
If you want to turn your garden into a Zen-like space where you can meditate and be present in the current moment, then the range of Buddhist statues is perfect for you.
For many in the Western world, sculptures of Siddhartha Gautama and Budai, the laughing Buddha Statue, have simply come to be linked with good fortune and tranquillity. When you add one to any garden, it quickly transforms it into an oriental haven. And, with all of the many styles and materials, there’s a version of him for any landscape or setting.
Christian
Christian sculptures and statues are perfect if you have an English-style garden or a cute little rustic patio. There are small Christian sculptures that can be placed between flower beds or in a small votive cave, like Madonna and Baby, friar monks or cherubs. These are ideal if you only want a subtle aura of spirituality in your garden.
For establishing a more religious feeling, there are also large statues that stand up to 2 meters tall. These usually show Christ resurrected, the Virgin Mary, St. Joseph or Michael the Archangel.
Greek
An ancient Greek sculpture is both realistic and idealized, expressing the ideal form of beauty and divinity. The most famous ancient Greek monuments and sculptures pay homage to literary and mythological deities. The Three Graces, Hebe, Venus de Milo, Venus and the Apple, Shy Maiden, Cupid and Psyche, and so on are all beautiful choices for a sophisticated Greek-style garden.
Hindu
If you’re into the practice of Hinduism, then you cannot overlook adding a lotus flower statue to your garden. Hindus admire the lotus in both worship and depictions of the divine. The Hindu worship ritual Puja literally means “flower act.” There are many ways that you can add a lotus flower ornament. For instance, you can get a statue of Hindu god Lakshmi holding two lotus flowers or of Lord Krishna dancing on a lotus base.
When it comes to Hindu statues of gods, one of the most popular ones is Ganesh. Ganesh is the god of wisdom and success, and the remover of obstacles. By decorating the garden with a Ganesh statue and moving past him every day on their way to work, people believe they can ease their path from difficulties.
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Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful day/night depending on where you are in the world! Go with God and remember to be kind to one another!
Toodles,
[…] How to Choose Religious Statues for Your Landscape […]