curved white marble volumes shape serie architects' ashram, india

raj sabhagruh discourse hall reimagines traditional jain temples

Serie Architects‘ Raj Sabhagruh, first announced in 2020, reinterprets Indian architectural traditions for a modern religious complex in Dharampur, Gujarat. Anchoring the sprawling Shrimad Rajchandra Ashram, this 16,000-square-meter development sits on an expansive plinth and encircled by rolling gardens and a concentric public plaza, realized as a sequence of gently curving volumes shaped from hand-chiseled white marble brick. Deep-set circular openings perforate the building’s 36 faces, animating the interior with intricate streams of natural light.

From its monolithic form and intricate internal carvings to its knowledge-centric functionality, Raj Sabhagruh takes cues from the Jain Samavasaran — a mythical temple symbolizing enlightenment through collective discourse. As such, this spiritual archetype is reimagined in a contemporary form to host a vast auditorium, classrooms, discourse rooms, a museum, a gift shop, and a meditation hall. Stacked within a 40-meter-high structure, each of the thirteen levels rotates 45 degrees as it ascends, creating an interlocking framework of concrete walls. The expansive interior is realized without columns for the vast central discourse hall, a feat achieved through four intersecting, arching walls that define the building’s silhouette and framework.

all images courtesy of Serie Architects

serie architects unveils a meditative ashram complex in gujarat

The Raj Sabhagruh’s program follows a vertical narrative that embodies spiritual ascent: beginning with the discourse hall at ground level, progressing through a museum celebrating Shrimad Rajchandra, classrooms for spiritual study, and culminating in a 300-seat meditation hall at its apex. A stage for the Guru is positioned within the circular auditorium, drawing the worshippers inward for an intimate dialogue. A suspended balcony also provides clear sightlines while below, a flat flexible space accommodates adaptability to host a varied program of events. This journey from ‘speech to silence’, as the architects note, mirrors a transition from outward engagement to inward introspection — a thematic progression reflective of Jain spiritual practices.

International practice Serie Architects carves the structure out of over 800,000 marble bricks, salvaged from discarded marble sourced from nearby Makrana in Rajasthan. Small in size to accommodate the curvature of the sheer walls, their rough-hewn texture creates a luminous interplay of light throughout the day while showcasing an environmentally conscious approach to material reuse. Inside, concentric timber acoustic baffles and panels radiate from the core of the drum ceiling, enhancing both the visual and auditory experience and echoing the intricately carved ceilings of traditional Jain temples.

Serie Architects completes Raj Sabhagruh, anchoring the sprawling Shrimad Rajchandra Ashram

geometric volumes and concentric curves define the space

Situated on a hillock within a larger masterplan, the building is part of an integrated network that includes dining halls, a 5000-seater open-air amphitheater, and a Jain temple. The concentric white marble plaza that radiates outward to reflect away the summer sun serves as a social nexus, linking these spaces while offering respite under the shade of ficus trees. Adjacent sacred groves and landscaped gardens to the West, designed by Ficus Design, further root the design in its natural and cultural context. ‘The plaza enables the social life of the Ashram to unfold over it, as thousands of devotees and visitors move from building to building through their daily rhythms of discourse, study and meditation, punctuated by meals and sessions of rest,’ notes the team at Serie Architects.

Christopher Lee and Kapil Gupta, principals of Serie Architects, describe the project as a dialogue between the past and present. ‘There was a deep desire to find an architecture that is contemporary, memorable, and timeless,’ they note. By integrating sustainable practices with typological references, the Raj Sabhagruh conceives a space that becomes a monumental spiritual symbol, while functioning as a that is as a communal center.

shaped from hand-chiseled white marble brick