Giant sapphire Buddha statue welcomed

      A sapphire statue of Buddha, which is nearly 3.5m in height, 4,650kg in weight, will be introduced at the Goddess of Mercy Festival 2009 in the central city of Da Nang from March 13-15.
The festival will take place at the Ngu Hanh Son tourist site and its major event will be the exhibition of the giant Buddha statue.
This statue is called “Sapphire Buddha Statue for Peace and the World”. This work was created by an Australian Buddhist. The statue will be exhibited in many Asian cities before it is brought to a pagoda in Australia.
At the festival, visitors will also see stone-made artworks of craftsmen of Non Nuoc craft village and a calligraphic contest about buffalos.
The Goddess of Mercy Festival was held for the first time in 1960 to welcome the statue of Buddha in Hoa Nghiem Cave, western part of Ngu Hanh Son Mountain.
The second festival was organised two years later on the occasion of the inauguration of the Goddess of Mercy pagoda. The festival was resumed in 1991 after many years of suspension.
The festival attracts around 35,000-40,000 visitors.