The Maitreya Project is an international organisation, operating since 1990, which intends to construct statues of Maitreya

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in ...

in India and perhaps elsewhere. Initial plans were for a 152-metre (500 ft) colossal statue, to be built in either Kushinagar or Bodhgaya. These plans have since changed, and the Maitreya Project now intends to construct relatively modest statues in both towns. The project was initiated by the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition, an organisation within the

Gelug 240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodh_Gaya.html" ;"title="Kalachakra ceremony, Bodh Gaya">Bodhgaya (India). The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2 ...

school of

Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in maj ...

. Jessica Marie Falcone's ''Battling the Buddha of Love: A Cultural Biography of the Greatest Statue Never Built'' (Cornell University Press, 2018; based on her Ph.D. dissertation in cultural anthropology for Cornell) is about controversy over the planned statue between FPMT participants and Kushinagari farmers, and the meaning of the statue to both sides.

Laying of the foundation stone in Kushinagar

On Friday 13 December 2013 the State Government of Uttar Pradesh handed over approximately of land for the site of the Maitreya Project in Kushinagar. The land is immediately adjacent to the Parinirvana Temple denoting the place where Buddha Shakyamuni passed into Parinirvana, and the Rambhar Stupa which marks the holy site of Buddha’s cremation. On that same day, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav, presided over a foundation stone laying ceremony on this land. Maitreya Project's Spiritual Director,

Lama Zopa Rinpoche Thubten Zopa Rinpoche (; born Dawa Chötar) is a Nepali lama from Khumbu, the entryway to Mount Everest. Biography Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, also called Lama Zopa Rinpoche has an extensive biography of him in the book ''The Lawudo Lama'' by Jamya ...

and the Board of Trustees of the Maitreya Project Trust attended as state guests.

Finances

Maitreya Project International Calif Gross Ann Rev 2001-2008

The Project reports for 1990–2008 outgoings of more than US$20 million and investment of more than US$11 million. Nita Ing has taken over responsibility for the funding of the statue in Bodhgaya.

Criticism

There has been criticism in the press about some aspects of the Project, including the compulsory acquisition, under "India's

Land Acquisition Act The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (also Land Acquisition Act, 2013 or LARR Act or RFCTLARR Act) is an Act of Indian Parliament that regulates land acquisition and l ...

", by the State Government of of private land, homes and small farms; which are intended to be leased to the Project, for construction of the statue and related infrastructure, including "landscaped park housing a cathedral, monastery, convent, guesthouse, library and food halls...". Peter Kedge, former Director and CEO of the Maitreya Project has posted a number of replies to these criticisms. Following the 1,262nd day of "peaceful

dharna A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to m ...

", in August 2010, by the majority of local farmers against the compulsory acquisition of their farms, the Cabinet Secretary of Uttar Pradesh announced a reconsideration of support for the Project.

References

Academic Papers

Falcone, Jessica. 2011. �
The Buddhist Lama and the Indian Farmer: Negotiating Modernity and Tradition in the Development Plans for Kushinagar, India.
�� In ''Inequality in a Globalizing World: Perspectives, Processes, and Experiences,'' edited by Sangeeta Parashar Nandikotkur and Yong Wang, 107-117. Dubuque, IA: Kendall-Hunt Publishing.

External links

Maitreya Project page of the FPMT websiteVideos posted on YouTube by Maitreya ProjectBBC Documentary
*Pepper, Danie
Giant Buddha's tough love will drive out poor

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its pa ...

, 9 September 2007 on The Buddhist Channel *Aros Architect
Kushingar Masterplan
with location map and simulated aerial view
Fearing unrest, UP govt scales down Maitreya Buddha project
''Indian Express'', Thu 26 May 2011. {{Statues in India Colossal Buddha statues Indian art Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition Proposed statues in India Buddhism in India Statues in Uttar Pradesh Colossal statues in India Maitreya