The Maitreya Prophecy, 'Maitreyavyakarana'
By Andrew Dwight Harris
The Maitreyavyakarana, also known as The Maitreya Prophecy, can possibly be said to have been fulfilled in our present day. The reason this could be said is because it has been about 2,500 years since this prophecy was first told by the original Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, and the Maitreya, who is the Buddha to come (apparently at this time), is also known as the 'Fifth Buddha'. This passage explains clearly:
(Mystical Guide)
So that is why the return of Buddha is called 'the Fifth Buddha', because it is five turns of the 'Wheel of Dharma', each turning of the wheel is 500 years in length, and this ends up with us (present day). God apparently has never given an exact, precise date for any prophecy that I know of, so the present day is 'roughly' around that time predicted by this prophecy.
This is great, and you may be interested to know that the time when the prophecy is supposed to be fulfilled is only one part of the prophecy; there is more. For example, the spiritual state of the people in the world in the present day is another sign that the prophecy is at hand, because Buddha explained that with each turn of the Wheel of Dharma, the people would further turn away from the world of God and into the materialistic world, losing insight to the teachings and not thinking about God and His universe that much anymore. This seems to be true of the present day, and can be seen by observation of the world news.
(Mystical Guide)
So maybe we can say that it is true, that today the world is in a bad state, and possibly some people want to know if this prophecy is fulfilled. But how are we able to reason out who is the right Maitreya, because there are many who claim, at various places, to be that very Maitreya being discussed here? It may confuse a person to read on the Internet so many Maitreya claimants. However, it seems that it is all part of the deal God makes with us all - you have to find it out for yourself. Is the Mission of Maitreya, Eternal Divine Path the real Maitreya? This is a question that should be asked, because another part of the prophecy is for everyone to discover if it is true.
(BCI Buddhasa)
Maybe what the above means is that we have to read the teachings of those who proclaim to be Maitreya and judge for ourselves. About The Maitreya to come, Buddha wrote:
(BCI Buddha)
Buddha also said something else about the time and date of the Fifth Buddha:
The Buddha Supreme, now am I
But after me Mettayya comes,
Before this auspicious aeon
Runs to the end of years
(BCI Buddhasa)
If we consider that the disciples of Buddha were originally Hindu, this most likely means to them that the Buddha will return at the end of the current Hindu age, called the Kali Yuga age. The people at that time were halfway through this age, so it says, "runs to the end of years". Apparently, according to the BCI Prophecy Fulfilled website, the Kali Yuga age ended at noon on August 1, 1943. The one who claims to be Maitreya of the Mission of Maitreya, Eternal Divine Path was born in 1944. Therefore the prophecy is fulfilled by the Mission of Maitreya, Eternal Divine Path.
It is also clear that it is common knowledge that the Fifth Buddha will return specifically in the West (Occident). One reason for this knowledge is that Maitreya is usually depicted as sitting in a chair like a person living in the West (rather than more Eastern styles such as cross-legged on the ground, etc.). However, to know God and His Teachings, a 'place' is not necessary:
(BCI Buddha)
Although He resides in the West, He comes from the East, as is prophesied in the Bible:
I invite you to the website, www.maitreya.org, because it is you who has to decide if any of this is true.