Concept

Five Skandhas are: form (Rūpa), sensation (Vedanā), perception (Samjñā), mental formations (Samskāra), and consciousness (Vijñāna). Buddhist philosophy believes the sense of self-identity and self-awareness is a result of the Five Aggregates. In other words, if one is able to see through these Skandhas, they would reach the ultimate state of “no-self”, a state of living their true self. 

Self-discovery is a life-long journey. One’s true self and the self one perceives are often worlds apart. We strive to reconcile the two throughout our short lifetime, but very few achieve true alignment. I want to explore this concept through an interactive project that visualizes this transcendental journey. The idea draws from my last quarter’s speculative design paper, regarding how humans piece together their sense of self through social relationships, which act like mirrors and fragments. I believe these elements help us rebuild the self that was shattered at birth, which we also spent our lives searching for and piecing back.