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Lama Zopa on the Maitreya Project and the Relic
Tour |
 The Benefits of the Maitreya Project
"The goal of the Maitreya Project is to benefit living beings. Construction
of the statue itself is not the goal - it is the method for achieving the goal.
The Buddha's teachings emphasise how important it is that holy objects like
statues and stupas are created and that they continue to exist.
The way to bring peace and happiness in the world and eliminate problems such
as war, famine, disease, disharmony, killing and so forth is to generate
loving-kindness in the mind...
In all religions, not only Buddhism, but Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and
others, the essence of the religion is loving-kindness and compassion towards
others. Otherwise without compassion and loving-kindness the religion cannot
benefit others. Therefore, this statue is essential for the cause of peace and
happiness in this world."
Lama Zopa on the Relic Tour
"People are deeply moved when they come in contact with the Relics...
there are so many stories. This is definitely one method for bringing people to
enlightenment.The Relics have incredible benefit to the world...people
want them very much... there is greater and greater benefit now....The
Buddha emanated many kinds of relics out of compassion for us, in order to help
us sentient beings generate faith in our mindstreams as a cause to receive
blessings, purify our negativities, and accumulate merit.
Giving people the opportunity to come view the relics of the Buddhas and
other masters, is helping to fulfill the intentions of those holy beings who
manifested the relics.When you see holy beings' relics, think in the following
way: 'At this time, these holy beings are benefiting us by emanating relics that
enable us to accumulate merit and purify negativities, thereby leading us to
liberation and enlightenment.'
We should pray by thinking, 'May we too achieve the realisations as you holy
beings have done. May we be able to benefit sentient beings as extensively as
you holy beings have benefited them.' We should also rejoice at the virtue of
all the Buddhas and bodhisattvas - at all the qualities of their holy body,
speech, and mind - as well as at all their great activities for the teachings
and for sentient beings.
This is the reason why relics are considered very holy and precious. Relics
are manifested and left behind due to the kindness of holy beings in order for
us sentient beings to collect merit and purify obscurations."
- Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Spiritual Director of Maitreya
Project
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| An Overview of the
Maitreya Project |
Throughout the
world, the Buddha is recognised as a symbol of peace. Maitreya means
'loving-kindness'. The vision of Maitreya Project is to effect peace at every
level of society through the practice of loving-kindness: peace within the
family, the community and the world, as well as inner peace for the individual.
For thousands of years the world's enduring monuments have provided powerful
symbols, reminders of society's most treasured values. During the 20th century
most of the world's great buildings and public development projects have been
'monuments' to commercial interests: high-rise business buildings, airports,
shopping malls, theatres and theme parks. The Maitreya Buddha statue will
provide the world with a much-needed and enduring monument to spiritual values,
a reminder of the benefits of creating peace at every level through practicing
loving-kindness.
Maitreya Project's 500ft / 152m bronze statue will be built at Kushinagar,
Uttar Pradesh in northern India. The Maitreya Buddha statue and its
throne-building will provide the public with temples, exhibition halls, a
museum, library, audio-visual theatre and hospitality services. All will be set
in beautifully landscaped parks with meditation pavilions, beautiful water
fountains and tranquil pools. The buildings and grounds of the Project will
contain a remarkable and inspiring collection of sacred art.
A public hospital of international standard will be built with the
intention of supplementing  the
medical services currently provided by the government.
The Project already provides free education to 500 students at the Maitreya
Project Universal Education School in Bodhgaya, India. Over the years, both the
school and hospital will be developed and expanded to meet the needs of their
communities.
Building the statue will create, both directly and indirectly, the
circumstances for ongoing economic stability, as well as spiritual and social
renewal, in and around the Project site.
The statue is designed to stand for at least 1,000 years, supporting the
Project's spiritual and social work for at least a millennium.
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HH Dalai Lama on the Maitreya Project |
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"The very name 'Maitreya' means
loving-kindness - in today's world, we really need loving-kindness... This
Project is really wonderful and is the result of great courage and
determination, and from the depths of my heart I appreciate and applaud this
wonderful project."
His Holiness the Dalai
Lama |
| Lighting Lamps of Loving-Kindness Around
the World |
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The purpose of the Relic Tour
is to inspire people of all different spiritual traditions and  paths to come together to experience the blessing of the holy Relics.
Since the Tour began in 2001, what
has evolved has been truly incredible and very beautiful. The sheer human
response to the Relics has been healing and created a resonance of hope rippling
around the world.
In each city they visit, the Relics are
inspiring communities to come together and experience an inter-faith celebration
focused on our shared human qualities - love, compassion and the importance of
having a 'good heart'. By meditating on loving-kindness, peace naturally arises
in our hearts and in our surrounding world.
For many years now, Lama Zopa Rinpoche
has been collecting holy Relics of the Buddha and other revered Buddhist masters
from around the world. This rare and sacred collection of Relics is destined to
be enshrined at the heart of the 500ft / 152m Maitreya Buddha statue that is
being built in Kushinagar, India. 
This precious collection of holy
Relics will tour the world for public display until construction of the Maitreya
Buddha statue has been completed. Until then, it is Rinpoche's wish that as many
people as possible around the world be given the chance to receive the blessings
of Maitreya Buddha and the holy Relics.
Since it began in March 2001, the Relic
Tour has covered a lot of ground. We estimate that more than 2
million people during well over 200 Relic Tour events spread across five
continents have been inspired and blessed by the relics.
The Relic Tour collection is truly
extraordinary. There are many relics of Shakyamuni Buddha and of the Buddha's
well-known disciples, Maudgalyayana, Ananda and Sariputra. There are also relics
of spiritual masters from the Chinese, Indian, Korean and Tibetan Buddhist
traditions.
 Many
living Buddhist masters from a number of traditions and countries, including
Burma, Indonesia, France, Thailand, Tibet, Korea and Taiwan, have offered sacred
Relics to the collection. His Holiness the Dalai Lama offered eight Relics of
Shakyamuni Buddha from his personal collection.
These precious Relics are found among
the cremation ashes of spiritual masters. The sacred Relics manifest as a result
of the master's spiritual practices and attainments during his lifetime. So the
Relics are a reminder of our own essential nature of purity and our inner
potential to manifest that.
Everyone is welcome to come and view
the holy Relics regardless of their spiritual tradition. The Relic Tour events
are free.
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| Kirti Tsenshab on the
Relics |
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 "The
benefits of seeing relics are great. They are established by enlightened beings
with great compassion. It is said that the body of the Buddha is vast like the
ocean but ordinary beings cannot perceive it. For their sake, the Buddhas
manifest relics as a means for passing on the blessings of their body, speech
and mind.
The Buddha has said that
there are four special places, the place of my birth, the place of my
enlightenment, the place where I gave teachings and the place where I will pass
away. Visiting any of these places is equivalent of meeting me in person. The
same is true for relics.
The Maitreya statue on its
own is a very powerful object. By enshrining the relics at its heart, its power
and blessing multiplies. It is like increasing the amount and intensity of
sunshine in one place."
Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche (1926 -
2006) was born in eastern Tibet. He was one of the holders of the Kalachakra
lineage and one of the teachers of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and of Lama Zopa
Rinpoche. After
escaping from Tíbet in 1959, Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche taught Tibetan orphans at
the Tibetan Children's Village, Dharamsala, India. Beginning at the age of 45 he
completed a fifteen-year meditation retreat in a tiny stone hermitage in India.
Rinpoche gave
teachings around the world in many countries including teachings and initiations
at Jamyang. |
| Who is
Maitreya? |
Maitreya's name is derived from the
Sanskrit 'maitri' meaning 'universal loving- kindness'.
Infinitely compassionate and all-knowing, Buddhas teach by their words and
example in order to guide us along the path to our own spiritual maturity. When
Shakyamuni Buddha's teachings disappear from this world (the teachings of the
historical Buddha of our current age), negativity and misfortune will grow
until, spontaneously moved by his overwhelming compassion, Maitreya will
manifest in our world as a radiantly beautiful spiritual teacher inspiring
people to practice the path of virtue, especially loving-kindness.
"Relying on certain Mahayana Buddhist citations and
quotations, we believe that in this fortunate aeon one thousand Buddhas will
appear. This is the time of the fourth Buddha, Buddha Shakyamuni, whose teaching
is still existing, and the fifth Buddha will be Maitreya Buddha."
His Holiness the XIVth Dalai
Lama |
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GentleVoice. This month will give you an overview of the
Maitreya Project and the Relics which are to be placed in the statues heart. The
Relics will be at Jamyang for free viewing from 10am till 7pm on the 13 & 14
October. We still need about 10-15 volunteers to be able to run this
event. Please consider giving either a day or a half day to help
steward and look after the visitors. Email 
