Visible from a distance, the twelve-foot-high, three-and-a-half-ton copper and bronze statue of the Amida Buddha is the largest of its kind outside of Japan; it was cast in Kyoto in 1967. The temple bell sitting in its shōrō (bell tower) on a cut-stone foundation is the largest in the state, weighing over three thousand pounds. Such large elements integrate well with the ninety-foot-high, three-tier, red-railed pagoda shimmering in the sun with its copper shingles, as well as with the elevated temple, both of which were built in 1970. The temple's front-facing irimoya (hipped gable) roof flows down to shelter the kōhai and engawa. The painted floral ceiling and five other paintings in the temple are the work of Hajin Iwasaki. The pagoda serves as a columbarium. Its ground floor is reinforced concrete, while its unoccupied upper levels are of wood. The complex replaced a 1912 frame temple which burnt to the ground in 1968.
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Lahaina Jodo Temple
EDITORS' NOTE:
Due to the recent wildfires on Maui, this entry will be updated as more information becomes available.
1971, Matsumura Gumi in association with Norman Saito. 12 Ala Moana St.
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