Buddhism in Buryatia, a region in Siberia, Russia, has a deep-rooted history dating back to the 17th century when Tibetan Buddhism first arrived in the area. Initially adopted by ethnic groups like the Selenga and Zede Buryats, Buddhism gradually spread throughout the Transbaikal region. In 1741, it gained formal recognition as an official religion in the Russian Empire, with the establishment of Buddhist monastic universities known as datsans. Despite facing significant challenges during the Soviet era, including persecution and the closure of religious institutions, Buddhism in Buryatia has persisted and experienced a revival in the post-Soviet period.
This unique form of Buddhism in Buryatia is primarily an extension of Vajrayana Buddhism, with a strong emphasis on the Gelug tradition from Tibet. While adherents revere Tsongkhapa alongside Shakyamuni Buddha, they have also incorporated elements of traditional, indigenous beliefs and practices, creating a syncretic form of Buddhism. Despite historical setbacks, Buryat Buddhism has left an indelible mark on the region's culture, influencing philosophy, art, literature, and even aspects of alternative medicine. Today, it continues to thrive and play a vital role in the spiritual and cultural life of Buryatia.
History
Historical evidence gives reason to believe that, from the 2nd century BC, proto-Mongol peoples (the Xiongnu, Xianbei, and Khitans) were familiar with Buddhism. On the territory of the Ivolginsk Settlement, remains of Buddhist prayer beads were found in a Xiongnu grave.
At the beginning of the 17th century, Tibetan Buddhism penetrated northward from Mongolia to reach the Buryat population of Transbaikalia (the area just east of Lake Baikal). Initially, Buddhism disseminated primarily among the ethnic groups that had recently migrated out of Khalkha Mongolia (the Selenga and Zede Buryats). At the end of the 17th to the beginning of the 18th centuries, it spread throughout the Transbaikal region. A second branch came directly from Tibet, from the Labrang Monastery in Amdo.
Establishment
In 1701 there were eleven dugans (small Buryat Buddhist temples) in Transbaikalia. In 1722 the border was delineated between Mongolia and Russia. Buryat tribes living nomadically in the northern part of Mongolia then became part of Russia. The Russian government closed off the border, induced the Buryat nomads to take on a relatively settled lifestyle, and made itself the authority on the region's religious matters.
Buddhist monastic universities, called datsans, were built in Buryatia—including the one at Tsongol, completed in the early 1740s. In 1741 Empress Elizabeth (Yelizaveta Petrovna) adopted a decree recognizing the existence of a "lamaist faith": She legally recognized the existence of eleven datsans, and with them 150 lamas. Buddhism was formally accepted as an official religion in the Russian Empire. (In July 1991 the Buddhists of Buryatia commemorated 250 years of official recognition of their religion).
For a long time in Buryat Buddhism there was a struggle for dominance between the Tsongol and Tamchinsky (Gusinoozyorsk) datsans. In 1764 the chief lama of the Tsongol Datsan became Supreme Lama of the Buryats of Transbaikalia, having received the title Pandit Hambo Lama ("learned prior"). Starting in 1809, supremacy passed to the priors of the Tamchinsky datsan. By 1846, thirty-four datsans had been established in Buryatia. Applying a great deal of effort and material resources, the Buryats managed to import from Tibet, China, and Mongolia a large quantity of esoteric literature and to adopt many living traditions from the Gelugpa lineage and other schools of Buddhism.
In 1869, the Mongolian lama Choi-Manramba began to lead instruction in Indo-Tibetan medicine at the Tsugol Datsan, and from there it spread. In 1878 the Duynhor Kalachakra School was founded at Aga Datsan, and this completed the establishment of the basic schools of spiritual higher education based on the Tibetan model.
Book printing developed quickly. In 1887, twenty-nine print shops were already in operation, which until their destruction in the 1930s published about 2000 book titles, written in Tibetan and Mongolian. At the end of the 19th century, Buddhism began a thorough penetration into Cisbaikalia (now Northern Buryatia), where it met fierce resistance from shamans and Christian missionaries.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a great renewal movement began in Buryat Buddhism, and it gained additional impetus after the establishment of Soviet power in Buryatia.
