Maitreya Project Update, August 2006

Dear friends,

I am pleased to send you Maitreya Projects latest progress report.

Maitreya Project Land Site

Land Site

Maitreya Project Heart Shrine Relic Tour

The Maitreya Project Heart Shrine relics will continue to tour in both North America and Europe throughout the summer and early autumn of 2006. [For information about the Relic Tour in the Americas and Europe during 2007, please see the Relic Tour Calendar.]

Many people have asked how it is possible to display the holy relics simulataneously in different parts of the world. The answer is that so many relics have now been offered to Maitreya Project that Rinpoche has authorised the entire collection to be divided so that more visitors can benefit by receiving the blessings of meeting the holy relics and hearing Maitreya Project's message of loving-kindness.

Among the relics that have been added to the collection in recent years are those of Jamyang Chokyi Lodro, a Tibetan Lama who was prominent in the Rime tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. This relic was offered by Sogyal Rinpoche in Zurich last year.

Terchen Karma Rinpoche, also known as Dordon Karma Rinpoche, who recently passed from this life, found terma relics. Terchen Karma Rinpoche reported that these relics appeared when he uncovered termas (hidden spiritual treasures) in Tibet, between the years of 1969 and 1993. These relics are now part of the Tour and were offered by Lisa Reinhardt in Arizona in 2005.

It is wonderful that more and more relics are being offered to the collection as people are inspired by the Project and the Tour.

~ Victoria Ewart, Manager of Maitreya Projects Heart Shrine Relic Tour

Recognising the long-term benefits Maitreya Project is bringing to the region, the State Government of Uttar Pradesh is providing, free of charge, 750 acres/300 hectares of mainly agricultural land in Kushinagar.

Kushinagar is a place of great historical and spiritual significance. It is the place where Shakyamuni Buddha passed away and it is predicted to be the birthplace of the next Buddha, Maitreya the Buddha of Loving-kindness.

During the last three years, in compliance with the Indian Land Acquistion Act, the State Government of Uttar Pradesh has been carrying out the lengthy process of acquiring the bulk of the land not already owned by the government, prior to handover of the site to Maitreya Project.

Currently, 40% of the land is ready for handover and the government has completed most of the process for the remaining 60% of the land. Although we know only too well that timing cannot be guaranteed, we expect the land site process will be completed by the end of 2006 or early 2007.

This will initiate handover to Maitreya Project and the long-awaited milestone of site preparation followed by on-site construction of the Maitreya Project statue and facilities.

Kushinagar Special Development Area

Maitreya Project and the UP government have worked together to create the Kushinagar Special Development Area (KSDA), an additional area of 4.6 miles/7.5 kilometres surrounding the MP site.

Municipal bylaws and planning regulations have now been adopted to protect the KSDA from the kind of opportunism that is often seen in communities of emerging economic development. Maitreya Project has representation on the legal bodies governing the KSDA, the bylaws and regulations have effect in law, and the work of monitoring the development of the region will be ongoing.

It is within the KSDA that Maitreya Project will implement its extensive healthcare and education programmes.

Architects Preliminary Site Plan

Maitreya Projects lead architects, Aros Ltd., have drawn up a preliminary proposed plan for the beautiful 750 acre Kushinagar site.

The Ceremonial Gateway & Maitreya Statue Sanctuary will lead visitors to the 500ft/152m Maitreya Buddha statue.
The Maitreya Buddha Statue will sit on the Throne Building containing temples, prayer halls, exhibition halls, a museum, library and audio-visual theatre.
The Hospital and Healthcare Centre will be the hub of Maitreya Projects public healthcare programmes. The development of these programmes will begin with primary care clinics in the communities of the Kushinagar Special Development Area. Over the years, the medical services will be developed and expanded to meet the needs of many communities. A complete healthcare network will be developed to provide medical services that are centred around a teaching hospital of international standard. The healthcare system will primarily serve the poor and under-privileged, even in remote parts of the area.
The Centre of Learning, will eventually serve students from primary to university levels of education. (Please see below for the latest information about the Maitreya Project Education Programme.)
The Meditation Park will be a secluded area next to the ancient Mahaparinirvana Temple, which commemorates Buddha Shakyamunis passing away from our world, the ancient Ramabhar Stupa, commemorating the Buddhas holy cremation site, and monasteries and temples belonging to many different traditions of Buddhism that include both modern facilities and ancient ruins.

All of these features will be set in beautifully landscaped parks with meditation pavilions, beautiful water fountains and tranquil pools. All of the buildings and outdoor features will contain an extensive collection of inspiring sacred art, which you are invited to sponsor in order to support the construction of Maitreya Project.

Architects Concept: A View from the Maitreya Project Park

Additional Legal Permissions

At this stage, we are also nearing completion of several other lengthy legal processes required by the Central Government of India.

For instance, according to Indias Foreign Contributions Remittance Act (FCRA), permission must be obtained for Maitreya Project to bring funds into India. This involves exhaustive clearances from the Reserve Bank of India, the FCRA Department, the Intelligence Bureau, and the Home Ministry. It took Maitreya Project 4 years to complete the permissions process in Bodhgaya. As the same process has been underway in Kushinagar for the last 3+ years, we expect to receive permission around the end of this year.

In addition, we must secure clearances from the Airports Authority of India to build a 500ft/152m structure, and Customs and Excise in India require approvals to import the many types of materials we will require for construction and fit-out.

All the above may sound straightforward, but in practice they require daily follow up in offices and ministries spread between Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow, Gorakhpur and Kushinagar. To achieve this, Maitreya Project has had a dedicated team on the ground in India continuously coordinating all that is required by the government administrative offices at both state and federal levels for the last four years.

Every day sees the Project move forward, so I am happy to report that progress is steady and ongoing!

Maitreya Universal Education Project

Things are also progressing very well at Maitreya Universal Education School in Bodhgaya.

left to right: The 2006 graduating class; Manoj Kumar receiving his graduation certificate from Dick Jeffrey, Director of Maitreya Universal Education Programme; The new kindergarden class 2006.

On 25th March, the last day of Term 1 for 2006, we held our first graduation ceremony for the 16 students who completed their Class 12 course. Of this group, four had come all the way through from the first kindergarten class started at Root Institute in 1996. Manoj Kumar and Sajit Kumar were enrolled in the very first class and were joined soon after by Ramesh Kumar and Shamshad Alam. In February 2000 Babita Kumari joined the group and then in 2004, we admitted 11 other new students to bring the group up to 16.

At the graduation ceremony the students were presented with certificates indicating their completion of Class 12 studies as part of the Universal Education programme at the Maitreya School.

In March we also selected 25 new kindergarten students out of approximately 1,000 who applied. Their admission into the school was delayed until July to allow us to complete another building extension. This was funded by the same very kind and generous sponsor from Singapore who funded the last extension we completed in 2004.

Our three trainee teachers, recruited from Uttar Pradesh, continue to gain experience in preparation for the first Maitreya Project school in Kushinagar, UP.

For more information, please visit the Maitreya Project website at www.maitreyaproject.org, where you can read all of the Maitreya Project Updates since October 2000 in the Updates Archive.

For details of the schedule of Relic Tour events, please select Relic Tour Calendar from the home page.

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With many thanks for your continuing interest and loyal support,

Peter Kedge

Director, Maitreya Project