In the heart of the capital of Mongolia - Ulan Bator - is the Buddhist monastery of Gandan, which is a whole complex of buildings of different ages. It includes several temples, suburgans, prayer pagodas, a library and a Buddhist university. The full name of the Gandantagchenlin Monastery or Gandan Tagchinlin Hyde, which is translated from Mongolian as "The Great Chariot of Comprehensive Joy."
Surrounded by residential quarters with their low houses and yurts, Gandan makes a fascinating impression with its walls, beautifully decorated with carvings and patterns, and a roof , tiled with different colors. The entrance is guarded by the ferocious sculptures of the gods, and in the yard there is a statue of the Buddha himself
The history of Gandan Monastery begins in 1809, when from the monastery The Bogdo-Gegen was separated by a special school for studying the highest Buddhist dogmatics. The school was named Gandan, in honor of Gaden, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery. The first structure of Gandan in wood, crowned with a golden roof, was delivered in 1835 by order of the first hierarch of Mongolian Buddhists, Bogdo-Gegen V. A few years later the monastery acquired the first stone building.
Gradually the territory of Gandan grew so much that by the end of the 19th century here lived about 14 thousand monks-lamas. In the late 30's. In the 20th century monasteries were closed everywhere in Mongolia, except Gandan, which was reopened in 1944 and became the only officially functioning Buddhist monastery in socialist Mongolia.
In 1990, a series of capital restoration works was completed, during which Gandantagchenlin has undergone great changes. In addition to the three-story Magdzhid-Janriseg built in the beginning of the 20th century, two more existing temples - Tsogchin and Dzu - opened.
The magnificent white temple of Maggid-Janriseg is the last Buddhist structure in Mongolia and the magnificent architectural decoration of the city. Rising at 42 m in height, the temple is the tallest building in the history of folk architecture. For the faithful, Maggid-Janriseg is a temple of reverence for Janraisig (Megjid Janraisig), in Tibetan Chenreshig, the god of compassion is a symbol of independence for the Mongols. The highest golden statue of Buddha is placed inside it
Since 1970, the Buddhist University operates at Gandan Monastery, which is considered to be the largest religious educational institution in the whole of Mongolia. The university skillfully combines modern teaching methods with ancient traditional Buddhist theories. The university library has collected more than 50 thousand different Mongolian, Indian and Tibetan books and manuscripts. And today there is the most important Buddhism center of Mongolia.
Many believers visit the Gandantegchenlin Monastery, the service starts here in the morning and lasts for several hours. Believers utter sacred mantras, and then kneel on the boards that cover the stone courtyard of the monastery. In the prayer cylinders that are in the courtyard, there are pages with prayers.
The monastery itself is open daily from 9:00 to 16:00. Services in the temples end by noon. The entrance to the monastery itself is free, only for visiting the Majjid-Janriseg temple
How to get there
Gandan monastery is located north-west of the main tourist part of Ulan Bator with Sukhbaatar square in the center. The distance is about 4 km, it is faster and easier to reach on foot (no more than half an hour), by public transport or taxi it is possible to get stuck in a traffic jam which in the capital of Mongolia is not uncommon.
In any case, the bus can be reached for 400 MNT, by trolleybus - for 200 MNT, in fast buses - for 300-500 MNT. In a taxi, the fare is -600 MNT per km.