10" Maitreya The Future Buddha | Brass Statue

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According to Chinese Buddhists, Maitreya is the future Buddha of this world who will appear in this Kalpa (Bhadrakalpa) and will be the fifth and last Buddha. In the Amitabha Sutra and the Lotus Sutra, important Buddhist literature, he is referred to as Ajita. It is believed that his teachings will restore Dharma and a golden age will begin. Some Buddhist literature and texts also mention him in detail. He is Bodhisattva who will appear on earth and will achieve complete Enlightenment only in seven days. His teachings will be similar to those of Gautama Buddha and in this way, he will teach Dharma to the world.

In some Buddhist traditions, it is believed that Maitreya presently resides in Tushita heaven which is located between the Yama heaven and the Niramanarati heaven. All Bodhisattvas stay there before appearing on earth to become Buddhas. He will be born to the Brahmanas, Tubrahma (father) and Brahmavadi (mother) in the city of Ketumati (present Varanasi), Uttar Pradesh, and this will be the time when all humans will live a much longer life, to an age of around eighty thousand years. His teachings will be followed by humanity for the next 180,000 years.

What is the power of Maitreya?

The Maitreya Vyakaran, a short text written during the Pala period, describes how after the disappearance of Gautama Buddha, people will forget his teachings and will engage in sinful activities. During that period, greed, lust, anger, illusion, violence, and false ego will overpower their minds and this will create havoc in human society. This is viewed as the low point of human existence. Then, a new era will begin in which the next Buddha Maitreya will appear and he will teach humanity of the ten non-virtuous deeds, namely, killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, divisive speech, abusive speech, idle speech, covetousness, harmful intent, and wrong views. In this way, under the guidance of the fully awakened Maitreya, people of this world will lead a holy life of oneness and will experience an abundance of joy and happiness.