 the Mariendom is monumental in scale

 Whether approaching by rail, road, or on foot, one can see a mountain-like peak of concrete from a
far way off. 
 the towering mass of the building is briefly obscured in a relatively low-ceilinged foyer, providing a
moment of visual suspense before one enters into the cavernous volume of the main worship space.
 the otherwise featureless gray expanses of concrete are punctuated with windows of brilliantly
colored stained glass

 Entering the church feels like entering a dark, giant cave, but once the eyes adjust to the enormous
space, many fine details come into view: handrails, built-in furniture, stairs, and railings, are all
illuminated by the remarkably colorful church windows.
 It’s an impressive Gesamtkunstwerk that successfully merges the heavenly scale with the human
scale.

2) Bataan Chapel by Swiss Artist Not Vital Questions the Boundaries Between Art and Architecture

Bataan Chapel, built by the Swiss artist Not Vital in the Philippines.

Although it houses a porcelain sculpture entitled The Last Supper—reproduced by Vital from a painting of
the same name that he completed in 2015—the presence of a sculpture dedicated to the Philippine rice
goddess Bulol, carved by the Ifugao tribe and affixed to one of the inner walls of the chapel, deprives the
installation of any Christian meaning.

Vital considers the project in Bataan the latest in a series of surrealist works
"Is it art? Is it sculpture? Is it architecture? I don’t know. I'm not an architect, I never went to architecture
school. That's why I'm so free to do this," commented the artist in response to the attempt to categorize his
work.
Vital considers the project in Bataan the latest in a series of surrealist works
its volume is composed by the combination of a trapezoidal and a stepped prism; at top of the first, a
longitudinal slit brings a dramatic beam of sunlight into the interior, while on the opposite side, a door—just
large enough to fit one person at a time—is the only entrance to the Chapel.

3) ,germany

 “In order to design buildings with a sensuous connection to life, one must think in a way that goes far
beyond form and construction.” This quote from Peter Zumthor rings true in his design of Bruder
Klaus Field Chapel, where a mystical and thought-proving interior is masked by a very rigid
rectangular exterior.
 Arguably the most interesting aspects of the church are found in the methods of construction,
beginning with a wigwam made of 112 tree trunks. Upon completion of the frame, layers of concrete
were poured and rammed atop the existing surface, each around 50cm thick.

 When the concrete of all 24 layers had set, the wooden frame was set on fire, leaving behind a
hollowed blackened cavity and charred walls

 Gaze is pulled up by way of obvious directionality, to the point where the roof is open to the sky and
night stars

 Occulus-create an ambience or experience very specific to the time of day and year.

 On a sunny day, this oculus resembles the flare of a star that can be attributed to a reference of
Brother Klaus’s vision in the womb. The very somber and reflective feelings that become inevitable
in one’s encounter with the chapel make it one of the most striking pieces of religious architecture to
date.

 “To me, buildings can have a beautiful silence that I associate with attributes such as composure,
self-evidence, durability, presence, and integrity, and with warmth and sensuousness as well; a
building that is being itself, being a building, not representing anything, just being.”
  There are a few other design details, including a sculpture of the saint, yet the main visual element
within the chapel is its unglazed tear-drop oculus, which is said to reference a vision Brother Klaus
experienced, of floating in his mother's womb and seeing an enormous starburst.

  Perforations walls
 In addition to the oculus, daylight enters the chapel through small holes 350 located in the concrete
walls. These boreholes with steel pipes and used to pass the elements that held the inner formwork
abroad before being burned, were later covered with small hemispheres of blown glass that give a
particular flavor to the point where light enters and were essential due to air currents that originated
inside the chapel.

 ... To me, buildings can have a beautiful silence that I associate with attributes such as composure, self-
evidence, durability, presence and integrity, and with warmth and sensuality, a building that is being itself,
being a building, that does not represent anything, it's just ... "(Peter Zumthor )
4) Capilla del Retiro / Undurraga Devés Arquitectos

The whole of this piece, which appears to levitate over the ground, refers us to the spiritual dimension
inside. This space is illuminated from the lower part, leaving a space to view a weightless body in the
interior that hides the rationality of its supports, whilst the exterior affords us a view of the stone wall that
surrounds the patio.

Under the strict geometry of the concrete a patio was excavated, whose rustic stone wall rises hazardously
up and around the chapel, compressing and expanding that space of light. As a counterpoint to the
magnitude of the geographic surroundings, the interior was designed in the shape of a wooden box recycled
from old railway lines. This box hangs from the concrete structure and lies 2 meters under the beams that
support it, limiting the view of the emptiness outside.
5) Capilla San Bernardo / Nicolás Campodonico-LIGHT

Located in the Pampa plains, in the east of the province of Cordoba, Saint Bernard´s Chapel (the local patron
saint) rises in a small grove, originally occupied by a rural house and its yards, both dismantled in order to
reuse their materials, especially its one-hundred-year-old bricks. The site does not have electricity or any
other utilities; nature imposes its own conditions. 
  In the limit between the trees and the open country, the chapel´s volume opens up towards the sun,
capturing the natural light of the sunset in the interior. Outside, a vertical and a horizontal poles are placed
separately and projected towards the interior. As a result, every day all year round, the shadow of these,
slides along the curved interior, finishing its tour overlapping with each other.
6) Sayama Forest Chapel / Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP-SBNR Example

Sayama Lakeside Cemetery is open to various religions and denominations.  It is located in a nature-rich
environment adjacent to the water conservation forest, and the site itself is in front of a deep forest. I
envisioned an architecture that reflects on the way of life as it lives by the water conserved by the forest, and
eventually returns to this place after death.  Thereupon, I found the forest to be the subject of prayer that is
mutual to various religions and conceptualized an architecture that prays to the forest while surrounded by
trees.
The floor inclined towards the forest by 1 centimeter guides people towards the departed and the forward
bending posture for praying.  The patterns and seams of the slate extend towards the vanishing point deep
into the forest to help one concentrate the mind on the forest. When one prays, a small warm space is created
within the hands as the fingers gently join. It seems as if that small space of prayer was taken out to form the
architecture.  As people pray, so does the architecture.  For those who are in deep grief and inconsolable,
how can architecture nurture them?  With this in mind, I designed buildings that gently surround them and
support their intentions.

7) Al-Irsyad Mosque
The primary shape of the mosque takes the form of a square, which seems the most efficient since Muslims
pray in straight rows facing a specific direction or the Qiblah.The structural columns are arranged in such
way that the façade seems like it is not supported by any frame. This shape also alludes to Ka'bah, the most
important structure in the Islamic world, to which all Muslims' prayers are directed
8) St George Orthodox Church / Wallmakers -MATERIAL
An age-old construction technique involving masonry with earth blocks and mud mortar without shuttering
to create a wide range of arches , domes and vaults. The was reintroduced to 20th century by the Egyptian
architect Hassan Fathy.The basis of this technique is that the blocks adhere to each other with earth glue.
The principle is that the dry block suck by capillarity the water along with the clay of the glue which will
bind the blocks. It is essential that the blocks are very thin, so as to have a high ratio “sticking area/weight”.
 

Built on the foundation of a historic monument, this church resurrects the original church which is the first
church of the Christians in Kerala, built in 1615 AD and was left in shambles after years of neglect and
encroachment. Designed using stabilized earth blocks to form Nubian arches, the alter and the aisles of the
church are supported by flying buttresses that were built without shuttering.

9)church of the light

Ando’s decision to place the cross on the east façade allows for light to pour into the space throughout the
early morning and into the day, which has a dematerializing effect on the interior concrete walls
transforming the dark volume into an illuminated box. Ando’s approach to light and concrete in the Church
of the Light, as well as his other projects, has a surreal effect that perceptually changes material into
immaterial, dark into light, light into space.
“Light is the origin of all being. Light gives, with each moment, a new form to being and new
interrelationships to things, and architecture condenses light to its most concise being. The creation of
space in architecture is simply the condensation and purification of the power of light.” — Tadao Ando

By keeping the number of openings to a minimum, the power of the light emanating from the crucifix is
intensified.
10)Church on the Water / Tadao Ando Architect & Associates -NATURE CONNECTION
"I believe that a sacred space must be related in some way to
nature, which has nothing to do with animism or pantheism."
Tadao Ando
Wrapped in an aesthetic devoid of any ornament, many of the works of Tadao Ando base their richness in
the relationship of the building with light and nature. In that sense, the Church on the Water, designed in
1985 and built in 1988, is one of its most celebrated achievements, in which nature has been involved in the
design of the building. Here, Ando manages to create a microcosm that combines simply but brilliantly
concepts on the profane and the sacred, the artificial and the natural, the enclosed and the exposed, the
emptiness and the infinity.
The most noteworthy aspect is that Ando has substituted the frontal wall of the temple, in which there would
traditionally be divine images of certain religious significance, with a more vivid and eloquent
representation of the Creator: nature itself. In this way, he creates a living, multicolour and ever-changing
scene, that changes from the sepia tones of autumn to the glaucous hues of winter; from the florid blooms of
spring to the intense greens of summer.
"You cannot simply put something new into a place. You have to absorb what you see around you, what
exists on the land, and then use that knowledge along with contemporary thinking to interpret what you see."
This philosophy of Tadao Ando is ever apparent in his design, as he is celebrated for the attention he pays to
nature and the relationship between interior and exterior spaces of his buildings.
The church, with a form of two overlapping cubes, faces a large pond which steps down towards the small
natural river.
To gain entrance to the church, the visitor enters under a glass and steel cube at the northernmost end which
houses four large concrete crosses that pull the gaze upwards. The path leads up and around these crosses,
and then down the connecting dark spiral stairway into the larger cube of the chapel below.

Upon entering the chapel, visitors are struck with the view of the pond and surrounding trees and hillside
through the operable glass wall. The other three walls are made of concrete, which also frame a steel cross
placed in the middle of the pond.
Ando succeeded in his intentions to design a sacred space through the ritualistic and circuitous entry route
11) Tadao Ando Envelops Giant Buddha Statue in Lavender-Planted Hill Temple

Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando has designed a monumental lavender-covered temple

enveloping a giant statue of Buddha at the Makomanai Takino Cemetery in the northern Japanese city of
Sapporo.

Before the temple was completed, the 44-foot-tall Buddha sculpture stood alone in a field for 15 years. Soon
after its completion, the client realized the stone structure was out of scale on its own, giving visitors an
uneasy sensation. For that reason, they decided to hire Ando to create a more serene architectural procession
for the site.
The resulting temple envelops the statue, leaving only the top of its head visible from outside the hill,
planted with 150,000 lavenders that allow the landscape to change from green in spring to purple in summer
to white with snow in winter. Visitors now approach the Buddha through a 130-foot-long passageway into
the circular space surrounding the statue.

“The design intention was to create a vivid spatial sequence, beginning with the long approach through the
tunnel in order to heighten anticipation of the statue, which is invisible from the outside. When the hall is
reached, visitors look up at the Buddha, whose head is encircled by a halo of sky at the end of the tunnel.”

12) Metropolitan Cathedral, Brasilia

Oscar Niemeyer  -SHAPE
 completed in May 1970. Since then, it has become a popular tourist attraction and an iconic symbol of
Brasilia.

The interior of the church is rather large and the ceiling tapers up towards the sky which leads the eye
upward toward the gorgeous glasswork and hanging statues. In contrast to the typical dark cathedrals that
remind us of sins, 
Oscar designed a dark entrance and gallery that leads visitors to a bright well-lit nave with stained glass
windows facing infinite space.
There is an emphasis on creating a clean, untainted, unified volume that portrays an ultimate expression
from 360 degrees.
Though the architect is a professed atheist, the space conveys religious emotion and is at once spectacular
and simple, strengthened by an access in promenade architecturale: a dark tunnel leads the visitor to the
interior of the circular aisle of 70 meters in diameter, at a lower height with respect to the exterior level; with
the pupil dilated by darkness, the visitor walks some meters in the direction of light – almost as if
metaphorically they were entering in search of spirituality – and, when they finally reach the cathedral
proper, which is in essence a concrete and glass dome bathed by light, the visitor’s eye opens up to a
magical space. The sixteen structural pieces of concrete of the roof – which, symbolically, can refer to the
idea of the crown of thorns of Christ – have a parabolic section

13)crystal cathedral
Crystal Cathedral exhibited an aesthetic that seemed poised somewhere between striking postmodernism and
shopping mall. 

14) Chapel in Valleaceron / S.M.A.O./SPAIN -shape

Light thus takes on the role of a second material in the chapel, a material that contrasts with concrete,
fragile, changing, mobile, unstable, dominating or vanishing.
The unifying thread was to be the concept of the fold: the fold as a hidden generator of different spaces.

Along this walkthrough interval the varying scale of the fold makes the compact volume break offering a
closed-compact, open-fragmented sequence of spaces in a constant change of time.

15) Kamppi Chapel of silence-SBNR

 Unlike many other chapels, that are full of detailed design, the beauty of this chapel lies in its simplicity.

Contrary to its imposing size, the wooden structure contains only one room: the chapel. Its curved walls give
a sense of safety, while the warm tones of the wood lit from above, instantly make you feel more relaxed. In
order to create this surreal atmosphere, designers used oiled alder planks for the walls and solid wood for the
benches. As visitors take a sit, the outside world becomes nothing but a distant memory. It is a perfect place
to sit in a silence, meditate or just to clear the head.

Built in the same minimalistic style, the entrance space is also used for local exhibitions. The simplicity of
the room, with grey walls and wooden benches is a perfect spot to display art pieces.
you will find Kamppi Chapel of Silence — a bizarre-looking, curved structure built to provide you
with a period of heavenly silence that aids introspection and retrospection.

 No-one is baptised and wedding ceremonies are not held either. So it is not a chapel as such, even though
there are regular prayer meetings.

Now if there is no prayer and worship at the chapel, what is it for?

The key purpose of this lovely little place is to offer you a brief escape from the inescapable outside

noise. While everyone is rushing around outside, you can step inside and find yourself in an oasis of

calm.

Designed by K2S Architects Ltd, the chapel stands in stark contrast to the nearby buildings because of its

impressive, splendid wooden architecture. Made of Finnish timber, you just cannot miss this distinguishable,

windowless and circular structure once you are at Narinkkatori Square.

You will immediately feel the warmth of wooden walls, and there is no typical motif to remind you that you

are in a place of worship.

Because there is no window, a brilliantly designed oval-shaped skylight in the ceiling is the only way that

allows natural light to enter the chapel. The combination of smoothly glazed wooden walls and the smart

skylight creates a profound sense of tranquility and calmness.

custom-made spruce wood planks which are seamlessly connected with horizontal finger joints.

16) Kuokkala Church / OOPEAA

The church is flanked by a granite stairway and walls which, together with the bell tower on the square,
usher visitors towards the main entrance.

 The aim was to design a building that serves an identifiable landmark for the area. The goal was to have all
the functions of the church and community center placed under one roof divided into several floors. The
client asked for a building with a strong presence. However, a sense of openness and easy access was also
desired. The building functions as a communal meeting point that facilitates a wide range of different kinds
of activities and uses.
 The church is predominantly
wooden. The church ceiling is a combined glulam frame and wooden gridshell construction, which visually
integrates the separate hall spaces. The gridshell was assembled and laminated together in-situ in three
sections.
17) San Giovanni Church / Studio Zermani e Associati/ITALY

The overall body of the church is traversed by a line of light which, in the main church, marks the vertical
cut of the façade and continues in the roof, accompanying the faithful up to the altar.
18) Saint Benedict Chapel / Peter Zumthor/ 1988/switzerland

Simplicity Married Craftsmanship At Peter Zumthor’s Saint Benedict Chapel

Zumthor once explained his process: "When I start, my first idea for a building is with the material. I believe
architecture is about that. It's not about paper, it's not about forms. It's about space and material.”
“Like old churches, its form expresses its sacredness and distinguishes it from the secular buildings…but the
church departs from tradition – it is built of wood. Like the old farmhouses it will darken in the sunlight…”

19)Reading Between the Lines / Gijs Van Vaerenbergh/BELGIUM

 The ten metre-high church is constructed from 100 stacked
layers of weathered steel plates. Gaps between these plates allow visitors to see through the walls.
“We wanted to refer to the most psychological form of a church,” Van Vaerenbergh says. A laser scan
captured the building’s dimensions, from which the architects created digital and physical models. “We
started with the full form of the church and then started cutting it,” Van Vaerenbergh says. The ratio of 1
centimeter metal to 9 centimeters of opening maintained the typological form while allowing the landscape
to show through.
After all, the church does not have a well-defined function and focuses on visual experience in itself (one
could even consider it to be a line drawing in space). At the same time, the construction demonstrates that
this experience is in effect a consequence of the design, since it explicitly refers to the various stages in its
conception: the design drawing, the model… Apart from that, because the church does not fulfil its classical
function, it can be read as a heritage related reflection on the present vacancy of churches in the area (and
their potential artistic reuse).

All these layers merge in one work of art that is open to various readings, from a strictly architectural one to
an artistic one. At the same time, ‘Reading between the lines’ is an accessible spatial intervention that gives,
among others, a cyclist that happens to ride past, an unexpected visual experience.
20)Cardboard cathedral /shigeru ban/new Zealand/2013
 With an expected lifespan of around 50 years, it will serve the community until a more permanent cathedral
can be constructed.
The building features a triangular profile constructed from 98 equally sized cardboard tubes. These surround
a coloured glass window made from tessellating triangles, decorated with images from the original
cathedral's rose window.

21) Holy Redeemer Church / Menis Arquitectos/2007

The lapilli, a widely material used in the Canary Islands is a volcanic material, highly porous, which
provides a degree of acoustic absorption significantly higher at medium and high frequencies.

Its use as coarse arid in the preparation of concrete, and posterior stinger or bush hammered surface of it,
reveals a rough surface that has a degree of sound absorption clearly superior to conventional concrete.

This technique can be used as sound-absorbing element in highly reverberant spaces, while respecting the
materiality of space, it is not necessary to use common porous materials that introduce a distortion in the
architectural design of the building.
\
The volumetric impact of the building and its use of essential materials, treating concrete as if it were liquid
stone capturing waterfalls of light, create the temple while also optimizing economic resources. The space
reflects timeless emotion.

22) Cologne Central Mosque/Germany/2017-SBNR

The complex is mainly characterized by the praying hall, which consists of several shell-like walls. In the
center these walls build a light-flooded dome. Like the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Turkey, the mosque in
Cologne also presents a distinctive blue appearance. Modern atmosphere seen through the design of glass
that blends on the wall. Modern Islamic impression is also visible from the writing of gold calligraphy in the
mosque. “Open” and “bright”, a piece of commentary that describes Paul Böhm’s mosque.The building of
the mosque is designed to be transparent by using glass that features natural lighting. However, not just a
physical form, the mosque is also open to the citizens of different religions. The design of the mosque is also
considered “very German” because it is able to create a breakthrough in the field of architecture houses of
worship that marries the architecture of the Ottoman-era Turkish mosque with a typical European-style
architecture.
23) THE SANSKRITI TEMPLE/maharastra/2020

A series of small courtyards with varying volumes envelope this small Hindu Temple.Hindu temples over centuries
have been planned in a natural progression through 3 man spaces.
The entrance space called the “ardhamandapa” leads one into the “mandapa”, the praying space from where one
sees the deity space called the “garbagraha”.

This temple design takes cognizance of the traditional spatial configuration creating the three spaces in natural
sequence.

These volumes however are entered through a series of sheltered and open walkways and courtyards created with
textured & perforated brick screen walls.

The entire circulation is purposely lengthened to convey a sense of tranquility prior to entering the main prayer hall.
The shikhara is the most dominant element of all Hindu temples and is the highest part situated above the deity.
Exposed brick layers rotating gradually create the shikhar of this temple with a skylight at the top to allow natural
light to fall directly on the deity during the day.
To be built on a small site at a road junction in Khardi village in Maharashtra, India. This temple design alludes to
tradition , creates a natural environment , is sustainable & responds to the hot climate of its location.
24) ISHA center Coimbatore
Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, from the Isha Foundation, asked the Auroville Earth Institute to build this dome as
fast as possible, so as to shelter the Dhyanalinga of 14 feet high which was inside. The Dhyanalinga is a
special one: It is a mercury based linga and the dome was essential to lock the energy of the Dhyanalinga.

The Dhyanalinga is a Multi-religious Meditation Shrine created exclusively for the purpose of meditation.
This dome of the Dhyanalinga Shrine was built for the ISHA Foundation, at the Foothills of Velliangiri
Mountains near Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, South India.

Therefore the use of CSEB had been eliminated from the beginning. The time requested for the production,
curing and drying of the blocks (3 - 4 months compulsory for arches, vaults and domes) would have been
too long!
Thus the choice went for fired bricks, which were laid with a stabilised earth mortar. The foundations and
walls were built in random rubble masonry with granite stones in lime mortar.

214,000 fired bricks were laid and the construction site had a working force of more than 220 workers (110
workers at the most on the scaffoldings, including 25 masons). The large amount of fired bricks required
could not be supplied by the same brick factory. Therefore the fired bricks came from about 20 different
kilns. As a result, they had different sizes and most of the time they had odd shapes (belly, cracks and other
irregularities). Therefore, nearly 200,000 bricks had to be checked one by one
No reinforce concrete had been used in any part of the building: neither for the foundations, plinth nor tie for
the dome. Sadhguru Jaggi wanted the dome to last 1,000 years and reinforced concrete has not yet proved to
be able to last so long. Therefore the dome stability has been studied in order to have only compression
forces.
The dome presents these features:
•    Section: segmental ellipse of 22.16 m diameter and 7,90 m rise.
•    Thickness: 4 courses from the springer to the apex: 53 cm, 42 cm, 36.5 cm and 21 cm at the top.
•    Weight: around 570 tons (brick dome = ± 420 tons + granite stone to load the haunches = ± 150 tons).

The different mortars were over stabilised so as to get a fast setting and strength: 13 to 13.37% of cement
and 19% of lime.

Single resonator absorbers (Helmholtz resonators) were installed in three layers, so as to absorb 12
frequencies between 120 Hz and 1.50 kHz. The result was a dome without echo but still with a certain
reverberation, which was normal because of its volume. This gave also a certain sound quality.
25)hindu temple
26) Lotus Temple / Fariborz Sahba-sbnr

Popularly known as the Lotus Temple, the Bahá'í House of Worship in New Delhi, India is a house of
worship that was designed by Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba and completed in 1986.  
The temple is one of eight Bahá'í House of Worship facilities in the world and has welcomed over 70
million visitors since its completion, making it one of the most frequented architectural landmarks in the
world.  From a denominational standpoint, the Lotus temple is open to all practitioners regardless of
religious affiliation and functions more as a gathering place of worship to interested visitors.

in keeping with Bahá'í scripture, the Lotus temple is organized as a nine-sided circular structure that is
comprised of twenty-seven “leaves” (marble-clad free-standing concrete slabs), organized in groups of three
on each of the temple’s nine sides.  The structure is inspired by the lotus flower and is arguably one of the
most visible instances of biomimicry in contemporary architecture.

27) The ISKCON Temple, East of Kailash, New Delhi

Kanvinde, Rai and Chaudhary, 1998

The temple, for starters, faces west   Everyone knows that a temple should face east, and a Mosque must
face Mecca. But, if you consider the site- Hare Krishna hill as it’s called, you’ll see that this is the most
logical direction to orient the temple to, if you want to utilize the entrance, and let the hill dictate the
pathway leading up to the temple (maybe this model pic will make that clear)
 these are what set the ISKCON temple apart from the rest:
 West facing
 Shikhar- orientation and form
 Materials
 The Branding
 The architect

ISKCON
TEMPLE is situated over a hill with the main temple block occupying the highest portion of the site. The
three-acre site is surrounded by the buildings leaving the open area mainly in the center. The open area is
arranged in terraces to meet the buildings at various levels and create spatial relationship with its
architecture.
28) Shiv Temple / Sameep Padora & Associates

Wadeshwar, Maharashtra, India
Built through ‘Shramdaan’ (self build) by the villagers, this temple was constructed on a shoestring budget,
using a local stone as a primary building block because of its availability from a quarry within 200 meters
from the temple site.

The stone’s natural patina seems to confer age, as if the temple had always existed... before inhabitation.

Adhering to the planning logic of traditional temple architecture, the form of the temple chosen evokes in
memory, the traditional shikhara temple silhouette

The path to the temple winds in between white oak trees till two free-standing basalt stone walls embedded
in the landscape create pause as well as direct a person onto the East-West axis on which the garbagriha /
inner sanctum lies. Entry to the sanctum is through an exaggerated threshold space which in turn frames the
outside landscape for the inside

The ashtadhaatu (8 metal composite) temple kalash (finial) is held in place by a frame which also anchors a
skylight to allow light to penetrate the inner sanctum/garbagriha.
29) Temple of Steps / Sameep Padora & Associates/AP
The brief was to design a temple for the residents of villages around Nandyal.
The ecological strategy for the temple, thus began with recharging of groundwater. Water overflow from the
limestone quarries was led to a low-lying recharge pit or ‘kund’: the banks of which was imagined as a
social space, in the manner of a traditional ghat ; a flight of steps leading down to a water-body. This
negotiation of land and water with steps is a significant part of India’s architectural heritage as is seen in
the ghats of the ancient city of Benaras.

The same corbelled profile also incorporates soil and planting in the lower half of the temple body to buffer against
the heat and finally this stone corbelling turns into a ghat i.e the steps that access the water.
The same corbelled profile also incorporates soil and planting in the lower half of the temple body to buffer
against the heat and finally this stone corbelling turns into  a ghat i.e the steps that access the water
30) Tejorling Radiance Temple / Karan Darda Architects

The temple built in a farmland is dedicated to Mahadeva(Shiva), one of the major gods in Hinduism.
Located in a Chickoo tree orchard. The temple is built for everyday worship by surrounding farmers. The
building takes references from the region’s historical aspects and Hindu temple architecture, which is re-
interpreted in a contemporary way. A simple brick wall marks the entry to the area.

The overall structure is built using reddish-orange coloured concrete which helps the temple to contrast and
standout in the surrounding greens. The temple is carefully inserted in a small piece of land which looks
hidden into the trees from most of the surrounding areas creating a kind of curiosity for visitors and passers-
by and the dimensions are derived using golden ratio to achieve the desired human scale.

Here the sanctum is opened up directly to the outdoor space and is attached with a small meditation space
so as the passer-by could go in for a quick prayer and carry on with his work later. There are two major
openings to the building, one which forms the entrance, another for the holy water to go out. The water
going out is poured on the deity as a part of worship. The two openings form a connection at the top as the
pyramid cantilevers.
An expression of movement is created by pulling a small mass out of the main structure creating a space for
meditation. One can sit quietly for a while and feel the space inside. A slit is provided to draw the breeze
inside along with a subtle quality of natural light.
31) TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE DESIGNED WITH BLEND OF PARAMETRIC AND

CONTEMPORARY INTERPRETATION

New Delhi which revolves around the ‘Master Number’ 11 symbolizing balance, vision, purity; Masculinity
as well as Femininity in Indian mythology.

The Sai Temple will be unveiled on an 11.11-acre site that is proposed at the epicentre of a 338 Acre master
plan project of Chennai. The client brief had a strict indicative of using the number 11, owing to their beliefs
in numerology and vastu – a traditional ancient Indian science. rat[LAB] was invited to join Lead
Architects- Shilpa Architects, Chennai as design collaborators and Parametric Design Consultants. Taking
an unprecedented approach, the concept design developed with an 11 sided polygon – Hendecagon,
articulated as a three-dimensional polyhedron.

The flooring pattern in the main hall is a mathematical looping system using 11 vertices of the hendecagon
that folds to form interstitial spaces within the geometry. A recursive division of curves that create an
asymmetry towards the deity creates a focal point at the ground level where the pattern curves and guides
the visitors towards the deity for prayers and offerings. A pure white space from inside is magically lit by
sunlight diffusing from the oculus on top, which maintains the purity and balance of the space by
maintaining symmetry. Double fold origami structure allowed to create a rigid structure with fluidic
columns that blend into the interior space while allowing a long-span shell-like structure.
The proportions and sizing of all aspects of the design rely heavily on the understanding of the golden ratio
and principles of mathematics and origami. Surrounded by a series of promenades, podium and lush green
landscape, the Sai temple is a reflection of spiritual contemplation that will appear 66m (11×6) above the
ground, making a mesmerizing experience for visitors entering the temple. Promenade frames the view to
the temple, as well as guide the devotees to the 154 ft (11×14) Sai statue.
32)MATRI MANDIR,AUROVILLE

The Mother of Sri Aurobindo Ashram conceived this temple and communicated her thoughts to architect Roger
Anger who translated it into a design. The scheme, which covers an area of 9 hectares, comprises the main temple,
an amphitheater and gardens.

The meditation chamber is dodecagonal in plan and has a conical roof. Its walls are clad in white marble and the
floor is covered with white carpet. A pair of spiral ramps provides access to the chamber.

A Modern Temple For All Religions: Roger Anger-Designed Matrimandir In Auroville

  ‘Matrimandir’ means literally ‘Temple of the Mother’

the Matrimandir, situated in a large open area called ‘Peace’, from where the future township will
radiate outwards.
 
the Matrimandir emerges as a large golden sphere which seems to be rising out of the earth,
symbolizing the birth of a new consciousness seeking to manifest

Roger ANGER Architect

Roger Anger, who had received the Mother’s instructions regarding this aspect of Matrimandir, has
worked out the technical details: The diffuse sunlight behind the golden disks should shine through the
800 portholes in the ferrocement skin, illuminating 800 translucent orange-pink triangles, which form
the Matrimandir’s Inner Skin. 

Although the shape and size of these translucent triangles is determined by the triangular beam
structure, the beams and portholes should not be visible through the Inner Skin. The whole inside of
Matrimandir should be filled with this orange-pink glow, coming from all sides, and no design-element
or detail behind the orange screen should disturb the peaceful impression.

Symbolism

The Matrimandir wants to be the symbol of the Universal Mother according to Sri Aurobindo’s teaching

Inner Chamber
The spacious Inner Chamber in the upper hemisphere of the structure is
completely white, with white marble walls and white carpeting. In the
centre a pure crystal-glass globe suffuses a ray of electronically guided
sunlight which falls on it through an opening at the apex of the sphere
The four pillars that support the structure of Matrimandir, and carry the
Inner Chamber, have been set at the four main directions of the compass.

The meditation rooms inside the twelve stone-clad ‘petals’

surrounding the Matrimandir carry the names and colours of the
‘petals’ in the Mother’s symbol

the Golden Section and the proportions of the Great Pyramid are
precisely incorporated in its cross section 

It was also discovered that Sri Aurobindo’s

symbol fitted exactly into the Shalagram, the form in which Matrimandir has been built (fig.2). (A
shalagram is an ancient symbol described in Hindu Cosmology as ‘the Egg of Brahman’ from where
the creation has sprung forth). In other words, there are two triangles with the same proportions as the
Great Pyramid inside the Shalagram

we get a band of about 110 centimeters where the energy field will be concentrated. This band will be
in the Inner Chamber, precisely where the people will sit

Garden Names

1. Existence
2. Consciousness
3. Bliss
4. Light
5. Life
6. Power
7. Wealth
8. Utility
9. Progress
10. Youth
11. Harmony
12. Perfection

A – Matrimandir
 B – Garden of Unity

C – Ampritheatre

D – Rose Garden

Aurovilian architect/engineer Piero Cicionesi who lead the development up till the completion of the
Inner Chamber

Consultancy for the structural design was graciously given by Dr. T.K. Santhanam of SERC
(Structural Engineering Research Centre), Chennai

Although Anger designed alongside the Mother

upon his commission in 1965, the temple was not complete until 2008, taking a total of 37 years to
build
 The outer skin of Matrimandir is to be totally covered by
decorative, golden, concave and convex discs. Mounted onto the structure by a system of metal rods,
they will have the practical function of shading the building from the strong sunlight of south-India.

gold leaf between two thin layers of glass, sealed at the edges, to yield something like a 4 x 4 cm gold
’tile’. It offers a solution which answers not only requirements of durability but also easy maintenance.

The heliostat, fixed on the top of Matrimandir, is a device for tracking the sun and projecting a single
ray of sunlight onto the crystal globe inside the Inner Chamber. The amount of light and heat on the
crystal globe was studied by French and German engineers.

a 45 centimeter diameter lens with focal length of thirty meter (manufactured in India) was installed
for focusing the sun ray in a converging beam that strikes the globe inside the chamber.
The gilded symbols of Sri Aurobindo supporting the globe have a base with a small hole and a second
lens, which refocuses the light beam to become visible in the lotus pool under the Matrimandir
 33) THE PYRAMID VALLEY INTERNATIONAL-SBNR

The world’s largest meditation pyramid stands tall, an emphatic and harmonious presence that juts out of the
surrounding landscape. Within this pyramid, up to 5000 people can meditate peacefully with no space
constraints. This pyramid is part of Pyramid Valley or Maitreya-Buddha Vishwalayam, an international
meditation centre that is dedicated to spiritual wisdom and attainment of self-realization

Pyramid Valley International is home for the world's Largest Meditational Pyramid serving Individuals,
Societies and Organizations in their quest for self Realization.
A spiritual centre on 28 acres of land located amidst hillocks & trees. A beautiful serene, tranquil campus
involves calmness and serenity with large Meditation Pyramid on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

The exterior surface of the pyramid is covered by beautiful murals of the elements of life.

Maitreya-Buddha Pyramid, with a capacity of about 5000 people, is the world’s largest Pyramid built
solely for practising mediation. It as a base area of 160ft X 160ft and is as tall as a ten storeyed
building at 102ft height.

The meditational pyramid is undoubtedly the main attraction, the walkway leading its entrance
adorned with rocks, water bodies, and verdant gardens. At the entrance of the pyramid, guests are
greeted by a statue of the meditating Buddha. The pyramid design is meant to collect and radiate the
cosmic energy, the flow of which is believed to be essential in meditation
The Maitreya-Buddha Pyramid is a slate grey structure standing at a height of 102 ft. and a base of more
than 25,000 sq ft. Made on the principles of the Giza pyramid, the structure is oriented in the north-south
direction. One of the architectural hallmarks of the pyramid is the golden angle of inclination of 52° 51’. The
King’s Chamber sits at the centre at a third of the total height. From the outside, the most striking features
are the murals depicting the many elements of nature. The frame is made of steel, resting on a cement base.

The different faces represent the different elements – the north face represents air, the south and east faces
showcase fire and water respectively and the west face represents earth. The Maitreya-Buddha pyramid
features a range of paintings and art work showcasing Buddha.
King Chamber located at the center to 1/3rd the height of the Pyramid. Its spiral and vibrant King's
chamber, the most energic spot of the pyramid, stands at 34ft. tall and accomodates 40-people for
meditation at a time