Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ULAANBAATAR'S HIDDEN TREASURE OF BUDDHIST TEXTS
gön Chölöö; 9am-5pm Mon-Fri Jun-Sep, 9am-8pm Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm Sat & Sun Oct-May)
, an un-
assuming neoclassical building in downtown Ulaanbaatar, houses a secret. Deep in
its bowels is the world's largest collection of Buddhist texts.
Most of the collection was built from the mid-1960s to the 1980s, several dec-
ades after the Buddhist purge destroyed nearly every monastery in the country.
Researchers started collecting the Sutras (Buddhist texts) from families that had
hidden them during the purge. More than one million texts have so far been identi-
fied, including verses by Nagajuna, a 2nd-century Indian philosopher, inscribed on
birch bark.
Tibetan, Mongolian and Sanskrit manuscripts have been found. A project to
catalogue them all using a digital archive began in 1999 with assistance from New
York-based nonprofit Asia Classic Input Project (ACIP). Work is expected to con-
tinue until at least 2016.
Unfortunately, the National Library is closed to casual visitors. If you are particu-
larly interested in the collection, an Ulaanbaatar-based tour operator might be able
to set up a visit.
North of Chinggis Khaan Square
Dashchoilon Khiid
BUDDHIST MONASTERY
( 11-350 047; Academich Sodnomyn Gudamj)
Originally built in 1890 and destroyed
in the late 1930s, this monastery was partially rebuilt and is now located in three huge
concrete gers that once formed part of the State Circus. There are plans afoot to expand
the monastery to include a six-storey building which will house a 17m-high statue of
Maidar. So far, the only part of the statue to exist is the 108-bead rosary, donated by
monks from Japan (each bead weighs 45.5kg, making it the largest rosary in the world).
You can get to Dashchoilon from a lane running off Baga Toiruu - look out for the
orange-and-brown roof.
State Department Store Area
Beatles Square
SQUARE
