Evening star., 1924-01-16
PLAN GREAT STATUE
FROM HUMAN ASHES
Buddhists Propose to Mold Shrine
OF Guatama Out of Tragic
Remains.
10000 BURNED IN ONE PLACE
Now Heap Marks Earthquakes
Greatest Toll.
by cable to The Star and Philadelphia Public
Ledger. Copyright, 1924.

BY Cable to The Star aud Philadelphia Public
Ledger Copyright, 1924.
TOXIC, January ia unique
method of solving the problem of
consoling the souls of the many thou
sand earthquake victims of Japan
may be effected at a meeting of coun-
cilors of the Buddhists' Federated AS
sociation, formed by fifty-eight Budd-
hlsts bodies, which is to convene in
Toxic.
Durlng the quake and fire disaster
OIL September ! more than 90, 000 per-
sons sought refuge in "A large open
space OF several acres on the site of
the military clothing depot in HOMO,
iohlo. Escape cut off by surround
lhg wall of flames, all of these un-
fortunate people without execution.
together with their few possessions.
We're cremated into an unrecogniz-
aoie mass OF ashes and charred bodies.
Is from the ashes of these $4,000
pouIes that the Buddhists plan to
UNIQUE monument that ac-
corulnS To their ideals will imnr,ss
poSterlty with preSent-dav cuifurp
nnu the greatest of all recorded nat
. urai catastrophies.
ran Great Statue.
ms VIII take the form of a cigau-
- o9oaha constructed with concrete
mixed with the ashes Of tbe n,,,l =
ana ire victims. At the same fine II
HplNeS the problem of the diSposaI ot
me Ilt.le mountain of 50 far mn
touched remains.
ms extraordinary Buddha To be
oIccteu on the site where the 3on00
perished will be fifty-fiyn feet Li,yb
ana when mounted on its plinth viii
llse 10 the Impressive height of nine
'N-hve feet 1t will then be the great
Hsl paibutsu' in the world. exceed
ing the renowned "Dafbutsu' of ka-
1hakura, which has withStood the
TaVases of nature for more than 700
years.
BY curious freak of fortune. Il
large Buddha in ASakuS;, Park Tol,in
was SO violently shaken on Septem-
Der ! that its head was snapped off
ana lay proStratc before its base. The
Japanese with quaint sense of
humor proudly poiut To this Ruddha.
GaE "a. ing It is thr only ore who lost
ms head during those chaotic days.
winch tells in truth the wonderful
morale OF the masses.
shrine Erected.
AS soon as the ashes of the thou-
sands cooled in HOMO a temporary
shrine was erected and countless
stream of survivors made pilgrimage
their dead friends and relatives For
hours the living wandered about,
calling in vain the names OF the
dead in the hope that the latter's
souls might answer or be appeased.
Into Golfer. thousands of yen were
contributed daily by the survivors in
mute testimony Of their great sorrow.
SO large III number were these wild
ow's mite" that it took twelve
priests three weeks to complete the
fun * hai g,
relief purposes.
This Buddhi$iic conclave may also
link more closely together those OF
that religious faith in CHINA and Ja-
pan. Abolition of capital punishment
and universal suffrage Will be di-;-
cuSSrd. Delegates from the Chinese
religious bodies viii erect ii temple
for ali SettS in common. in WhIrh q
huge bell will be mounted end sDuud
I'd at regular intervals day and night
by "A Chinese priest. who Will pray
for the peace of the souls of the vic
tins of the disaster.