Maidari, held in July every year, is the festival devoted to the future Buddha Matreya. A model horse, on which Matreiya is supposed to ride to earth, is led around the datsan. This year Maidari fell on a hot Sunday in July, and thousands of people came to the Ivolginsky datsan to pay their respects to Matreiya and the 12th Khombo Lama Itigilov.