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What is the relationship between Mahaparinirvana and the concept of Maitreya in Buddhism?

A Buddha cannot return after Mahaparinirvana, yet through the energy of his suspended bodies, he manifests as Maitreya, embodying wisdom without disrupting the cycle of liberation.

— Osho
According to Osho, after Mahaparinirvana—the seventh-body ‘Great Nirvana’—a Buddha cannot personally return. Yet Buddha’s vow to appear as Maitreya is fulfilled by a different route: before dissolving, he intentionally left his etheric, astral, and mental bodies suspended as energy. When a fit being arises, these three bodies enter (parakaya-pravesh), recreating Buddha’s presence and wisdom as Maitreya without reversing Mahaparinirvana.

Buddha didn’t come back after final enlightenment; he left subtle parts that can enter a worthy person later, showing up as Maitreya.

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