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The following quotes
are from the pamphlet, The Grand Main Temple
that was published by Seikyo Shimbun, 1973.
Prof. A. M. Haas of the Technological University of Delft,
Netherlands, who is also president of the International
Association of Shell Structure (IASS), visited the construction
site and said, “The great space within the Mystic
Sanctuary (the main auditorium) is just magnificent. The
semi-rigid suspension-roof structure is the most unique
of all the roofs in the world.”
Prof. S. Z. Makowski of Britain’s University of
Surrey and Europe’s foremost authority on reinforced
steel structures, stated that he had been studying architecture
for more than twenty years, but he believed no religious
or other structure that he had seen could rival the Sho-Hondo
in grandeur and splendor. There is a warmth of humanity,
he said, in its immense space.
Sr. Sergei Speransky, an Executive Committee member of
the Soviet Union Architects Association, commented, “the
Sho-Hondo harmonizes perfectly with Mother Nature. Its
unique space and architectural concept match the ideal
of man’s emotional perfection.”
Prof. Prem Krishna of India called it a “symbol
of religion” and an “ideal place to pray for
world peace.”
Prof. Zabberani Rossi from Italy described the Grand Main
Temple as “breathing Buddhist doctrine.”
Mr. Minoru Omori, a Japanese Critic who personally observed
the completion ceremony, stated: “There are many
huge structures all over the world, but none of them,
I believe, is as significant as the Sho-Hondo. The other
structures were all built by force symbolizing the authority
of power. The Sho-Hondo, however, was built by the desires
of the common people.”
The basic aim of Kimio Yokoyama, chief architect of the
Sho-Hondo, was to manifest the people’s wishes in
the structure itself. “The ultimate ideal of the
temple is to promote world peace and the welfare of all
mankind. This is where the main point of the creation
of the structure lies,” stated Mr. Yokoyama in his
speech at the Completion Ceremony.
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