Project Description

In the dense, chaotic fabric of Chittagong, spaces for stillness and reflection are rare. This proposal reimagines the traditional Muslim community graveyard not as an isolated realm for mourning, but as a shared sanctuary where life, death, nature, and community coexist in harmony. Drawing from Islamic rituals, cultural norms, and ecological principles, the design offers a place that heals both human spirit and the urban ecosystem.

For centuries, Muslim graveyards have been quiet landscapes of prayer, memory, and contemplation — yet they often remain underutilized in daily community life. this project seeks to transform the cemetery into a multi-functional space that fosters spiritual connection, ecological balance, and communal bonding.

• Prayer & Contemplation Zones: Elevated platforms and shaded pavilions for individual reflection and collective prayer, designed to respect burial orientations and privacy.

• Water as Healing & Ecological Element: A rainwater-fed reflective pond integrated with permeable borders allows water to percolate into the soil, recharging the groundwater while symbolically connecting heaven and earth.

• Native Greenery & Shade Trees: Restoring ecological diversity with indigenous plant species to support birdlife, improve air quality, and provide natural cooling.

• Community Interaction Areas: Discreet seating pockets within the greenery encourage social gathering without disturbing the sanctity of the graves.

• Rain-Inspired Architectural Moments: Roof edges, perforated walls, and textured surfaces choreograph the sound and movement of rainfall, turning monsoon showers into a sensory healing experience.

• Sustainable Integration: Rainwater harvesting, soil–water interaction zones, and minimal concrete intervention ensure low-impact, long-lasting ecological benefit.

• Healing for People & Place: This reimagined graveyard invites visitors to pray, contemplate, share, and reconnect — with each other, with their roots, and with the natural cycles of life and death. By balancing the sacred and the social, the spiritual and the ecological, it becomes a rare urban breathing space that heals both the mind and the land.