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1 small quiet somewhere

Retreat entrance/foyer

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Ink and pencil crayon drawing showing isometric and straight-on views of the floor plan, showing the positioning of the main entrance/foyer. Below is a sketch of the view of the foyer as if you had just stepped inside, with Kanthaka and Little Yì facing the centre corridor/walkway to the rooms of the retreat. The foyer is a sunken area with a pair of hanging scrolls on either side of the walkway, with storage and tools on either side.

Very rough ink sketches on a light dot grid. Sketchy drawing of the foyer scene depicted in the previous image, with scrawled notes as the layout was being figured out. There are also sketches for the wall scrolls as a pair of wings.

Rough ink brush drawings in black and red ink refining the art of the wall scrolls. They depict each half of a pair of abstract wings that turns into Chinese characters.

Transcript (main entrance/foyer)

  • Broom, cleaning & repair supplies [against the left wall]
  • Large slabs of wood as benches [to the left of the ramp]
  • Mat or ramp (rest of area is sunk into the ground) [in the centre of the foyer leading up to the rest of the retreat main corridor and rooms]
  • Large flat rocks as benches [to the right of the ramp]
  • Glowing plants for light [on either side of the foyer]
  • Pair of matching scales [flanking the path down the centre of the retreat] - left: 般若 bōrě Prajñā (wisdom); right: 慈悲 cíbēi Karuṇā (compassion)
  • Shelves & hooks for storage [against the right wall]

Author's notes

I actually sketched this out back in December 2023, and never got around to finishing and posting until now. I could read a lot of my notes and had to do my best to guess, but it's good enough!

The wall scroll is based on the Buddhist concept that wisdom and compassion are the two wings of the bird of mindfulness practice (or enlightenment, or the path of bodhisattva). Both are necessary for the bird to be able to fly.

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