Who Do You Think He Is?, page 1

"Maitreya Statue Project
The Maitreya project wants to build the world's largest statue. It is to be a representation of the future Buddha, the Maitreya Buddha. The height of the proposed monument is, at 150 metres, the equal of the great pyramid of Cheops in Egypt. It is to be an eighth wonder of the world at an estimated cost of 150 million US Dollars. "

Excerpt taken from.
www.bodhgayanews.net...

Muaddib---Real Buddhists who have not been blinded would have used this money to feed people.

Muaddib---There are some "real" Bhuddists who have critisized the building of this statue, because it goes against what Buddhism is about.

"Some criticism has come from within Tibetan Buddhism's own ranks, while cautious praise has been won from local villagers and the Indian Government - each with an eye to their own benefit. Supporters of the
project, who include the Dalai Lama, say it could become the eighth wonder of the world and will rank with Lourdes in France, the Vatican in Rome and Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

But its main critic, an Australian Buddhist and Tibetan scholar at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Di Cousens, counters that it will be more like "Disneybuddha". She says it flies in the face of
everything Buddhism stands for - a monument to religious vanity.

"If somebody wanted to build a giant Jesus in small-town Australia the local residents would have some say. The village people here don't have the money that will talk when it comes to making these decisions. This is Bihar," says Cousens. "The view is, 'We are here to help you, with the understanding that 'you' are poor, deprived and in need of our help.
'You' don't know what you need. We are going to give you this, and you will be happy."

Excerpts taken from.
www.tibet.ca...

Muaddib---The prophecies also said that the giant statue would be able to speak and everyone would have to obey it.

"The statue will form the centrepiece of 16ha of landscaped grounds that include a hospital for traditional Ayurvedic and Western medicine, a monastery, a nunnery, a school and eventually a university. Inside its body - designed to last 1000 years - people will be able to stroll through exhibition halls housing holy relics, while Buddhism's highest-ranking lamas are reserved a room inside the Buddha's head."

Muaddib---Maitreya himself/itself wants this to be a representation of all religions united, so those high ranking member of all those religions will have their offices on the head of the statue. This will fulfill that part of the prophecies that say the statue will be able to speak.