Maitreya Buddha of Vietnam, Bhutan, 2014, 1oz

Description

Sitting comfortably over an expanse of lush greenery on Cam Mountain peak of Vietnam, the Maitreya Buddha wears a merciful smile atop the idyllic mount. Weighing 600 tons and reaching to a lofty height of 33.6m, the Maitreya Buddha statue featured in this 7^th coin of the World Buddha Heritage series is Asia’s largest.

Commonly referred to as the Laughing Buddha, the Maitreya Buddha is a bodhisattva who is to appear on Earth, achieve complete enlightment and provide teaching to mankind in the future, thus being recognised the Buddha of the Future, a successor to the historic Sakyamuni Buddha as according to Buddhist scriptures.

The pair of fish featured on the coin reverse is Sernya – one of the 8 auspicious elements in Buddhism. Sernya signifies the liberation of trappings, rebirth and resurrection of eternal life, like the fishes’ ability to swim freely in the ocean. Similarly, the ability of fishes to see through muddy waters, symbolizes clarity in the perception of matters.

** The very first convex coin minted by us – another technical breakthrough by The Singapore Mint! **

*Coin is only available in October 2014*