Heart Shrine Relic Tour
"Relics come from masters who have devoted their entire lifetime to spiritual practices that are dedicated to the welfare of all. Every part of their body and relics carries positive energy to inspire goodness and reduce negativity… we can see how these relics are so precious."
— Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Spiritual Director of Maitreya Project
The Maitreya Project Heart Shrine relics have been donated to and collected by Lama Zopa Rinpoche specifically for placement in the Heart Shrine of the 500ft/152m Maitreya Buddha statue. The statue will be the focus of Maitreya Project's vision of creating spiritual, social and economic benefit during the next millennium.
The relics will travel the world until they are placed in the completed 500ft/152m Maitreya Buddha statue. Until then, it is Rinpoche's wish that as many people as possible will have the opportunity to view the relics in their local communities.
In March 2001, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Spiritual Director of Maitreya Project, released this rare and precious collection of Buddhist relics for worldwide exhibition. Since then, these sacred relics have been displayed at temples, meditation centres, and other public locations all over the world.
The collection is truly extraordinary. There are many relics of Shakyamuni Buddha and of the Buddha's well-known disciples - Maudgalyayana, Ananda and Sariputra -as well as relics of many other saints and spiritual masters from the Chinese, Indian and Tibetan traditions.
Many living Buddhist masters from a number of traditions and countries, including Burma, Indonesia, Thailand, Tibet and Taiwan, have donated relics to be placed in the Heart Shrine of the Maitreya Project statue, including relics of Shakyamuni Buddha which were offered by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
The relics are mainly pearl-like 'beads' collected from the ashes of spiritual masters after their cremation. There are also Buddhist artifacts in the collection.
Some of the relics were salvaged from statues in Tibet where they had been enshrined for thousands of years before the Communist occupation in 1959. Other relics were donated by museums and monasteries. Lama Zopa Rinpoche ensures that the relics are genuine before they are put on display.
The Heart Shrine Relic Tour exhibitions are open to the public free of charge, thereby giving everyone the rare opportunity to be in the presence of such priceless holy objects.
This collection is visiting the UK, the details are listed below.
12 - 14 October
London, England, UK
Friday 5pm Opening Ceremony
Saturday 10am to 7pm
Sunday 10am to 7pm
Jamyang Buddhist Center
43 Renfrew Road
London SE11 4NA
England
UK
Contact: Jane Sill
Email: admin@jamyang.co.uk
Tel: +44 (0)20 7820 8787
Why build darned great statues? I am not averse to creating artwork of beauty, but all this resource put into rinpoches and relics? How about a bit more of an effort in the direction of practical social justice - and I don't mean a job building this monstrosity!
ReplyDeleteGreat statues are to create Consciousness.
ReplyDeleteFor example, the corporates and associations have their own logos, i.e. what was the logo for the bar council?