SEMESTER – 3

THEORY AND METHOD

ASSIGNMENT
SIDDHARTH BAGGA
2–B

PHENOMENOLOGY
Tadao Ando – Water Temple, Awaji Island

Phenomenology is a philosophy of experience. As I understand it, Phenomenology in Architecture relates

to our sensory reaction to the space around us. More simply how does the building or space make you
feel.

“I don’t believe architecture has to speak too much.

It should remain silent and let in the guise of sunlight and wind”

On the island of Awaji, just behind a cemetery, above a small harbor, lies the Buddhist Temple Honpukuji,
also known as the Water Temple.

The Water Temple is approached from a long uphill path traversing the temple compound and cemetery.
The entrance channel has square and round walls on either side, having white sand and fine gravels as the
background; the levels are portrayed in space using blanks. The corridor full of white sand extends toward
the Water Temple: people can experience a dramatic situation when they hear the sounds created by
stepping on the gravels.

By walking along the curved wall, one’s vision is suddenly widened at the turning point of the wall by an
oval elegant lotus pond. The pond itself is filled to its outermost perimeter, forming a boundless horizon
line about which it infinitely reflects its surroundings. The stillness of the water has a meditative effect
and perhaps implications of a spiritual cleansing.

1
The way to approach the Temple, speaks volumes of Ando’s philosophies. Ando avoids direct entry into
the interior and presents a kind of hierarchical approach, with the help of directional walls. Tadao Ando’s
work enabled people to experience a journey involving growth, awareness, and thinking by means of the
arrangement of path. Ando said, to perceive an object, the distance between self and the object must be
changed, and this is fulfilled through movement.

One is directed, indirectly, through a simple series of the two, gesturing, white-washed concrete walls of
light and shadow that that eventually lead one to the lotus pond.

At the center of the lotus pond, there is a line of stairs leading to an underground temple, which divides
the pond into two areas. Through the only window located at the west side, daylight enters. Contrary to
the monochromatic approach through the white walls and neutral concrete stair, the interior of the

2
temple is saturated with color. The circular space is filled with an intense red-orange light which seems to
be pulsating from its core, the inner most and most sacred space of the temple which houses the Buddha
statue. The temple is renowned for the statue of Amida Buddha, the Buddha of infinitive Light.

The vermilion red color is most intense during sunset as light radiates through a western facing window.
This western light has symbolic meaning because Buddha originates from the west (India).

Now if we look at the complex as a whole, one does not approach the inner sanctuary of the temple
directly but circulates around the inner sanctuary where the color gradually becomes more and more
intense and eventually reveals itself as one follows the smooth concrete walls to the light source. The
lights gradually become weak and dim as one walks down the stairs. However, when entering the temple,
one is awakened by the crimson light in the hall. This journey in the light is a symbol of purification, death,
and further rebirth. By taking advantage of the underground patio, the lighting allows the space to be
dyed with a soft red color.

The lotus is symbolic of the Buddhist Tradition, but it is merely used as a layer to develop the experience
of the viewer. In addition to the lotus pond, and the traditional core of the temple, we see concrete walls
that give a completely different take to the temple. Necessities as little as the handrails, the blue-gray iron
railings in the form of simple lines to increase the safety of the pool constitute a natural poetic image,
forming beautiful scenery comprising both manmade and natural elements.

In terms of the shape, material and layout, the Water Temple stands far from the classic wooden Buddhist
temples, but Ando flawlessly manages to connect modern Western Architecture, with oriental Japanese
tradition.