In the Bodhi
SPATIAL DESIGN PROJECT | A SHELTER
2018
​
​
‘Bodhi' is a word from Buddhism, which is traditionally translated into the word 'enlightenment' in English, close to 'awakening'. In this project, I designed a shared shelter located on Zhongnan Mountain, China. It conveys my personal understanding of 'bodhi'.
​
This project is based on the culture of 'hermit'. In China, hermit is a social role with long history and mystery legends. American scholar Bill Porter made the comparison that :'...Hermits are like graduate students who are studying for PhD in Spiritual Awakening. '
Hover to see more
They would go to the sparsely populated nature alone and settled there. Some will return to society in a few years, and others will keep seclusion till the end of their life.
Becoming A Hermit
Hermits pursue the asceticism in material life. They lived in shacks or even in caves, dress plainly, feed themselves only once or twice a day.
Their main activity is spiritual practice through meditation. They would sit and close their eyes, let themselves calm down as much as possible, let the flesh return to nature through breathing, and let the mind and spirit approach their respective pursuits.
However, there has been a certain group of people who feel that the social environment could not satisfy their spiritual pursuit. They decide to seek for solitude and even choose to leave the society to focus on spiritual practice.
Human beings are social animals. From ancient times to the present, most ordinary people live with their families and friends in the society.
Some of them have their own spiritual guidance, such as Buddhism, Taoism, etc; Others just simply train and explore themselves through nature.
Hover to see more
Hover to see more
