Come To Hold The True Meaning: Philosophical Interpretation On Centripetal Schema In Traditional Buddhist Architecture

With further studying and redeveloping the culture of traditional architecture in terms of philosophy of modern architecture, based on analysis of connotations of generalized “centripetal” phenomena and prototypes of “centripetal schema” in Buddhist sutras and scriptures, also with traditional Buddhist architecture as investigated object, viewing from phenomenology, semiology, typology, philology and iconology, discriminating and analyzing the prototype of centripetal schema, as well as the designing ideas of artistic creation based on the prototype, philosophical interpretation on centripetal schema in traditional Buddhist architecture comes down to three levels, which are “Truth – Centripetal Schema”, “Genius Loci – Centripetal Schema” and “Materialized Nature – Centripetal Schema”, and analysizes characteristics of synchronous development along with architectural typology, revealing the significance of the research on philosophical interpretation of “centripetal schema” in traditional Buddhist architecture, and trying to discuss the approaches and feasibility of establishing real philosophy of architecture.The study will be mainly divided into two parts, the introduction and the principal discussion. As for the introduction, it firstly illuminates motivation and significance of exploring the formation of centripetal schema in traditional Buddhist architecture, then indicates subjects and approaches melted in the philosophical interpretation, as well as characteristics of developing harmoniously along with architectural typology, by way of exploring the “source”, in order to inherit the culture of traditional architecture effectively; secondly, it defines the scope of related subjects, also summarizes the approaches and structures in the research; finally, it discusses related researches on aspects of traditional Buddhist philosophy, traditional Buddhist architecture, artistic symbolism, centripetal schema and philosophy of architecture, etc, along with the key ideas of related scholars, as well as the application of relevant research approaches, clarifying almost all the related viewpoints, as an overview of the entire research. As a whole, with the thinking attitude and method of “phenomenology” as the basic principle, on the basis of “Paving and Preparing” of explicating the relevant disciplines and ideas of philosophical interpretations, the principal discussion of this study focuses on the research work of “Wiping out the Shields” in order to do reductive analysis on the centripetal schema in traditional Buddhist architecture, carrying out interpretations in manner of philosophical reflection then forming final “Conclusions”, which are considered to be the three main core parts in the study. Therein, the first part includes one chapter, clarifing relevant connotations of certain key words referring to essential concepts of the study, mainly from five perspectives to recognize and analyze the essence of the research, bringing about theoretical correlation of “traditional philosophy – philosophy of art – philosophy of architecture”, in order to accomplish a preliminary thinking from “centripetal schema” to “philosophy of architecture”. The second part includes three chapters, which respectively clarify that the centripetal schema is a rough expression of the Truth and Reality in Buddhist education, a revivification of the Genius loci of the Buddha’s education directly reflecting the functional essence of Buddhist architecture, and an appeal of enlightenment also an imitation of the Buddhist realm by means of materialized natural approaches, conveying the eternal beauty, divine beauty and natural beauty in art of traditional Buddhist architecture, finally demonstrating that the centripetal schema is the typical schema to “hold the true meaning” in Buddhism. The third part is the conclusion chapter, which summarizes all kinds of various centripetal schemas in traditional Buddhist architecture, summing up inner motivations of generation and development of traditinonal Buddhist architectural space under the background of Buddhist philosophy, breaking through the essential thoughts of primitive expressions in between oriental and occidental art of construction, in order to seek out a probable interpretation on the phenomenon that specific spatial schema along with its evoluting patterns always acts following a traditional thinking.