Relic Tour

This past Saturday, I attended the Maitreya Relic Tour.  I was kind of skeptical and wasn't sure what to expect.  All of the flyers and brochures just showed rocks and hair.  But when I watched the video which they had playing, something profound hit me.

When beings are enlightened and have deep compassion, during their cremation, they produce relics.  One of the Lama's relics was of his heart, and as the story goes, his whole heart was untouched by flames and his ashes were in the shape of various Bodhisattvas.
EVEN THE ORIGINAL BUDDHA'S RELICS WERE THERE!  I was moved to tears when I looked over them before I even realized what I was looking at.  So after viewing the video, I had to take another round of observing the relics.
Here are some pics:

Main Relic Table Display

Relics of Buddha's Disciples, including Ananda and Shariputra

Relics of Shakyamuni Buddha, himself!

Relics of other Lamas and Teachers

These relics are going to be placed in the heart of a 500 ft statue of Maitreya in northern India, where the Buddha passed away.  This was definitely a once-in-a-life opportunity and I am forever grateful.  If the tour comes by your way, I strongly recommend you attend.
Gassho.