Maitreya is believed to be the Buddha who will appear in the future.
A statue of Maitreya Bodhisattva is enshrined in this temple.
Standard kanji spelling for Maitreya; used in Buddhist contexts and news.
From the Sanskrit 'Maitreya', via Chinese 彌勒 (Mílè). The kanji are used phonetically (ateji) to represent the sound.