A Place for Prayer

 The design aims at creating hierarchy of spaces through volumetric expansion and contraction to cater to public as well as private acts of prayer. The mound in the design is thought of as an outdoor space for prayer. Light and shadow have an important role to play in enhancing the character of the place and hence have been explored here in terms of play of ceiling and skylight. Overall, the design is an attempt to imitate the cloister of a Cistercian monastery to detach from the surroundings and engage with one’s self as an act of prayer. The concept for the place of prayer stems from the personal understanding that prayer should not be limited to the indoors, but can spill out in the open, in the lap of nature. The intervention is imagined to enhance the experince of prayer, be it in any form- religious practice, self-comtemplation, meditation or something else.