Maitreya Project Update

June, 2001

Design Phase Ends, Construction Phase Begins

May 1, 2001 marked the end of Maitreya Project's year-long Design and Development phase. This milestone was celebrated during an all-day presentation by the Project's professional partners at the offices of Mott MacDonald, in London.

Two weeks later, the digital surfacing of the statue was completed and the Indian members of the surfacing team returned home for a well-deserved holiday in India. The digital surfacing was an intensive, pains-taking process during which the original computer scans of the prototype statue were enlarged and scrutinized so that any irregularities in the surface could be smoothed and corrected. This process was essential if a beautiful finish is to be achieved. It required skills which until now have never been refined to such a degree anywhere in the world.

Maitreya Project would like to express special thanks to Derick Smart for his invaluable contributions to the Project in the area of CAD/CAM consultation and management. We wish him well in all of his future work.

Heart-Shrine Relic Tour

The relic exhibition in Taiwan

One of the most exciting developments has been the blossoming of interest in Maitreya Project's Heart-Shrine Relic Tour. The collection of precious relics from the Buddha and other Buddhist masters and saints will be placed in the heart-shrine of the Project's Maitreya Buddha statue when it is completed. Until that time, Lama Zopa Rinpoche has given permission for the collection of relics to tour the globe, giving people everywhere the incredibly rare opportunity to be in the presence of such priceless holy objects.

Following three very successful tour stops in Taiwan, the Relic Tour moved to New Zealand for a four-day stop in Auckland, where again, the public -- both Buddhist and non-Buddhist -- showed overwhelming interest in the relics.

Victoria Ewart, Relic Custodian and Tour Manager, reports, "The collection is staggering. Among the 29 relics are fragments of the Buddha's body and relics of the Buddha's disciples Sariputra and Maudgalayana.

"Observing the effect of these relics on those viewing them is quite amazing. Often visitors are moved to sit down and meditate with the relics for a time."

European Fundraisers Meet

At the end of April, fundraising teams from Italy, Switzerland, Germany, The Netherlands, Sri Lanka, and England met in London for two days of meetings to develop and coordinate their fundraising activities on behalf of Maitreya Project. Aside from the work at hand, fundraisers enjoyed a tour and progress presentation at the offices of WML-Woods Bagot, the Project's architects, and a magical ride on the London Eye just at dusk.

Maitreya Project Meets the Public at His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Teachings in California

In May, at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California, His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave public teachings on one of the Buddha's most famous discourses, the Heart Sutra.

Maitreya Project provided a 24-ft. replica of the Maitreya Buddha statue at the entrance to the amphitheatre and offered information about the Project in English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Hindi.

China Announces It is Building an Even Bigger Buddha Statue

A remarkable development has taken place in China. On May 6, the BBC World Service website carried an announcement that China plans to build a Buddha statue that is nine-feet taller than the Maitreya Buddha statue. While China has not yet published any plans, the announcement said China would build a 509-ft. copper statue of the Buddha of Compassion at Jiuhua Mountain and that they hope to finish the statue in only three years.

When asked about China's statue, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Spiritual Director of Maitreya Project, replied, "When I heard the report that China plans to build a 509 feet high statue of the Buddha of Compassion -- 9 feet higher than the Maitreya Buddha statue we are building in India -- I immediately rejoiced. I felt joy in my heart and prayed for the success of that project in China. I wish and hope that Maitreya Project will continue to inspire numberless others to build even bigger and many more such statues."