The story of the Nature Temple
Prior events: the climatic breakdown of Earth
In the year 2075 the echosphere of the planet Earth began to lose its efficiency. due to the human unsustainable exploitation of the natural resources. The increase in temperature. the result of intense pollution. caused the evaporation of 65% of water on the surface. As a consequence. the living creatures on the planet -animals and plants - began to disappear. Mother Nature. exhausted by the arrogance of man. could no longer adapt to the old order in which Mankind ruled. and was unable to sustain life anymore. The human race had forgotten that all living things are actually part of a whole. and that one cannot exist without each other.
Life comes from water. sustained by sun and air. If even one of these elements is absent. Life - as we know -would be impossible. In the hope to continue the Life on Earth. the Man needed to awaken and remember who he is. For this reason. Man tried to reconnect with Mother Nature in a temple dedicated on the planet Mars. A single. tiny ··sacred seed" of a tree. brought from the Earth. was planted in the ground of the main chamber of the temple. near a water source. The seed sprouted and grew up. by making synchronous photosynthesis between the humans and natural elements.
The building of the temple
The Nature Temple was started to be built in 2112. supported by the major space agencies of Earth. Architect of the temple was Domenico Parisi. a visionary man who dedicated his life to science. The temple was built within a small. recent meteor crater in the site of Utopia Planitia. a large plain impact basin on the red planet. Construction of the temple took 7 years. in spite of hard weather conditions: -50 C degree. strong winds and dusts. The building is accessible by an entrance tunnel. equipped with an airlock room. The main chamber. (or "'the Sanctuary") is visible from the martian surface by a huge window. whose pure crystal (12 cm thick) separates the inner environment from the outer martian thin atmosphere. The Sanctuary is a relatively round room. about 6 meters high. At the centre of the room there is the "Holy Lake": this is a small pond of spring water. maintained liquid thanks to the inner room pressure. Around the lake there are 6 small places. arranged in an hexagonal shape. where the cenobites take positions during the "Ceremony". The "Tree". sprung from the sacred seed. grows in one of the 6 places.
The roof is made of Beryllium. and maintains the inner atmosphere adapt to human life. Outside the crater. there is "the Leaf": it is a 18 mt high curved structure. supporting a series of Iridium foils arranged to represent a leaf: on the end. a huge sphere of pure crystal stands for a drop of water. vertically over the Holy Lake.
The symbology and the liturgy
The temple is visited by 5 cenobites at a time. known as "The Communicators". During the ceremony. these men and women take positions around the Holy Lake. and immerse their feet in the water. As the positions are connected with each other by tiny canals. the Communicators create a single spiritual unity with the Tree and the Holy Lake. giving life to the seed.
The diorama
This diorama is the first of the seven temples supposed to be made for other planets in our solar system. It is dedicated to the collective consciousness of all humanity. which will save our planet one day. Other temples will have similar missions to raise awareness of humanity through art.
Moreover, Beste Ozcan, designer of the concept. having Turkish nationality wanted to bring attention to the current situation in her motherland. In July and August 2021. the beautiful nature of the country was under danger of big fires in the forests and pollution in the coasts. The Lives of animals. trees and humans had risks. Dreaming of an optimistic future where all countries unite to save the planet. the logos of some space agencies were added at the entrance of the temple. Valerio and Beste also wanted to dedicate the temple to their colleague Domenico Parisi. who was a passionate scientist working on Artificial Intelligence and robotics and passed away in 2021.
beste.ozcan@istc.cnr. it
valerio.sperati@istc.cnr.it
valerio.sperati@istc.cnr.it
