Temple

Temple, building or place dedicated to the worship of a deity. Temples have been common to most religions; they date back to c.2000 B.C. in Egypt. In Eastern Asia, temples (pagodas) are towerlike structures built with many stories, each story a symbolic representation of a different level in the Buddhist religion. Worship in temples usually involves traditional ceremonies and at times may even contain sacrifices. The first of the three successive temples built by Solomon in ancient Jerusalem became the central shrine where sacrifice could be legally offered. This First Temple, destroyed in the Babylonian invasion 586 B.C., is considered the most important temple in Western history.