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Beyza Aksoy I 12126532

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(100)1 Buddhist temple(s)

This is a story about the search for the 1001 Temples…

And the journey! (1)

As I set out on my quest to discover the mythical 1001 Temples, the journey felt like an adventure pulled from the pages of an ancient manuscript. I had heard whispers of these temples, a rumor, perhaps a legend, but the pull was irresistible. Yet, as days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, my initial enthusiasm waned. “The journey normally took forty days” (2), but the search for these special temples was longer and more arduous than I had ever anticipated. Doubts crept in, and a sense of regret began to gnaw at me.

Nothing lacked, but the destination (3)

Finally, I arrived at my next destination on the food of the alps: Gomde. My heart was heavy with expectation, but what greeted me was not what I had envisioned. There was no grand temple awaiting me, no welcoming procession of monks, no single sacred structure that I could point to and say, “This is it. This is one of the 1001.” Only a big building and some trees were standing there. This “…is certainly not a temple” (4), because “a temple is a place where man is to experience exaltation” (5) I felt a crushing wave of disappointment.“Absolutely frustrated (6)", a sense of regret simmered within as I questioned the validity of following a myth across distant lands. “…my stupidity appeared the more shocking” (7) Had my journey been in vain? “There, life is almost always the same, whence the disappointments of travel.”(8)

The Unexpected

Amidst the chaos, a warm touch graced my shoulder, accompanied by a cold breeze. A profound stillness enveloped my being. As the unseen force made contact, my mind, a tumultuous sea of thoughts, came to an abrupt standstill. It was as if time itself paused, and my thoughts dissolved into a serene emptiness—a void I had never experienced before. “I [was] so utterly lost in bliss,”(9). A subtle light, ethereal yet tangible, lingered before me—a silhouette like a ghost. a god? perhaps the soul of Gomde? Or just the wind playing a trick? What or who is that? Sensing my burden, the silhouette began to speak.

Welcome to a world where every element, every moment, and every place is a temple!

“You seek temples, but what you must understand is that religion, and thus the sacred is everywhere. It's in the grandest cathedral and the simplest stone,” it explained. “Religion is broad enough that anything can be mapped on to it. Everything and every little piece are religious. In this narrative, religion is not confined to conventional practices. It is seen in the everyday aspects of life, broad enough to encompass a multitude of expressions and interpretations. Well-known figures become gurus, books transform into scriptures, regular activities morph into rituals, and every action, commandment. What we consider sin or mere cultural practice is redefined as religious expression. It spoke of how traditional places of worship had given way to personal sanctuaries. “Even in today's secular world, everything we do is a ritual, every place a temple. Everything is religion, and “…the whole world is a temple...” (10)

As the silhouette spoke, I looked around with new eyes. The Gomde, this place I had journeyed so far to find, was indeed filled with more than 1001 temples, just not the kind I had expected.

“There,” the ghost pointed to an ancient firtree, “Temple No. 23, this tree is a temple of time, bearing witness to countless seasons and offering a space of reflection under its canopy.” Then it showed me a grand building, Temple No. 47, with its vast halls and quiet corners, serves as a temple of community, laughter’s, and morning recitations, inviting all to gather and taking them to shelter. A small chapel, Temple No. 92, offering a stark contrast to the grandeur around, reminding visitors of the quiet, personal nature of spiritual experience. Temple number 102 were prayer flags, hanging from tree to tree and draping the surrounding in a dance of colours. As we walked, the ghost showed me more – the stone Buddha of Temple No. 356, the shimmering ice cold waters of Temple No. 508.

“I shall explain how this temple came into being” (11)

“Let the scene be imagined rather than described!”(12) , the soul whispered. And then, there it was, Temple No. 601, the culmination of my journey. This temple, crafted from rammed earth collected from the seven continents, each layer of earth, varying in hue and texture, coming together to form a unified, layered structure. each layer stood as a testament to unity and diversity. The water used in its construction, sourced from a bioluminescent ocean, gave the walls a celestial glow. Crowned with a roof crafted from the finest wood, the Temple of Unity embodies fluidity and openness in its design. Its open structure allows unobstructed views on one side to the grand building of Gomde. On the other side, it opens up to the infinite sky and the expansive landscape, offering a space for personal reflection and a sense of boundless possibility. Its openness ensures that meditators can move through the space in a single, uninterrupted flow, entering and exiting without the need to retrace their steps. This singular circulation route symbolizes the unity and singularity of all existence. The temple's openness on both sides not only invites the natural elements in but also represents the journey of spiritual exploration - open, endless, and ever-evolving.

“It is but opening the eye, and the scene enters” (13)

In that moment, I understood. I had found not just the 1001 Temples but also my own personal temple. The 1 in 1001. It was here, in this space I had created, where every element converged to form a harmonious whole. This was my temple, my sacred space, a place where everything was religion, and everything was a temple. So, “It is true that this entire beautiful machine of the world is a temple […], and that the traces of the Architect are engraved in many parts of it…”(14)

They all layer together into one

Modelling

Location

First Design

Latest Design

Main Problem:

has no roof -> not durable

Renderings