Temples, Stupas and Sacred Places

The video features two narrators, Lyudmila Sarangova and Al’mira Erendzhenova who talk about the Bogdakhin temple. Destroyed in 1929, the temple was rebuilt in 1991. It is situated in the village of Khar-Buluk in Tselinnyi rayon of Kalmykia.

Lyudmila Sarangova: The temple was given to the Kalmyks as a present by the Dalai Lama V and the Panchen Lama IV in 1681. In the beginning, the nomadically organized temple, which was housed in a yurt and moved along the banks of the Manych river, was called Bogdo Dalai Lamyn Ik Khurul Rashil Khumbo. Later it was housed in a permanent building. When it was destroyed in 1929 its last abbot was Ochir-Purdash Dzhungruev – also known as Purdash bagsh – who became a gelyung (monastic title) in 1904. He was born in 1856 into the clan of Shabiner. He went on pilgrimage to Tibet twice, in 1898-1900 and in 1902-1904 respectively. In Tibet Purdash bagsh was received by the Dalai Lama V. Purdash bagsh described his pilgrimages in his diaries that were later translated into Russian by the St Petersburg Geographical Society that presented him with a silver medal.

One day during his trip to Tibet, Purdash bagsh was resting under a big tree and decided to take seeds from that tree back to Kalmykia. Upon his arrival home, he sowed the seeds, one of which grew into a tall tree known today as Odinokoe Derevo (Lonely Tree). This tree is more than 100 years old and is regarded as sacred. Children are banned from climbing and playing on it. In 2013 eight Buddhist stupas were erected near the tree. Today it is a site where people perform rituals.

Al’mira Erendzhenova: Before its destruction in 1929, the Bogdakhin Temple was situated in the village of Yarta. Today only parts of its former foundation can be seen there. In 1991 the temple was rebuilt in another village called Khar-Buluk. The temple houses the following relics: a statue of the Panchen Lama IV, a statue of Vajrasattva, the horn of a rhino, a small stupa, old Kalmyk texts about the future, two copies of Dorzh dzhodva (Diamond sutras), a sutra of Okn Tengrin magtal in Tibetan, and a sutra of Khar kelnya sudr in Todo script.

The statue of the Panchen Lama, which is about 380 years old, was restored by specialists at the Central Temple in Elista in 2009. In the beginning, people thought that it was a statue of Bogdo Gegyan, hence it was referred to as such. But later it was established that the statue was actually that of the Panchen Lama. This statue is believed to have magical power. The horn of a rhino, which is about 180 years old, is wrapped in a cloth with inscriptions in Todo script and Tibetan. The cloth is kept inside a bag. The temple also possesses an original photo of Purdash bagsh.

Alexandr participated in the construction of a small prayer house in Chapchachi not far from the village of Chilgir. This place is where Kogshn bagshi, a Buddhist monk, was buried. According to a legend, one day a fire started to come from beneath the ground where the monk had been buried. The local people decided to exhume the body and place it in a wooden sarcophagus. Amazingly, the body never decayed. In the 1930s NKVD operatives and Soviet doctors came to his sarcophagus to examine the body. When one of the doctors pricked the hand of the lama with a knife, it bled, although Kogshn bagshi had been dead for more than 70 years. When the body was transported on a cart to Elista, its hand was still bleeding. Later people tried to find the whereabouts of the body, but to no avail.

Alexandr says that Chapchachi is considered to be a sacred place. It has a positive energy and whoever sleeps there has all their problems sorted out the next morning.

This place is now fenced. Before, shepherds complained that their cattle that stopped there to rest would die. Old people also say that this place should be kept clean and hence they fenced it later.

Batyr talks about the Bogdo Dalai Lamyn Rashi Lunpo Temple in Orgakin also known as the Orgakin Temple. Batyr’s monastic name is Gonbo Dordzhe. He was born in 1965 in a cattle farm in Orgakin and spent his childhood with his grandparents. From his grandmother Batyr learnt about a temple that stood in the past in their native place. At 24 Batyr studied at the Buddhist Temple (Datsan) in St Petersburg. Later he continued his religious education in temples and dharma centres in Mongolia, India and France.

In 2000 the local people of Orgakin began to revive their old temple. The temple was originally established in 1681 and given as a present to the Kalmyk Ayuka Khan through prince Menke Tundutov. At that time the temple was situated in the southern part of Manychskiy ulus. The three clans that belonged to the temple were the Orgakhn, the Bogdakhn and the Kelket clans. In the beginning, the temple was nomadically organized and moved from one place to another. In 1861, it finally settled and did not move anymore. In 1931 it was closed and all the lamas (about 30) were disrobed and many of them were sent to exile. The abbot of the temple, Nim bagshi, was sent to gulag in 1935 and released in 1941. When in 1942 Buddhism was temporarily permitted in Kalmykia, Nim bagshi was elected the Head Lama of Kalmykia. Later he fled Russia. He retained his title until 1962. Some relics and archival material that belonged to the temple are now kept at the Nitsan Temple, New Jersey, USA.

In Orgakin, Batyr says, the re-built temple has a house for its abbot, built on the same spot as it was in the past. The temple has a prayer hall. Around the temple there are 8 stupas, built by the clans of the Orgakin aimak, Buddhists from Rostov and Kalmyks from the former stanitsa of Don’s Platovskiy Regiment. Yudra Rinpoche from Nepal consecrated the stupas. Later a ritual of cleansing the vicinity was carried out, during which the people chanted the mantra ‘Om mani padme khum’ for a week. Recently Batyr started the construction of the 9^th stupa (that of Kalachakra) and an adjacent prayer house.

Batyr says that in the vicinity there are another three stupas dedicated to famous lamas and pilgrims.

In 2006, 100 volumes of Gandzhur and 226 volumes Dandzhur were brought to the Orgakin Temple from India.

In Orgakin there is a local NGO called Orgakin Aimak which is headed by Erdni Pashnanov. In spring, all the 7 local clans celebrate Ur Sar and in autumn they perform a ritual of gal tyalgn (fire sacrifice). Batyr also says that the local people rebuilt a sacred hill called Kermen Tolga which was destroyed by archaeologists in the 1950s. On top of the hill is an ova (a pile made from stones) where local people carry out rituals to worship the spiritual masters of the locality.

Batyr says that in the territory of the Orgakin Temple there are eight stupas dedicated to the Buddha Shakyamuni, each marking a certain period of life or certain miraculous deeds that he performed. These stupas are as follows:

1. The first meritorious deed that he did was he was born in Lumbini (now Nepal) in 624 BC. The Lotus stupa in the territory of the Orgakin Temple, which was built by the Buddhists of the dharma centre in Rostov-on-Don, is dedicated to the birth of Buddha.

2. The stupa of Enlightenment, built by the members of Badzhyakhn clan, is dedicated to the enlightenment of Buddha at 35. These type of stupas are the most popular in Kalmykia.

3. On the 49^th day following his enlightenment, Buddha gave his first teachings to his five followers in Varanasi. All in all, Buddha left 84,000 teachings. The stupa of the Turning of the Wheel of Teaching, built by the members of the Boltakhn clan, is dedicated to this event. The founder of the Boltakhn clan was Orga. His three songs – Baadzh, Bolta and Onka – established the first three clans of the Orgakin aimak. It is the descendants of Bolta who built this stupa.

4. At the time of Buddha there were six philosophical schools in India. One day Buddha was invited for a scholarly dispute by the six Brahmans of these schools whom he defeated. The stupa of Miracles is dedicated to this event. This stupa, which is worshipped during Tsagan Sar in Kalmykia, was erected by the Onkakhn clan whose founder was the above mentioned Onka.

5. The Buddha’s mother, queen Maya, died during childbirth. In order to help his mother and other deities, Buddha ascended to the skies. When he was descending back to earth, all the people and gods greeted him. The stupa of the Buddha’s Descending to Earth has stairs that symbolize his descent. This stupa in Orgakin was built by the members of the Byugyasyud clan. This stupa contains the following objects: 100 small volumes of Gandzhur, rolls of mantras, as well as various ingredients associated with the local deities including wheat, fruit stones, water, gold, silver, precious and semi-precious stones, and clay statues of Buddha.

6. When Buddha was alive, India was rife with confrontations among various princes and lords. Buddha met with representatives of the warring sides and gave them his teachings. Thanks to his teachings peace descended upon six different worlds, including that of humans, gods, semi-gods, animals, hungry ghosts and hell. The stupa of Reconciliation, which was erected by the Syadud clan, is dedicated to this event. Consisting of only four families, the Syadud clan is the smallest in Orgakin.

7. When the time came for Buddha to leave this world, his disciples asked him to stay. By using a practice of the goddess of longevity Ushnishavidjaya, Buddha managed to prolong his life by several years. The stupa of Longevity is dedicated to the goddess of longevity. It was built by the members of the Iki-Burla clan who are Buzava of Don. 250 years ago their ancestors went to join the Don regiment. As it is known, General Basan Gorodovikov, who was from the Iki-Burla clan himself, later established the Iki-Burulskiy rayon in Kalmykia.

8. When he was leaving this world, Buddha said that he would be represented by his teachings (i.e. dharma). The stupa of Paranirvana that has the shape of a bell is considered to be the most precious among all the stupas. This stupa in Orgakin was erected by the Nyamsud clan.

At the end Batyr says that in the Orgakin Temple they have started building a ninth stupa (i.e. the stupa of Kalachakra) which is connected with Shambala. According to a legend, when this world is destroyed by barbarians, warriors from Shambala will come to earth to save humanity.

Elza talks about two temples, namely Khosheutovskiy and Anzhatn.

When I was a child, my father and I used to go to the Khosheutovskiy Temple. Back then there were no houses built around it, as it is the case today. When the Bolsheviks decided to destroy it, two barges pulled the temple, but could not tear it apart. Now the temple has been restored. What a wonderful place it is! The temple was built to honor Russia’s victory over the French during the Napoleonic war. The temple was built to stand for centuries, and the solution used in it is said to contain eggs. The entrance of the temple was guarded by two stone lions.

In 1958, my daughter fell ill. I was told that there was a former monk named Doodzha who lived at the Erdnievskiy state farm. I took my daughter with me to see him. Upon receiving us, he said: ‘The reason for your daughter’s illness is that your husband went to a funeral where he quarreled and nearly ended up fighting with somebody’. It was true. I then left my daughter with Doodzhe, and together with two old women went to a place where Anzhatn temple once stood. We all prayed there, lit lamps, and collected pebbles from the ruins. My daughter was cured with the help of these pebbles.

Doodzha also told me that in 1935-1936, when monks were being arrested, some monks buried temple gold in the ground. After the Siberian exile, he himself dug up some lamps and cups and used them afterwards. The place where the Anzhatn Temple stood is holy. Sand from that place can be mixed with water or tea and partaken. It is good for both sick people and animals.

Galina talks about the Bogdakhin Temple, including who built it and how it is maintained. This is her story:

When Buddhism started to revive in Kalmykia, in Elista (the capital of Kalmykia) people built a small temple on Lermontov street. We in Khar-Buluk also decided to build a temple. We were given a place for this – the kitchen of a former school. We cleaned, whitewashed the place, and put it into order. People who participated in the building of the temple are our village folk (including Ochir Boldyrev, Galina Khakhlinova, Lidia Sarangova, Lidia Buvaeva, Nogan Shikeeva), the village director (Aleksei Shikeev) and the director of the local children’s food factory (Aleksandr Boldyrev). Aleksei Shikeev invited a construction brigade to the village. Ochir Boldyrev invited the lama Sandzhi Ulanov and another lama from Volodarovskiy who performed a ritual. We were so happy, because before we all had to pray at home. So, when the two lamas started to perform rituals, people from nearby villages and towns began to travel to our village. After a temple was built in Arshan (Elista), lamas from India started to come to Kalmykia. When Bogdo Gegyan visited our Republic for the first time, we invited him to our village. Many people gathered during his visit. After a prayer Bogdo Gegyan said to us: ‘A time will come when your small temple will grow and strengthen’. Back then we were thinking to ourselves: ‘How could this be? We do not even have money (to do this)’. Ochir Boldyrev asked the architect Vladimir Gilyandikov to draw a project for our new temple. After each prayer Ochir Boldyrev showed the project to the pious asking them to donate. A woman originally from our village called Natalya Mueva donated slate worth 300 thousand Rubles. In January 2004 during his visit to our village, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov (President of Kalmykia) familiarized himself with our project and talked to the businessman Sergei Dzhirgalov. This was on Saturday. On Monday Sergei Dzhirgalov came to see us and said that the temple would be refurbished. On 14 May we opened our new temple. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov invited the Shajin Lama for this occasion. It was such a big holiday. The words of Bogdo Gegyan turned out to be true. People from our village (including Nogan Shikeeva, Lidia Buvaeva, Tsagan Erdeeva) came to the temple on a daily basis, despite the weather, to light candles and look after the order. In our temple, we have a precious statue of Panchen Lama. That is why our grandmothers came to the temple every day to look after it, although we told them that they did not have to come so often. Today they are old, and younger people have taken over their responsibilities. At this moment it is Namdzhil Erendzhenov and his spouse who look after the temple. Sergei Dzhirgalov planted many fruit bearing trees outside the temple that need watering. His sister helps us with money, and wants to build a water pipe. Dorzh Buvaev supplies the trees with water.

Near the Single Poplar there are now many newly built stupas that require care. People who look after that place are Al’mira, Namdzhil, Lyudmila Sarangova. Pilgrims pour butter and Kalmyk tea at the Poplar which is not good for the tree, for it may deteriorate before its time. We want to appeal to all people to water the tree instead. Purdash bagsh (who planted this sacred tree) should be an example for all our people. He travelled to Tibet twice for the benefit of his people.

Keemia says that in the past several khotons (nomadic units consisting of several yurts) would unite and have their own temples. In the past Keemia’s clan used the Sharbagudovskiy Temple to perform rituals and pray, which was situated in what is today Lagan’. Although the temple was destroyed, today in its place are several new stupas. In the vicinity of the old temple, there are small hills that mark the foundation of houses made from airbricks that stood in the past. Today in this place people perform clan rituals either in early summer or autumn. As a rule, all clan members, including women, participate in such rituals when they make offerings to their ancestors and gods. Lamas are also invited to these rituals.

Clan rituals are performed usually once every two years for the benefit of all its members. All clans have their spiritual protectors. Keemia’s clan has the following protectors: Tsagan Aav, who is the protector of all Kalmyks, and Gombo (Mahakala), who is a furious defender of dharma. There is a sutra about how the Buddha Shakyamuni met Tsagan Aav who said that he helps people and brings good into their lives.

Keemia also says that when the ancestors of the Kalmyks came to the Volga, they brought with them the names of their temples that they had in their homeland of Dzungaria. Instead of ova structures (piles made from stones around which people perform rituals), the Kalmyks used small mounds due to the fact that stones are scarce in Kalmykia.

Having a Buryat mother, Keemia also participates in clan rituals in Buryatia where she reads well wishes to her maternal clan. In this sense, Keemia contends, Kalmyk and Buryat clan rituals are similar. In Buryatia, the place for clan rituals was chosen by the oldest person in Keemia’s maternal clan.

Khargchin reminisces about a temple that she went to when she was a small girl. This is her story:

Once upon a time I was a small girl. At that time a grandson of Gavzh bagsh was a young monk in our local temple. It was a big room with a huge revolving prayer wheel in the middle. During holidays old people brought biscuits, tea and fermented mare’s milk to have the foodstuff consecrated. Upon entering the temple, all bowed to Gavzh bagsh and sat down either beside him or around him. Gavzh bagsh read prayers. My younger brother also came to the temple to get something sweet to eat. During holidays the temple was full of people. I saw Gavzh bagsh once or twice. Afterwards, the temple was turned into a club, and its kitchen was used to house a (secular) school. During the dekulakization of the rich, all the lamas were exiled along with kulaks. At that time I was staying at my auntie’s. Our uncle took us with him. That is how I survived. Despite repression, Gavzh bagsh managed to overcome everything and return home. He lived at someone’s house, read prayers and died at the age of 80. Older people advised us, the young, to pray. I also remember tall, good looking, young girls and boys who went to an institute. It turned out that they were being trained to be teachers. Let god bless you all!

Maria says that a temple that stood in Tsagan-Aman in the past was built by a Kalmyk lama who had bought the land from a Russian man with the purpose of building a Buddhist temple there. When he died, the lama was buried in Tsagan-Aman. The temple, however, was destroyed before World War Two and only part of its foundation survived. Local people always went to the ruins to pray. Both Maria’s mother and grandmother went there. Maria recalls that she went to the ruins with her grandmother. Maria’s mother always wore a Kalmyk hat before going to those sacred ruins.

The temple was officially opened on 6 July 1997 on the Dalai Lama’s birthday. A two-storey structure with a three-tiered ‘floating’ roof, the temple stands in the background of the steppe landscape. The front of the temple has two lines of rotating prayer cylinders called kyurde. To the left of the temple is erected a statue of Tsagan Aav. In this video Mikhail talks about the temple.

There are three famous temples in Kalmykia, namely the Ik Khurul (Big Temple), the Dund Khurul (Middle Temple) and the Bag Khurul (Small Temple) believed to be founded by three brothers. According to yet another story, the temples’ founders were a father and his two sons. Having 400 monks at one time, the Dund Khurul, which had several buildings with Byzantine style columns and domes, was considered to be the largest of the three. The temple was built in the 1840-1850s as a wooden building. Before that it was housed in a nomadic yurt.

Not far from the Dund Khurul is a village called Khanata. There are three legends about the origin of its name: (1) the village got its name from the nearby river of Khan, (2) it was named after a man called Khan, and (3) the houses in the village were built from reed, a material which is called ‘khan’ in Kalmyk.

The Dund Khurul was destroyed in 1934. It is believed that monks hid many relics in two big kettles and buried them somewhere. When people are ready spiritually, the story goes, the hidden relics will reveal themselves from beneath the earth.

The Dund Khurul is associated with the famous Kalmyk lama Baaza bagshi Menkendzhuev who went on pilgrimage to Tibet twice, each journey lasting from 3 to 4 years. He brought the Gandzhur texts back from Tibet.

There are many legends associated with this sacred place. According to a legend, in the past Buddhist astrologists predicted that a shulm (evil being) would be born in a certain place. When the lamas warned about this, the local people went to the place only to see a woman giving birth to a baby with a wolf’s head. Horrified, the witnesses chased the baby to kill him. When he was finally caught, the shulm baby growled to his captors that, ‘Had I only tried my mother’s milk, no one would have ever beaten me’.

In the territory of the former Dund Khurul there are 16 clans, including the Onkyakhn, the Azhirgsud, the Mu Chons, the Zod Kovud, the Tugtn Shevnr, the Bargs, the Bichkn Bargs and others. Each clan has its legends and know their genealogies, since Kalmyks are supposed to know seven generations back.

In the territory of the temple there are few settlements, including Zurgan Khudg (six wells), Ungn Toryachi (lost foal) and others. The latter got its name as follows. According to a legend, one day a foal went missing. While searching for it, people found a nice place and decided to set up a settlement there.

This video shows both the interior and exterior of the Tantric Temple of Lord Tsongkapa in the town of Gorodovikovsk in west Kalmykia. Built in 2008, the temple houses a residence for the Dalai Lama, Telo Tulku Rinpoche and an office for administrative work. Its main relic is a piece of the skull of the Lama Tsongkapa. The temple was built on the initiative of the lama Thubten Thinley and his brother Gen Yamphel who were sent there by Telo Tulku Rinpoche.

Tatyana recalls the end of the 1990s and the beginning of the 2000s as a hard time in her village which is situated far from the federal road. Several people from the village approached the Head Lama of Kalmykia Telo Tulku Rinpoche with an idea to build a stupa in the village, to which he replied positively. Soon the Central Temple in Elista sent the lama Geshe Dugda to Kharba to read prayers. The lama advised the villagers that the proposed stupa could be built anywhere in the village. The villagers set out collecting money for the construction work. A lama named Gen Tupten was appointed from the Central Temple in Elista to oversee the construction work and make sure that it was built according to Buddhist canons. The stupa was built in 2005 with the help of the head of the Yustinskiy rayon, Yuriy Ochirov. The Stupa of the Lotus contains a statue of Green Tara and other precious objects. The ceremony of the opening of the stupa was a holiday in which twelve monks from the Central Temple, including Geshe Dugda, read prayers. Today all villagers look after the stupa, and many young people come there to pray.

Following the construction of the stupa, Tatyana points out that life in the village improved. A gas pipe was brought into the village, outward migration decreased, and many local farms became wealthier.

In the past the village suffered from drought. In order to address this problem, the villagers decided to build a small prayer house near the stupa. The place was consecrated by monks from the Central Temple. The prayer house now houses a thangka consecrated by the Dalai Lama himself that the villagers brought from Riga where they had attended the Dalai Lama’s teachings. The Central Temple also donated big thangkas of Green Tara and Buddha Shakyamuni. Buddhists from the village of Tsagan-Aman also offered their help.

On the outskirts of the village there is a place where the local people perform a fire ritual (gal tyalgn) in autumn during Ur Sar. Elders of the village announce about an upcoming ritual, and the villagers pull money among themselves. Such rituals are performed with the help of a lama.

Villagers look after the prayer house in turn. Raisa Goryaeva looked after it. After her it was Tatyana’s mother. When she became too old to carry out this duty, she asked another woman, Galina Tserenova, to do this. According to Tatyana’s mother, the prayer house should be looked after by a person who was born in the year of the cow.

Telo Tulku: In the Buddhist Mahayana tradition a stupa is like a monument. There are eight types of stupas. Each stupa has a certain meaning. What is stored inside stupas are religious relics. Stupas serve as examples of how individuals can achieve enlightenment. In Tibet you would find stupas inside monasteries which are embellished with ornaments that can be made from precious stones as an offering to Buddhas. In Kalmykia, building stupas became a sort of movement. Reasons for that are many. Many villages and communities want to build a prayer house or a temple. But due to lack of funds they want to build something cheaper but nonetheless spiritual. They settle on building either a prayer wheel or a stupa, or both. As a temple we guide them in order to ensure that these structures are built properly according to Buddhist canons. There are certain rituals that we have to follow. Firstly, we carry out the consecration of land where we request from nagas and spirits, who may exist around that land, permission to build a holy object. We request that these spirits do not harm the builders. It is a very simple ritual. After that we build the foundation. According to the established design, each level has to be filled with certain religious objects. In Kalmykia we have built around 130 to 140 stupas so far. Many of them were built in memory of an old temple that existed in that particular place or in memory of a high lama or in memory of the deportation of Kalmyk lamas and people.

Baasanjav: Do people in Kalmykia dedicate stupas to clans?

TT: They do. I think this concerns more those clans who have suffered during the revolution and deportation. Among those clans not all members were lay people. There were monks in their communities.

B: Could you count the stupas you have?

TT: The stupa of enlightenment, the stupa of victory, the lotus stupa, the stupa of many doors, the stupa that symbolises Buddha’s coming to earth from Raya Tushita, the stupa of passing into nirvana (Parinirvana).

B: What does the stupa of enlightenment symbolise?

TT: It symbolises that we, as human beings, all have Buddha nature within us. We have the ability to achieve enlightenment, to free ourselves from all forms of suffering. When we see the stupa, it is a source of inspiration and encouragement that we will make positive karmic imprints to achieve enlightenment. All stupas are for the same reason, but their forms are a little bit different, because they symbolise various matters. For example, we have images of Buddha in various colours and with different hand gestures which symbolise various things. This helps us in meditation. For example, a dark colour symbolises negativity, illness and so on. It is a visual stimulus to help us with our meditation.

B: Stupa with many doors sounds interesting. What do these doors signify?

TT: When you have achieved enlightenment, emptiness, it is almost like you have many doors. If I were a highly realised being and had power, I would not necessarily need to use the main entrance to come and go. I can go through the walls, through the roof, through the window. When an individual achieves enlightenment, it is like having many doors. And it is possible. Now society, time, everything around us is changing. Our world is becoming a very materialistic world and spirituality is in decline globally, in every community. In Tibet, in Mongolia you hear stories about many healers and fortune-tellers who lived before the Revolution. Why is that? Because they dedicated their lives to the benefit of all sentient beings. They dedicated their lives to meditation and practiced to achieve certain levels of mental state. By achieving that, they were able to utilise their extraordinary senses to serve humanity and their communities. Therefore, they had abilities, powers to do that. Nowadays there is a huge decline in society. It is rare that you hear about lamas having certain abilities. Why is that? It is because the level of practice has declined. We live in a materialistic world and we are distracted so much by gadgets, smartphones, the internet, and social media. We are starting to pay attention to external matters. Our attention to inner values has declined a little bit. But I believe in evolution, in a cycle of existence, and in samsara. What goes around comes around. One day you have a good experience; the next day you have bad experience. I believe that things come back over the course of years. I am sure, the time will come when we will witness an extraordinary spiritual development.

B: What kind of stupas do you have most in Kalmykia?

TT: I think, stupas of Enlightenment.

B: Is there any reason why people choose this stupa?

TT: People like what it symbolises and what it represents. Usually we give them a handbook which gives a very detailed explanation of various stupas, of what their structure symbolises. We give them a choice.

B: The lotus has an important symbolic value in Kalmyk culture. Could you say more about the stupa of lotus?

TT: Lotus exists not only in Kalmykia, but in all other Buddhist traditions. It symbolises something very precious. Lotus is a very beautiful flower. It is pure, innocent, and extraordinary. Where does this beauty arise from? The seed of lotus grows from mud. No matter how dirty, ugly, how unclean you are, you can be purified and be as beautiful as a lotus. We, as human beings, are all born with many positive values, as well as negative ones. No matter how angry, aggressive, negative a person you are, you can transform yourself and become as pure as a lotus. In the Caspian Sea thousands of lotus flowers grow in the canals every year. That is why the lotus is a symbol of Kalmyk nation. It is on the national flag of Kalmykia.

B: What relics can you put inside stupas?

TT: We always put religious objects. We fill stupas with tsatsa. We put soil and earth from holy places such as Bodh Gaya, Varanasi, as well as water and stones from holy places. In some cases, we put clothes or some objects that belonged to very high lamas. These are the main spiritual objects that we put in. In stupas we also put a statue of Buddha, of Medicine Buddha, or that of Tara. In some cases they are filled with other holy objects and relics.

Telo Tulku: Actually, this temple was not originally planned to be as big as it is today. This idea came spontaneously and we were very fortunate to have a very supportive president at that time – Kirsan Ilyumzhinov who was the first president of the Republic of Kalmykia, a very devout Buddhist and somebody who has done a lot for the promotion of the republic. Somebody who has really achieved a lot in Kalmykia, in Russian politics and on the international stage as well. As you know, the very first Buddhist monastery that we built is outside of the city of Elista. We had a good number of people who were attending that temple on a daily basis. During Buddhist holidays it was overflowing with the pious. There was not enough room for everybody to fit inside. Most of the Buddhist holidays happen either at the hottest or the coldest time. So, there were more people standing outside than inside during the Buddhist holidays. I thought, ‘Ok, our temple is getting too small for the public’. The president of Kalmykia comes to the temple quite often just to relax, meditate, engage in prayers, have a cup of tea and have some conversations. One day he came to relax, talk and asked randomly 'What are your future plans?' I said, 'Well, we are thinking about the possibility of building a new building in the city, because this temple is getting too small during the Buddhist holidays. We do not want anything fancy, just four walls, a big hall, roof and a statue of Buddha. As simple as that so that it can be used during Buddhist holidays and big gatherings'. Then he said, 'Well, why are you thinking so small? You have to think big, grand'. And I said, 'Well, we do not have the resources and money to think like that. Of course, it would be nice, but we are being realistic'. He said, 'Do not worry about it, think big, and I will take care of the rest'. And I said, 'OK, well'. I didn't take it very seriously, because sometimes politicians tend to exaggerate and he also had times when he exaggerated. So, I was not sure how to take this. I knew that he could do it, I believed in him. I kind of took it as, 'OK, let's see what happens'. And this was in the summer of 2004. Several months passed and I never brought this topic up. I did not feel comfortable asking him. It happened that the Dalai Lama was able to make a very brief visit to Kalmykia in 2004, at the end of November. And the visit was, of course, arranged by the Buddhist monastery and the president himself who worked very hard to make the visit happen. During His Holiness' visit we had a lunch which was attended by His Holiness, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and me. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov spontaneously said, 'I am thinking of building a big temple in the city. What is your Holiness’ advice or what would you recommend?' His Holiness asked me, 'What is he talking about?' He asked me in Tibetan, I gave his Holiness a briefing. I said, 'Well, our temple has become too small. It would be much easier if there was a bigger temple in the city, centrally located so that people would have an easier access to it’ and so on. His Holiness looked at the president and said, 'Well, if you want to build a temple, then do build a grand temple'. When His Holiness gave the advice, 'OK, you should build a grand temple', this fitted the president’s idea and vision. Then the president decided, 'OK, I am going to do it' and shared his vision with His Holiness. His Holiness was getting excited as well. His Holiness clearly mentioned that, ‘If you build this temple, do not just build a temple, but make it a learning centre, a cultural centre, where people can come and get a proper knowledge not only of Buddhism, but also about different religious traditions, cultures and philosophies. So, the president agreed to that. Immediately after the lunch the president gave a direct order to the Architectural Institute to do preliminary drawings of the temple. He arranged for the land to be consecrated by the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama blessed the land. It was on the 1st of December in 2004. There was an old factory on that land. It took a few months to demolish it. They immediately began working on the building of the temple. The construction started in April 2005 and was completed on the 27th of December 2005. Although the building was completed, there was still a lot of interior work that needed to be done. Over the course of years, we have finished the interior design and structures.

What we do: we organise seminars, trainings, lectures for people who are interested in Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy. We organise photo and art exhibitions. Occasionally we show films related to Buddhism and Buddhist culture. We have a book club that gathers every month to discuss Kalmyk culture, history, Buddhism, and various other topics. We also organise free Kalmyk language courses. And the reason why we do this is that now many secondary schools dropped Kalmyk classes due to a lack of funding. We want to keep this momentum and are making Kalmyk classes available to all who are interested in learning this language. We have been doing this for the past 4 to 5 years, and it has been very successful and effective. We also invite lamas, geshes, tulkus, academicians and scholars of Buddhology, Tibetology as well as Mongolists to give lectures, seminars, workshops and all these programs are part of the reintroduction of Buddhism and Buddhist culture in Kalmykia.

Baasanjav: Can we talk about the architectural planning of the khurul (temple)? Did you participate in it?

TT: Yes, we combined an Indian design. If you look at the temple, it has a kind of architectural flavour from the Stupa in Bodh Gaya. Then there are some elements of a Tibetan monastery and also many elements that we took from Mongolian architecture. And to a certain extent there are also some Kalmyk traditional designs from old temples that existed before the Revolution in 1917. The exterior and the architecture are a mix of various designs from India, Mongolia, Tibet and Kalmykia.

We try to use the temple as a multiuse building, meaning that we have a conference hall for secular or non-religious events. Then we have the main prayer hall. On the third floor, we have a place where people can just relax, meditate. At the same time this space could be used as an exhibition hall for photo and art exhibitions. There are also several rooms that we use as offices for administrative purposes. There are rooms where monks receive and give consultation to the believers on a daily basis. On the fourth floor are more administrative offices, a video and audio section where we keep an archive. The top floor is a residence dedicated to the Dalai Lama. If he visits Kalmykia, we are ready to host him at the temple where he can stay along with his delegation.

B: The outside of the building has elements of modernity. There are glass panels there.

TT: The glass was not my idea, but that of an architect. If you go to Buddhist temples all over the world, these buildings seem to lack light. We wanted our temple to be visible and have proper light. The architect came up with this design to have glass panels on three sides so that to make more light come into the temple itself.

B: Inside the building the walls are beautifully decorated. Who were the painters? Were they locals or from Tibetan monasteries in India?

TT: Kalmykia no longer has a tradition of iconography, or thangka painting, as we call it. We are trying to revive this tradition. We have sent students to study iconography. In the new temple, all paintings were done mostly by Tibetans that we specifically invited from India. We had several local artists who assisted them. It took about two and a half years to complete the whole project. If you go to the old temple, its interior paintings were done by a Kalmyk artist. In 1993 when I sent the first group of students to India there was a young boy among them who was very interested in learning how to paint. His name is Erdne Nimgirov, which is his secular name. Lobsang Thapke is his ordained name. He studied very well and was very talented. After completing his studies in India, he came to Kalmykia and took upon himself the responsibility to do the whole interior of the old temple. He did a wonderful job. Later he emigrated to America. Unfortunately, he is not working in this profession.

B: Inside the temple you have a big, beautiful statue of Buddha. You also have some impressive chandeliers and furniture. Where did you get them?

TT: I would not say all of them are locally produced. Some were ordered from the neighbouring regions. It is an impressive temple and we wanted it to be beautiful in order to attract people. What are the benefits of attracting people to it? Because every month there is something happening in the temple, something new. It is either a new exhibition, a lecture, or an educational event. The beauty of its architecture and various educational events attract people. People say, 'Oh, I wonder what is happening this month? Last month such and such exhibition took place, I wonder what is on this month?’ Every time they come to the temple they always learn something new. It is our idea to make people learn new things every time they come to the temple. That is why it is such an impressive building for a small and poor republic such as ours. We were fortunate to have a very good president who had a vision. We shared a lot of similar ideas with him and we complemented each other very well. As a matter of fact, the temple was voted to be one of the 10 best places to visit in southern Russia – we came in second place.

B: What was the first place?

TT: The first place was Grozny in Chechnya.

B: Inside the building I saw relics, clothes of the Dalai Lama XIV. What other relics do you keep in the khurul (temple)?

TT: We have many relics. We have a complete monk’s robe of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. We feel very fortunate to have this. The Dalai Lama does not usually give away his personal clothing. This is a very rare and complete set of relics. Also, we have the statues of Buddha and Green Tara given by His Holiness for the purpose of putting them as relics inside the big statue of Buddha. We have relics given by a Sri Lankan ambassador to Russia. When he paid a visit to Kalmykia he brought with him a set of relics from one of the stupas in Sri Lanka and offered them to our temple. Then we have another set of Buddhist relics that His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave to a Russian family who put them inside a very nice small silver stupa that they built themselves. This stupa is now kept at our temple. So, these are the main relics that we have.

B: In terms of funding, was the khurul (temple) built on donations?

TT: Yes, the khurul (temple) was built strictly on donations from businessmen and individuals. The temple does not receive money from the federal budget. Neither does it receive money from the local government or any government organisations. So, it is run on public donations and offerings. Another thing that I take great pride in is that we do not solicit donations or offerings. If people offer – they offer. If not – it is OK. We have survived without having to go out and solicit. This is my belief and I tell my staff and colleagues that we must show results and the results should be visible as well as spiritual. Let people feel it, let people see it. If they are able to feel and see it, people will realise how much work we are doing and they will automatically make contributions. There will be no need for us to go and say, ‘We need this or that, we have this project’. Show the people your results. The khurul has a staff of 70 plus people, all of whom are paid salaries. We have to maintain the building, which has high utility bills. We have survived so far. We have not had problems with maintaining the temple and organising various events and programmes.

This video shows the interior and exterior of a temple in the village of Tsagan-Aman as it was videotaped in July 2014. Designed by the architect Vladimir Gilyandikov, the temple was built near a house where the lama Tugmyud (1887-1980) lived. The temple houses a large statue of the Buddha Shakyamuni as well as thangkas of other Buddhist deities that were brought from Mongolia or Tibet. The bronze statues of Buddhist gods that decorate the interior were cast in Nepal and brought to the temple by its abbot Avsan Baldjinyima from Beijing.

At the beginning the Shajin Lama of Kalmykia, Telo Tulku Rinpoche, greets the people and gives a short talk:

‘We all know the history of our people. Despite hardships, we managed to keep our religion, traditions, and culture. Our grandfathers and grandmothers always believed in the future. Today we are opening a stupa of Enlightenment. According to Buddhist canons, there are eight types of stupas. This stupa has been built according to all Buddhist canons and is dedicated to the memory of all the previous generations. First of all, this is a religious event. I ask you to have pure thoughts before our lamas begin to read prayers. Do think that you have come here to collect merit. Do pray for the sake of all living beings so that there are no more diseases and sufferings’.

Afterwards, lamas read prayers. Telo Tulku Rinpoche opens the stupa, consecrates it, and all the lamas go around the stupa. Telo Tulku Rinpoche asks the people to come to this stupa as often as they can and pray. Then the lay people go around the stupa and receive blessings and arshan (consecrated water) from the lamas. The event is concluded with a concert of Kalmyk songs and dances.

The event shown in the video consist of two parts. At the start, the Shajin Lama of Kalmykia, Telo Tulku Rinpoche, addresses the pious and the lamas read prayers and consecrate the stupa. The celebration is continued with Kalmyk songs and dances.

The temple was opened on 13 November 2011 in a ceremony attended by monks of the Central Temple in Elista. The temple houses the Dalai Lama’s monastic robe, a complete set of Ganjur and Danjur texts, various Buddhist thangkas, as well as other sacred objects. The stupa of Enlightenment, which is part of the temple complex, was built in 2000. The temple prides itself on being the second temple in Kalmykia to have a residence room for the Dalai Lama.