By Vestnik Kavkaza
On November 4th construction of the first Buddhist temple in Moscow was started on Poklonnaya Hill. It is planned to complete construction in summer 2015.
In Russia Buddhism is traditionally practiced by residents of Buryatia, Kalmykia and Tuva. According to experts, the number of Buddhists in Russia is about 900 thousand people – about 1% of the country’s population.
“In our multinational country, construction of a Buddhist temple will have great socio-cultural importance and will confirm the friendship and unity of peoples of Russia. Inside the temple there will be a room for storing and spreading knowledge on events of the war history, spiritual improvement, and the moral deeds of the people of Russia for their Homeland. There will be bema, as in many other datsans,” said Tatyana Odushpyak, the chairwoman of the Moscow Buddhist Center “Three Treasures.”
The presence of three Buddhist regions inside the empire and the proximity of other Buddhist countries contributed to the fact that in the 19th and the early 20th centuries in Russia one of the most powerful schools of Oriental studies was formed. In recent years Buddhist have communities appeared in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Samara, and some other Russian cities. The global tendency of Buddhism spreading in the second half of the 20th century influenced Russia, where communities of followers of Southern Buddhism and centers of the Far Eastern branch of Northern Buddhism (zen Buddhism and the Ch’an school) appeared.
“The idea of building a Buddhist temple in Moscow was born long ago. It had been discussed in Soviet times,” the Great Lama of Kalmykia, Taelo Tulku Rinpoche, says, “In the 1990s we all passed through difficult times, and the idea was postponed. Not only representatives of the traditional Buddhist republics wanted to build such a temple in Moscow, but also people who have discovered Buddhism for themselves. But the leading role in construction of the temple should be played by representatives of the three traditional Buddhist republics. The project is important not only for Buddhists of Russia, but for the country in general, as Buddhism is one of three traditional official religions of the RF. Buddhists have contributed a lot to preservation of the Russian Federation There are many different nationalities and religious traditions in Russia, and if we are closed inside our small ethnic religious group then we won’t know what is going on in society, or among other nationalities and religions. The only option to overcome insularity is dialogue through art, music, films, joint prayers.”
