Our motivation for this project

Bodhgaya in the northeastern state of Bihar in India, is considered the most sacred place for Buddhism. 

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The Mahabodhi temple is a Buddhist temple that was built in the second century. On the temple’s westside, there is a fig tree (Bodhi Tree), under which Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha, reached enlightenment (Bodhi). In 2002 the temple was registered as a UNESCO world heritage site.

 

Dr. Xiaolan Ross, the chairman of the foundation, has undertaken a two weeklong pilgrimage in 2013. She visited the four most important holy sites concerning the life of Buddha. Lumbini in Nepal and Bodhgaya, Sarnath and Kusinagara in India.

On this trip she met several important Buddhist personalities including Reverent Bhikkhu Dharmendra Kumar who has been a Reverent of the Maha Bodhi Temple for more than ten years.

 

He has always had the dream to build the first school in his hometown of Koraiya, which is in one of the poorest regions in India. Hundreds of children live there in poverty, without sufficient food and without a minimum of clothing.

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Until now he hasn’t found the money to fulfill this dream. Years ago, he asked Xiaolan for help, but she didn’t have the courage to start such a big project. Since the Reverent and her have been friends for ten years, his dream has also become her dream. Recently we have dared, with the help of family and friends from around the world, to take the first step to fulfill our dream.

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Now we need your support! With your compassion and generosity we can make Reverent Dharmendra Kumar’s lifelong dream come true. We can improve the life of hundreds of children in Koraiya.