Pietro Matracchi, Ali Sadeghi Habibabad,
Volume 31, Issue 4 (10-2021)
Abstract
The design of religious spaces around the world is of particular importance. Spaces such as churches, synagogues, graveyards, cemeteries, and shrines are among religious buildings. Such spaces are specially designed for each religion and faith. All forms of architecture should be easily reflected in form and space, given the meaning of the word “religion”
(faith, religion, method, tradition, sharia, method, and way [rule of life]) based on the more manifest concepts in religion. The purpose of this study is to investigate approaches and methods for measuring sensory factors in architectural environments, in the form of a review [article] and literature review, on how to measure sentiments in architectural space. Therefore, this study seeks to answer this question: What are the methods for measuring sensory factors in architectural environments? This study is desk research in nature, to define all the issues raised in the theoretical section using a descriptive-analytical method to analyze the content and logical reasoning and collect the required data on the concepts by doing a literature review. Findings indicate that the architecture in the past sought to take advantage of the formal dimensions of religious buildings, such as mosques and churches, as a medium for a spiritual leap into the world of truth and meaning. Religious (sacral or sacred) architecture can also be translated into organizing components to navigate the appearance of phenomena and remember their interior to enhance the spiritual spatial quality. One has to note that the effects of the architectural body and buildings built affect people's minds. Thus, if this issue is ignored, the created space will cause confusion and a negative effect on the minds of the users of the space for sure. In the field of sensory factors in architecture, architects and urban designers can answer most of the hypotheses by using cognitive sciences.
Ali Sadeghi Habibabad,
Volume 36, Issue 3 (7-2026)
Abstract
The present study aims to investigate the impact of unwanted sounds (noise pollution) on the minds of users using the architectural spaces and environments of Islamic mosques by measuring brain waves. As we know, safe Islamic spaces must have unique characteristics to provide a degree of tranquility and spiritual sense for people who enter these environments and make them away from the urban noise and daily worries so that they can devote part of their time to worship. To provide such a spiritual place, it is required to satisfy and pay attention to special conditions according to the environmental psychology of its architectural space. Various physical and sensory factors are involved in the creation of such a feature for the space of mosques, one of which is the sound component with both positive and negative effects on the users' minds. By selecting "Agha Bozorg Mosque" in Kashan as a successful architectural example, the present study examines the following hypothesis: There is a significant relationship between the sensory factor of the unpleasant sound and the spiritual sense created in the space of Islamic religious places. The present research is carried out using field studies and a laboratory method (brain wave recording). In the present study, the "urban traffic noise" is prepared as an unpleasant sound through simulation and then, its effects on users' minds are investigated. The sample size is estimated to be 20 people. The overall results showed that noise pollution directly plays a key role in reducing the spiritual sense of the users using the interior space of mosques, and paying attention to the location of these places in the city considering such sounds can improve the sensory quality of the architecture of mosques. Even the best type of mosque architecture is significantly influenced by such noise and its quality is reduced. Therefore, it is very necessary to pay attention to this important issue in the location of mosques.
