Photo Courtey of Aumism Universal Religion
Castellane, France
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Photo Courtey of Aumism Universal Religion |
Cosmoplanetary Messiah Castellane, France |
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Cosmoplanetary Messiah Statue CASTELLANE, France 33-meter (110-foot)"Cosmoplanetary Messiah" built in Castellane, southern France in the 1990 by the Aumism Universal religious sect. The Statue represents the sect's founder Gilbert Boudin, the Cosmoplanetary Messiah of Synthesis, the Great Master of the Order of the Knights of the Triumphant Vajra, the Master of the Selection of Souls and the Great Pontiff of the Cosmic Diamond Order, who claimed to be immortal. He died of heart disease in 1998 aged 74. Boudin founded his "Aumism" movement in 1969 as a synthesis of all religions The statue, part of the Holy City of Mandarom Schambhasalem (Holy Mountain in Sanskrit), was built without planning permission and was, after lengthy legal contests, declared illegal in June 2000. It is one of several at the sect's "holy city of Mandarom" just outside Castellane, 50 km (30 miles) northwest of the Riveria resort of Cannes. The statue was destroyed by a controlled implosion September 9, 2001 French authorities said the monument to Bourdin was built in 1990 without planning permission. The cult followers deny that the statue is illegal and say they are being persecuted for their religious beliefs. They compared the demolition of the statue, which shows the guru resplendent in white robes and a papal-style tiara, to the recent destruction in Afghanistan by the Taliban regime of colossal 1,500-year-old Buddhist statues. The only unauthorized building on the site was the statue of Bourdin. Bourdin's followers believe their founder will one day be resurrected from a local grave. Town officials covered over the burial site with a thick layer of reinforced concrete to prevent his supporters from digging up his body. |
Link to Aumism Universal Religion site Aumism Universal Religion
This page maintained by Gary Feuerstein
23 September 2001
