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ATMA VALLABH SANSKRITI MANDIR
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Memorial-A Tribute
This monumental project is essentially a tribute to the sagacity, ideals and benevolence of the venerable Acharyashree Vijayvallabhsuriji Maharaj. Planning of the memorial building was finalised under the patronage and able guidance of the prominent socialite and distinguished industrialist late Sheth Kasturbhai Lalbhai. On his advice, the services of the Sompura architects S/S Amritlal Moolshanker Trivedi, Shilp Shastri and Chandulal Trivedi had been acquired to design and prepare plans of the building and supervise its construction. Shri Vinodlal N. Dalal was made convenor of the Building SubCommittee constituted for the purpose. The soil and stone samples were tested for their strength and the water for its compatibility with the construction material. A Masterpiece of Jain Architecture
The grand building, all built in semi-pink stone, is a marvel of ancient Jain Art and Architecture. Life of steel being limited, its use in the construction of temples and monuments is prohibited. Therefore, only stone has been used to impart the structure a calculated life span of a thousand years or even more. Sixty thousand cublic feet of stone slabs weighing over 4000 Metric tons have gone into making of the foundation of the monument duly supported by a solid bed underneath. The grandeur of the elevated and dignified structure, as viewed from the highway-a distance of 450 feet, is both captivating and soothing to the eye at its very first sight. The workmanship is breath-takingly fascinating, marked by mass and delicacy superbly blended-surely a masterpiece of architectural beauty.
Assembly Hall
The colossal building at the ground floor has a large Assembly Hall in the middle with a 64 feet dia dome over it. Three elegant entrance lounges (shringar chowkies) in the East, North and South have been provided. There stand four imposing rooms at the corners and there is an alley around the Assembly Hall, interconnecting the rooms and the lounges. The four corner rooms and the main entrance lounge in the East are also capped with smaller receding domes. The marble-clad majestic stairs in the front, rise to a height of 12 feet over the plinth level, to reach the ground floor. The two stairs on the North and the South flanks also rise to the same height. The carvings on the pillars and the ceiling of the main entrance lounge, are a replica of the world famous Delwara Jain Temples of Mount Abu and those at Ranakpur, Rajasthan. The ceilings at the side entrances are replete with beautiful multimotif carvings, reminiscient of Gujarat and Rajasthan Schools of ancient Jain architecture.
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