Buddhist traditions reign in Buryatia. The proximity of Mongolia, a country professing this faith, contributed a lot to this. Today in Buryatia there are several dozen datsans. Moreover, it is here that the highest Buddhist religious institution, the Dashi Choinhorlin University, operates.
general information
Immediately after her accession to the throne, Empress Elizaveta Petrovna officially gave Buddhism the status of one of the Russian religions. At that time in Buryatia there were eleven dugans and datsans, and if the former were simply Buddhist temples, the latter are a monastery and a university in one complex. The pearl and heart of the Buddhist traditional sangha in Russia is the Ivolginsky datsan - it was here that the Pandito Khambo Lama settled, therefore the Ivolginsky monastery is considered the most important Buddhist temple on the territory of our country. In turn, one of the oldest is the Atsagat datsan (photos are posted below).
On its territory is the Agin Buddhist Academy. Moreover, the Atsagat datsan in Buryatia is the only temple from the walls of which seven Pandito Khambo Lamas came out, as well as many prominent Buddhist leaders who are known not only in Russia but also abroad. The most famous of them is Khambo Lama Dorzhiev, a theologian, scholar and educator who initiated the construction of the first Buddhist monastery in Europe - the Kalachakra Temple, located in St. Petersburg.
Atsagat datsan - how to get there
This Buddhist monastery is located in the Zaigraevsky district of Buryatia on the western outskirts of the village of Naryn-Atsagat. It is only fifty kilometers distant from Ulan-Ude. You can get to the Atsagat datsan on your own by public transport from the capital of Buryatia on the route Ulan-Ude - Unategay. Departure from Pishcheva street.
Historical reference
In the past, the Atsagat datsan was called Kurbinsky. It was founded in 1824 near the ulus of the same name in the Boro-Toontoi region. The first wooden soume temple was built without official permission.
In 1831, in secret, the Khorinsky Buryats wrote a petition to the governor of the Irkutsk province, which expressed a request to allow the activities of the Atsagat datsan. May 5, 1831 was allowed to conduct prayers.
Ten years later, the Kurbinsky, and now the Atsagat datsan began to expand. In 1841, the main cathedral church of Tsogchen-dugan, two sumés, Dara-Ekhyn and Khurdyn, were built on its territory. At that time, there were already seventeen lamas and eleven huwaraks. The parish of the Atsagat datsan extended from the eastern borders of the town of Verkhneudinsk on both banks of the Uda, right up to the Khudan River. By the end of the XIX century, it included almost five thousand people.
Construction
Initially, the Atsagat datsan was in an uncomfortable damp lowland. In 1868, parishioners applied for permission to build a new, not wooden, but a stone church in another place. After exploring the area, the construction of new buildings of the Atsagat datsan began three miles from the old building in the area of Enger-Tugla.
At first, the Tsogchen-Dugan was built. Its three-story building combined Tibetan and Chinese architectural styles. The first floor was stone, and the other two were wooden.
In 1880, parishioners again turned to the governor, this time asking for permission to relocate the two wooden buildings of sume that remained in the old territory to a new place, which was allowed to them. At the beginning of the twentieth century in the Atsagat datsan was built a wooden Jude-Dugan.
School of Tibetan Medicine
In 1911, the already retired Pandito Khambo-Lama Iroltuev 11th moved here. Soon the Atsangat datsan becomes a large center where they are treated with the help of Tibetan medicine. Iroltuev conducted classes in a specially built for this purpose Mamba-Dugan - a small wooden building covered with an iron roof. The school had about fifty students.
Soon, an infirmary, a medical school building, and outbuildings, for example, baths, barns, importation, etc. were built. Telephone communication was conducted in the hospital. Teachers even came from Mongolia, and medicines were brought from China.
Typography
Presumably, it arose in the second half of the XIX century. In Atsagat datsan published about 46 titles of books in Tibetan and the same number in Mongolian languages. The printing house can still be seen today on the northeast side of the monastery. In addition to books, woodcut prints of images of chiy morin and burkhanov were also printed here.
Soviet period
In October 1922, the first spiritual congress of all Buddhists was held here. Believers of the RSFSR and the Far Eastern Republic took part in it. At the congress, the Charter and regulations regarding the spiritual affairs of Buddhists in Siberia were adopted, and a central administrative body, the spiritual council, was created. In December 1925, all the property of the datsan was transferred to the state, and the school of Tibetan medicine operating on its territory was taxed. In 1933, a state farm was organized on the temple grounds, and three years later the Atsagat datsan was completely liquidated. All buildings were transferred to a boarding school.
As a result, both sumies, Jude-dugan, were lost, the monastery walls and stupa-suburgan were destroyed, and the buildings of Tsogchen and Choira-dugan were rebuilt.
Recovery
In 1991, the Dalai Lama XIV arrived in the Atsagat datsan and consecrated the place for future construction. In 1992, the Atsagat datsan began to be restored. The new building stands elsewhere, on the Tamhityn-daba mountain. In November 1992, it was the first service.
Since 1999, under the datsan, the Dorzhiev House Museum has been operating, which has a republican status.
Interesting Facts
In June 1891, Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich came here, who was returning from a trip around the world. In commemoration of his stay at the place where the royal tent was erected, in 1897 the Tsume of Tsagan-Dara Ehe was built. This wooden two-story building was the largest in the datsan: 14 fathoms were the length of its walls. A school of theology functioned in Sumy.