Religious Representation in Place pp 211-233 | Cite as
The Town beyond the Modern: A Biographical Reflection about Space, Time, and Spirituality
Abstract
Drawing on my own career experience, in this chapter I outline changes in urban gestalt, space, and time1 (see figure 14.1). In the last 50 years from Europe to Africa to China, cities have moved beyond the modern age and into a new reality where Western rationality is transcended by emotion and spirituality. We are now in the midst of a radical transformation of consciousness. One of the many changes brought on by this shift is a new awareness of the collective self, of the physical body as incarnation of the self, and of the soul as part of our cosmic origin. This also informs a shift in how we perceive our cities: they are no longer viewed as simple piles of rocks but as society’s physical “body” innately connected to our collective knowledge and cosmic source. From within a framework of gestalt therapy as a starting point, the gestalt of the city with its new energies is connected to emotion, sensitivity, and spirituality in today’s world. The goal is to overcome the fundament.
Keywords
Master Plan Picture Book Urban Design Town Planning Country PlanningPreview
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Notes
- 1.This contribution is based on a presentation given at the international conference “Meaningful Spaces” in April 2011 at the University of Zurich. One different version of the text has been published in: Christoph Woiwoode and Wolfgang Schotz, “Urban Development and Spirituality Trialog,” Zeitschrift für das Planen und Bauen in der Dritten Welt 107.4 (2010): 18–26.Google Scholar
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