Michael Rice

Michael Rice is an award winning architect and member of the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland. He studied at the School of Architecture in University College Dublin. He set up his own practice in 1998 based in the Slieve Bloom Mountains in the heart of Ireland, specialising in Sacred Design and Living. He is kept wonderfully busy designing beautiful homes all over the world. He teaches 'Sacred Geometry and Coherent Emotion' internationally

Michael Rice: (Holistic Architecture)  www.holisticarchitecture.com/holistic.html

He said that the stronger and wider the base, the higher the pinnacles that can be built on it.  I practiced more, studied more, and took every opportunity to make myself open to recognise and embed the pure principles underlying natural growth and expression.

This position provides the starting point of all movement and expression. The physical stance involves standing with feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, and your spine held vertical like beads on a string hooked to the sky. This physical stance in turn supports and facilitates a mental stance, called ‘Mu-shin’, or No-Mind. As the expression suggests, this state is one of no attachment to thoughts, perceptions or expectations. A state of present moment consciousness. Rather than suggest a dormant or sleep like state, Mu-shin involves increase receptivity and awareness, which leads to more coherent brainwave activity, which in turn invites in more information and increased awareness.

The physical expression and movement that occurs from this state is a direct function of the level of awareness immediately prior to the movement. So if stillness creates naturally efficient and beautiful movement, then might this be true for all creative processes, including the design of space? In the gap between the thoughts I was beginning to glimpse another level of understanding.

This small flame of awareness was gently kindled when a book fell of the library shelf on wet evening and hit me literally on the head. I am beginning to think all of my ‘AHA!’ moments involved some level of physical pain! I guess I am a bit slow on the uptake and the Universe needs to get my attention sometimes! The name of the book was ‘A Timeless Way of Building’ by Christopher Alexander and others.

This book explored patterns of form and expression of space as observed in living systems and environments. Reading this book gave me great hope and inspiration, and although the truth continued to remain somewhat illusive I felt I was getting closer. Just waited for the piano to drop on my head, and finish the job.  So the first stage – Knowledge. To Know. Knowledge begins with the accumulation of information but subtly leads to awareness. Whilst it may be impossible to actual ‘know’ everything in terms of linear storage and retrieval, it may not be impossible to develop an awareness of everything. This is a subtle but vital distinction. If stillness or a still mind can create a centering force for information. The more still a mind the more receptive it is to information. A mind already filled with knowledge has no room for truth.

The second stage – Love. To love. There is a Sufi saying: ‘since only love can bend the light, only love creates’. This will become more meaningful as our journey unfolds. For now it is useful to think of love as a centering force, an openess to receive and incorporate information, literally a hygiene of embedding different frequencies of energy in our physiology.

The third stage – Service. To Serve. To be available.

To step beyond ego, beyond the confines of personality and judgement.

To be a vehicle of change, to facilitate the joyful unfolding of creation.

To Know, Love and Serve. Awareness and Compassion, or Head and Heart leading to Healing.

Everything is energy, which moves about in waves. When two or more waves of energy meet and greet it is called wave interference. If these waves cancel each other out it is called destructive interference, and as you might guess when the waves create a new more sustainable pattern it is called constructive interference. Nature realised pretty early on that constructive interference creates energy patterns, which support the evolution of life and life supporting environments. So be it an egg, a forest or a galaxy, the electrical charge symmetry of natural forms is not only the playground of life, but life itself.

Visit Michael's Website at www.holisticarchitecture.com/holistic.html
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