the pure vision of his eminence shyalpa tenzin rinpoche mahasiddha sanctuary for universal peace lumbini, nepal The Mahasiddha Sanctuary for Universal Peace will honor the Enlightened One’s fearless engagement and compassionate action in our world for the benefit and wel- fare of all sentient beings. It will serve as a radiant beacon, helping to inspire and guide individuals, communities, and nations toward peaceful coexistence and reconciliation. 2 stupa butter lamp mandala lotus flower The Mahasiddha Sanctuary for Universal Peace will grace the site of Lord Buddha’s birth. The outer structure of the Sanctuary Shrine Hall evokes images of a lotus flower (the innate purity of Buddha nature), a butter lamp (the five Buddha wisdoms), a stupa (the enlightened mind of Buddha), and a mandala offering (the field of enlightened activity). At the pinnacle is a golden finial representing the thirteen Dharmachakra (levels of accomplishment). 3 The vast immaculate space of the Sanctuary Shrine Hall conveys the timeless purity of Buddha’s enlightenment. A golden statue of Queen Mayadevi with the newborn Prince Siddhartha shines in sunlight from above. 4 The Universal Peace library The Grand asseMbly hall The Universal Peace Library will house a vast, compre- The Grand Assembly Hall will accommodate up to 5,000 hensive collection of Lord Buddha’s canonical teachings, people for teachings, empowerments, conferences, and sutras and tantras, writings and commentaries by real- seminars, with state-of-the-art video and audio facilities. ized masters of all Buddhist traditions in print and digital It will host the International Buddhist Federation Peace formats, in native languages and in languages for which Conference and other related events. translations are available. In addition, the library will be MediTaTion rooMs and halls a repository of texts on the topic of peace, passed down from masters of all spiritual traditions. These sacred texts Meditation is central to Buddhist spiritual practice. will be the inner relics of Mahasiddha Sanctuary. Visitors to the peace sanctuary will have access to per- sonal meditation instruction from resident teachers and The Peace MUseum may practice alone or with monks in quiet meditation The Peace Museum will provide a spiritually and aesthet- rooms. Arrangements can be made for short-term or ically enriching experience for visitors of the Mahasiddha long-term retreats. Several meditation halls will accom- Sanctuary. All around the world, there are great works of modate larger gatherings for group practice, teachings, art pertaining to the Buddha’s birth, life, and activities, and ceremonies. many of which date back to the early centuries of the The Universal Peace insTitute Common Era. Many of these precious artifacts—thang- ka paintings, precious statues, sacred texts, and ritual The Universal Peace Institute for Buddhist Studies objects—are unknown or rarely seen by the public. The will offer a complete curriculum, including Buddhist Peace Museum will call upon collectors, philanthropists, philosophy, dialectics, and history; Himalayan cul- monasteries, and institutions for donations. These pre- ture; Sanskrit, Nepali, Tibetan, Chinese, and English cious artifacts will have a permanent home where they languages. The institute will include a research center, can be carefully preserved, displayed, and presented to where scholars collect, review, and amend ancient and the public. contemporary Tibetan Buddhist texts. The center will create a database of digitalized texts and print these texts in the traditional Tibetan format. 5 KplusK associates, Executive Architects, Hong Kong Beijing Institute of Architectural Design, civil & structural engineers, China J. Roger Preston Sdn Bhd, M&E engineers, Malaysia Meinhardt Sdn Bhd, civil & structural engineering review, Malaysia 6 actualizinG The vision Since 2013, His Eminence has been traveling around for enrichment of the earth and purification of the the world to share his pure vision for the Mahasiddha environment. Sanctuary for Universal Peace. His travels have taken On May 10, 2017, His Eminence Shyalpa Tenzin him to Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, China, Rinpoche was joined by thousands of friends and dev- Taiwan, Vietnam, England, and the United States. otees for the Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony. Rinpoche sees this as an opportunity to share the heal- ing teachings of the Buddha and his message of peace. On April 29, 2018, the Honorable Tourism Minister of Nepal joined H.H. the IXth Kyabgon Jedrungpa In November 2013, over 2,500 devotees gathered and H.E. Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche to celebrate the near the Sacred Garden in Lumbini, Nepal, to recite commencement of construction of the Mahasiddha prayers and attend the historical groundbreaking cer- Sanctuary for Universal Peace. emony for the Mahasiddha Sanctuary for Universal Peace. On June 13, 2014, a formal launch ceremony Since 2013, charity dinner celebrations have been took place in Hong Kong, where a model of the tem- organized throughout Asia and in Europe by Rin- ple’s design was unveiled to the public for the first poche’s nonprofit organization, Wencheng Gongzhu time. Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche spoke about his vision International Foundation. With His Eminence as the for the sanctuary and invited everyone to participate Chairman, a Board of Directors has been assembled to in this sublime and sacred undertaking. oversee all activities of the sanctuary project; and Deloitte, Hong Kong, has been designated as its au- On May 21, 2016, at the future site of the sanctu- diting and accounting firm. ary, the Golden Vase Placement Ceremony was held 8 a TreasUre for all humaniTy In the 623 bce, Queen Mayadevi was journeying to her master plan. This plan includes two zones reserved for homeland to give birth to her only son. She stopped monasteries. to rest in Lumbini, a cool and peaceful garden filled In 1997 Lumbini was designated a UNESCO World with beautiful flowers and sal trees. It was here that Heritage Site due to its great spiritual and historical she gave birth to the luminous Siddhartha Gautama. importance as the actual birthplace of the Buddha. The holy prince was destined from birth to become The first monastery was established in 1992, and many the Buddha, the Enlightened One. have been built since then. Today it is considered one Lumbini is sacred ground where Lord Buddha came of the most holy destinations for spiritual seekers into the world to manifest awakening and lead beings around the world. to the state of enlightenment. For over 2,600 years Upon visiting Lumbini, UN Secretary-General Ban Lumbini has been an important pilgrimage place; Ki-moon said, “I am awestruck by the beauty and pro- however, for hundreds of years the site was largely found significance of this site, the birthplace of the Lord neglected. In 1967 His Excellency U Thant, the Secre- Buddha. Being here, I am reminded of his amazing tary-General of the United Nations, visited Lumbini life journey from sheltered prince to founder of one of the and was moved by its profound significance. He went world’s great religions. I sincerely hope that we can learn on to propose the development of Lumbini as a major from his lessons, from his teachings and his philosophy to center for pilgrimage. The United Nations commis- bring peace, stability, harmony, reconciliation and friend- sioned the renowned Japanese architect Kenzo Tange ship among people of different beliefs, different religions to develop a master plan for the site, and it was fi- and cultures. This is exactly what human beings should nalized and approved in 1978. In 1985 the Lumbini promote and pursue for a better world, a more peaceful, Development Trust was established to implement the more prosperous world.” 9 ETERNAL PEACE FLAME, LUMBINI, NEPAL 10 outsTandinG Universal valUe The World heriTage committee, aT iTs 36Th session aT sainT PeTers- burg in 2012, adopted The reTrosPecTive sTaTemenT of ouTsTanding universal value of lumbini, The birThPlace of lord buddha: The complex of structures within the archaeological conservation area include the Sakya Pond (Pushkarani), the remains within the Mayadevi Temple consisting of brick structures in a cross-wall system dating from the 3rd century bce to the present century, and the sandstone Ashoka Pillar with its Pali inscriptions in Brahmi script. Additionally, there are the excavated remains of Buddhist viharas (monasteries) of the 3rd century bce to the 5th century ce and the remains of Buddhist stupas (memo- rial shrines) from the 3rd century bce to the 15th century ce. The site is now being developed as a Buddhist pilgrimage center in which the archaeological remains asso- ciated with the birth of Lord Buddha form a central feature. The archaeological remains of Buddhist viharas and stupas provide important evidence about the nature of Buddhist pilgrimage centers from a very early period. The integrity of Lumbini has been achieved by means of preserving the archaeolog- ical remains that give the property its Outstanding Universal Value. The significant attributes and elements of the property have been preserved. 12 T he holy site of Lumbini has ruins of ancient monasteries, a sacred Bodhi tree, an ancient bathing pond, the Ashoka Pillar, and the Mayadevi Temple at the site of the Buddha’s birth. From early morn- ing to early evening, pilgrims from from all around the world chant and meditate in the Sacred Garden. 13 14 Lumbini is not only a pilgrimage site for Buddhists, but it is also a symbolic place for people who wish to promote peace throughout the world. The site is ideal for practitioners of meditation; fascinating for research- ers and journalists; a challenge for architects and conser- vationists; and a source of livelihood for the local people. Lumbini is an open school, where every visitor, pilgrim, meditation practitioner, tourist, or researcher can get satisfaction by realizing and experiencing peace. 15 H.E. Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche, visionary/conceptual design • Prof. Stephan Braunfels, Architect, conceptual design, Germany • KplusK associates, Executive Architects, Hong Kong The Mahasiddha Sanctuary for Universal Peace will serve the communities in and around Lumbini.