I'm developing an architectural concept based on the book The Celestine Prophecy, which deals with energetic relationships of all matter. Anyone ever read it? It also talks about what is possible in human existence and the evolution of the planet. This begins with critical mass, when several people are all aware that there is something more to existence than the everyday routine that most of us live. In this realization, what seems like life's coincidences are actually a message of what's possible. The magic happens with the gathering together of people with the same quest for knowledge about life's possiblities. My idea of the space is to create a gathering place for people who are ready to look at their life's journey and ask what's next for humanity. I'm requesting feed back on how all of this might translate architecturally. If you've read the book it would be helpful.
I think your project is a very noble and worthwhile one. I have to admit that I have not read this book, but your summary make a slot of sense. I think when matter (steel, glass, concrete, stone, wood) is highly organized as it is in (some) architecture then a kind of psychic or aesthetic energy is generated and released. This energy sends waves or pulsations through the aether which energises the critical mass of people assembled in their temple (or church or synagogue or mosque). As you say, in this architctural setting, "the magic happens". I have had it happen to me many times: mainly in churches. but it can happen in an office building too, or a family in a home. I think we're all asking "what's next for humanity" right now. Translated architecturally you can look at the late Pope's funeral in St Peter's Square in Rome, or Princess Di's funeral in Westminster Abbey in 1997. Watched on television both these (as well as the Queen Mother's funeral, too) gave me a sense of the transcendent in life. Sorry to have picked on (Christian) funeral services of famous people: it's all that comes to mind right now. I don't know if any of this relates to the book you mention or your own goals as an architect. Keep your idealism of the transcendent, healing, transforming social function of architecture and you can't go wrong.
"My idea of the space is to create a gathering place for people who are ready to look at their life's journey and ask what's next for humanity."
isn't this what we're all trying to do? whenever we, as designers, talk about spirituality, design that's appropriate for our era, sustainability, whatever? we tend to pooh-pooh the idea that we strive for transcendence in our design work but who doesn't, at some level, want to make the next big step forward?
this might be a great starting point for a project that centers around universal design...not just following ada guidelines but taking on universal accessibility as a positive design challenge/inspiration.
Jul 19, 05 11:34 am ·
·
Wasn't that book really about a lot of people getting high on pot and then thinking grand thoughts?
One of my favorite sentences of all time comes from the entry under 'Celestine the Fifth, pope' in The Penguin Dictionary of Saints: "The results were disastrous, for Celestine was unfitted for the papal office in every respect except his holiness."
my thoughts aren't particularly original (probably not at all) but is not architecture to make a Nowhere into a Somewhere? (bilbao) Also architect as alchemist, transmuting base metals (glass, steel, concrete, wood, stone) into spiritual gold. the spiritualisation of matter, overcoming gravity, transmuting matter into spirit, the critical mass that alicat52 speaks being the same as reaching an escape velocity where we can overcome gravity and shoot off into the heavens where all is eternal, and not mutable as all is here down on Earth. Creating the illusion of overcoming gravity. (just a lot of nonsense I'm spouting here to try and understand what alicat52 is getting at, not having read the book).
WTF is going ON Around here_! ? Is there some sort of planetary-lunar line up that I am not aware of?? god this, spirit that, "tell me if my project is hot or not" . No.
beautiful painting! thanks for the input. i'm also looking into how quantum physics translates into architecture. I found a site (quantumcity.com) for the architect Ayssar Arida who's done alot with developing this concept and written a few books on it. Its another avenue of looking at energy. Quantam physics is pretty mind blowing. It took me a few days to get my head around some of the concepts. Other books i've read on the subject of energy state that basically, we are all made of molecules that vibrate, the more attune/in tune we are to this the higher our vibartions become, thus producing more energy. The Celestine Prophecy talks about when we give our energy to plants (like by meditating) it rasies the plants energy level (vibrations) and in turn when we eat those plants our energy levels are raised creating an ongoing cycle. I think it's all pretty interesting stuff.
this thread has made me think of so many things: how quantum mechanics is a theory to describe phenomena at a very small scale (microcosm) and how relativity describes phenomena at a very large scale (macrocosm). What is missing is a theory that aims at the in between cosmos of ordinary common sense of humans and their lives and cosmos of the phenomena of human beings and that scale and their buildings. This is where there is a gap in our knowledge (perhaps). You may be interested in (or bored by!) 'Essays on Architecture' in my site alchemy & architecture. Also Geoffrey Scott's beautiful, very slender volume 'The Architecture of Humanism' (1914) which I devoured as an architecture student many years ago. My angle on all this is that architecture is about the spiritualisation of matter and the materialisation of the spirit: both processes taking place simultaneously. Keep reading and exploring: you're obviously on to something great here!!
i read the Celestine Prophecy about 5 years ago and recall that there is a meeting place in the book that is set in an ancient forest in south america... i visualize ruins as well, but i could be making it up... i know that the trees were significant because of their energy levels...
so my gut reaction is to pick a site in the redwood forest or black forest and integrate the natural surrounding into the built space.
alicat52, do you realize that the celestine prophecy is a fictional work? it had a blair witch type of story attached to it when i read it, and people thought it was true.
Also, quantum physics really blows my mind as well... have you seen the movie 'what the @#%! do we know' (it is also referred to as what the bleep). http://www.whatthebleep.com/
it breaks quantum physics down in bite size pieces... definitely worth a watch...
goo luck!
Yes, I have seen What the Bleep. What a surprise, I don't come across many people who have actually seen it. It reiterated alot of what I had been reading about.
I know the Celestine Prophecy is fictional, but I feel through other books I have read, that the ideas are a glimpse into what actually is possible in terms of evolution. I think putting the ideas into a fictional plot was an easy way for people to grasp them. The book is set in virgin forest in Peru.
Wow John, you have some beautiful writings on your site. Very well written, I can see you have a passion for creation.
alicat52,
maybe this is one of those celestine coincidences... i've read the same book, seen the same movie and i we have similar screen names... what does it all mean?
i should really read the CP again, i remember being all high on life and feelin good after reading it the first time... i tried to read the second book, but just couldn't get into it...
good luck with your project!
Jul 20, 05 12:24 pm ·
·
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Celestine dream
I'm developing an architectural concept based on the book The Celestine Prophecy, which deals with energetic relationships of all matter. Anyone ever read it? It also talks about what is possible in human existence and the evolution of the planet. This begins with critical mass, when several people are all aware that there is something more to existence than the everyday routine that most of us live. In this realization, what seems like life's coincidences are actually a message of what's possible. The magic happens with the gathering together of people with the same quest for knowledge about life's possiblities. My idea of the space is to create a gathering place for people who are ready to look at their life's journey and ask what's next for humanity. I'm requesting feed back on how all of this might translate architecturally. If you've read the book it would be helpful.
I think your project is a very noble and worthwhile one. I have to admit that I have not read this book, but your summary make a slot of sense. I think when matter (steel, glass, concrete, stone, wood) is highly organized as it is in (some) architecture then a kind of psychic or aesthetic energy is generated and released. This energy sends waves or pulsations through the aether which energises the critical mass of people assembled in their temple (or church or synagogue or mosque). As you say, in this architctural setting, "the magic happens". I have had it happen to me many times: mainly in churches. but it can happen in an office building too, or a family in a home. I think we're all asking "what's next for humanity" right now. Translated architecturally you can look at the late Pope's funeral in St Peter's Square in Rome, or Princess Di's funeral in Westminster Abbey in 1997. Watched on television both these (as well as the Queen Mother's funeral, too) gave me a sense of the transcendent in life. Sorry to have picked on (Christian) funeral services of famous people: it's all that comes to mind right now. I don't know if any of this relates to the book you mention or your own goals as an architect. Keep your idealism of the transcendent, healing, transforming social function of architecture and you can't go wrong.
"My idea of the space is to create a gathering place for people who are ready to look at their life's journey and ask what's next for humanity."
isn't this what we're all trying to do? whenever we, as designers, talk about spirituality, design that's appropriate for our era, sustainability, whatever? we tend to pooh-pooh the idea that we strive for transcendence in our design work but who doesn't, at some level, want to make the next big step forward?
this might be a great starting point for a project that centers around universal design...not just following ada guidelines but taking on universal accessibility as a positive design challenge/inspiration.
Wasn't that book really about a lot of people getting high on pot and then thinking grand thoughts?
One of my favorite sentences of all time comes from the entry under 'Celestine the Fifth, pope' in The Penguin Dictionary of Saints: "The results were disastrous, for Celestine was unfitted for the papal office in every respect except his holiness."
my thoughts aren't particularly original (probably not at all) but is not architecture to make a Nowhere into a Somewhere? (bilbao) Also architect as alchemist, transmuting base metals (glass, steel, concrete, wood, stone) into spiritual gold. the spiritualisation of matter, overcoming gravity, transmuting matter into spirit, the critical mass that alicat52 speaks being the same as reaching an escape velocity where we can overcome gravity and shoot off into the heavens where all is eternal, and not mutable as all is here down on Earth. Creating the illusion of overcoming gravity. (just a lot of nonsense I'm spouting here to try and understand what alicat52 is getting at, not having read the book).
WTF is going ON Around here_! ? Is there some sort of planetary-lunar line up that I am not aware of?? god this, spirit that, "tell me if my project is hot or not" . No.
(sorry little friends, this moment sublime...)
full moon's not 'til thursday.
yeah, i think god seems to be taking over archinect.
it's evangelical bunny's frankenstein creation.
beautiful painting! thanks for the input. i'm also looking into how quantum physics translates into architecture. I found a site (quantumcity.com) for the architect Ayssar Arida who's done alot with developing this concept and written a few books on it. Its another avenue of looking at energy. Quantam physics is pretty mind blowing. It took me a few days to get my head around some of the concepts. Other books i've read on the subject of energy state that basically, we are all made of molecules that vibrate, the more attune/in tune we are to this the higher our vibartions become, thus producing more energy. The Celestine Prophecy talks about when we give our energy to plants (like by meditating) it rasies the plants energy level (vibrations) and in turn when we eat those plants our energy levels are raised creating an ongoing cycle. I think it's all pretty interesting stuff.
my chest hair is prettier than a William Blake.
this thread has made me think of so many things: how quantum mechanics is a theory to describe phenomena at a very small scale (microcosm) and how relativity describes phenomena at a very large scale (macrocosm). What is missing is a theory that aims at the in between cosmos of ordinary common sense of humans and their lives and cosmos of the phenomena of human beings and that scale and their buildings. This is where there is a gap in our knowledge (perhaps). You may be interested in (or bored by!) 'Essays on Architecture' in my site alchemy & architecture. Also Geoffrey Scott's beautiful, very slender volume 'The Architecture of Humanism' (1914) which I devoured as an architecture student many years ago. My angle on all this is that architecture is about the spiritualisation of matter and the materialisation of the spirit: both processes taking place simultaneously. Keep reading and exploring: you're obviously on to something great here!!
Javier: just because you've got big numbers you shouldn't throw your weight around...
i read the Celestine Prophecy about 5 years ago and recall that there is a meeting place in the book that is set in an ancient forest in south america... i visualize ruins as well, but i could be making it up... i know that the trees were significant because of their energy levels...
so my gut reaction is to pick a site in the redwood forest or black forest and integrate the natural surrounding into the built space.
alicat52, do you realize that the celestine prophecy is a fictional work? it had a blair witch type of story attached to it when i read it, and people thought it was true.
Also, quantum physics really blows my mind as well... have you seen the movie 'what the @#%! do we know' (it is also referred to as what the bleep). http://www.whatthebleep.com/
it breaks quantum physics down in bite size pieces... definitely worth a watch...
goo luck!
Yes, I have seen What the Bleep. What a surprise, I don't come across many people who have actually seen it. It reiterated alot of what I had been reading about.
I know the Celestine Prophecy is fictional, but I feel through other books I have read, that the ideas are a glimpse into what actually is possible in terms of evolution. I think putting the ideas into a fictional plot was an easy way for people to grasp them. The book is set in virgin forest in Peru.
Wow John, you have some beautiful writings on your site. Very well written, I can see you have a passion for creation.
alicat52,
maybe this is one of those celestine coincidences... i've read the same book, seen the same movie and i we have similar screen names... what does it all mean?
i should really read the CP again, i remember being all high on life and feelin good after reading it the first time... i tried to read the second book, but just couldn't get into it...
good luck with your project!
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