The biggest Buddhist temple in Europe opened in Kalmykia (Russia)

On December 27, the Golden Temple was opened in the capital of the republic of Kalmykia Elista (Russia), reports a REGNUM correspondent. The Golden Temple is the biggest Buddhist temple in Russia and Europe as well. Over 5,000 people came to the opening ceremony – residents of Kalmykia, representatives of Buddhist communities from Moscow, Volgograd, Saratov.

Kalmyk President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, leadership of the Buddhist Community of the republic, Royal Nepalese Ambassador to the Russian Federation Hiranya Lal Shrestha, and representatives of Buddhist communities from Buryatia, Tuva, Mongolia, Tibet participated in the ceremony.

Simultaneously, in front of the temple a statue to the White Old Monk, Kalmyk national god was also opened on Tuesday. The two-meter high symbolizes residents of the steppe republic. During the opening ceremony, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov called the monument a dedication to the Kalmyks who died during the years of deportation: “We were in a hurry to construct the temple by the end of December, the tragic day when the deportation of the Kalmyk people started.”

The size of the Golden Temple and the Buddha statue let the Mongolian delegation call the temple “center of the world Buddhism.” Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Russia and the CIS Mr.Tashi said that from this moment, “not Kalmyk students will go to Indian Buddhist institutes, on the contrary Buddhist teachers from India and Nepal will go to Elista to study students from Kalmykia, other regions of Russia, from the CIS and European countries.”

Read Another Article

Japan doomsday cult member walks free but convicted over fundraising
Born 200 years ago, Mormon founder Smith is scrutinized anew

Related News Articles Topic(s): Buddhism Subscribe to Religion News Blog updates Subscribe to Religion News Blog [What is this?] Get Religion News Blog's headline by Email [What is this?] Follow Religion News Blog at Twitter Find Related Information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults: ApologeticsSearch.com: Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs. CounterCultSearch.com: Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, and cults experts -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support. Find Related Religion & Spirituality Books at Amazon.com Buddhism Possibly related... or Most Popular Religion News Articles Kent Hovind: Evangelist arrested on federal charges Beast’s real mark devalued to ’616′ Muslim Woman Gives Sex Advice on Arab TV Michael Jackson Confirms Conversion to Islam Kent Hovind, ‘Dr. Dino,’ guilty on all counts The fall and rise of Carlton Pearson Search False prophet Harold Camping sets another date for rapture: May 21, 2011 Watch the film Theo van Gogh was murdered for Kent Hovind — Dr. Dino — sentenced to 10 years in prison

Search Religion News Blog