MAYADEVI ( MOTHER OF BUDDHA ) STATUE

The Maya Devi Temple in lumbini dedicated to Gautama Buddha’s mother, Queen Maya is built very close to the Sacred Meadows and the Pushkarini Sacred Pool. The historical remains of this site go to the time of Ashoka, or approximately the 3rd century BCE, and this shrine commemorates the site where Maya Devi birthed Gautam Buddha. As per folklore, Gautam Buddha was born approximately 563 BC. The temple was designed by the Japanese designer Kenzo Tange, and work on the landscaped lakes and other monasteries, that are being built by various architects from around the globe, is still ongoing. The enlightened Buddha, is widely accepted as per Buddhist myths to have been born in Lumbini. Maya Devi, a Koliyan queen who was wedded to Suddhodana, was his mother. The expectant Queen Maya managed to flee Kapilavastu for her family's realm, based on the Shakyas, a tribe of rice farmers near the India-Nepal boundary. Buddha, meanwhile, is believed to have been born in Lumbini on the journey underneath a sal tree as per Buddhist tradition.

Maya, the devoted mother of Gautama Buddha

King Uddhodana, leader of the Kya clan in Kapilvastu, was betrothed to Maya. She was King Uddhodhana's cousin since she was his aunt's child and her father was really the king of Devadaha. King Suddhodhana and Maya were betrothed for 20 years before having any child. The queen allegedly dreamt while sleeping in the castle one full moon at midnight. Four gods whisked her off to Lake Anotatta in the Himalaya as she sensed them doing exactly the same. The devas washed her in the lake and then clothed her in heavenly clothes and adorned her with heavenly blossoms. A white elephant with a white lotus in its trunk subsequently appeared soon after, encircled the woman 3 times, and penetrated her womb via her right side. The birth mother of Gautama Buddha, the philosopher whose teachings established the foundation for Buddhism, is Queen Maya of the Shakya clan. She was the sister of Mahpajpat Gotam, the very first Buddhist nun to obtain the Buddha's teaching. As per Buddhist belief, Maya awakened in a Hindu-Buddhist heaven 7 days after passing away just after the birth of Buddha, in a manner that is believed to be followed by the births of all Buddhas. As a consequence, Maya did not rear her son; however, Mahapajapati Gotami, his maternal aunt, nurtured him. However, Maya would continue sending an envoy to her son from Paradise to give suggestions.

Although she is every once in a while illustrated in other life circumstances, such as having a vision that correctly predicted her pregnancy with Siddhartha Gautama or continuing on a prophetic visions excursion with her husband King suddhodana shortly after their child's birth, she is most commonly demonstrated birthing Gautama, an occurrence that is commonly acknowledged to have happened in Lumbini in modern Terai. Maya is frequently represented birthing while sitting under a tree and extending her hand to grab a branch for assistance. The portrayal of Queen Maya follows a template first set in older Buddhist artworks of the yaksini, or forest deities.

FAQS

Q1. How was Buddha conceived by Queen Maya?

Per the Buddhist myth, the next Buddha had decided to adopt the form of a white elephant so as to experience one final reincarnation on Earth while living as a bodhisattva in Tusita heaven.

Q2. Where should one place Queen Maya’s statue at home?

You can place the statue anywhere as a beautiful decoration that enhances the grandeur of your residence.