Ivolginsky Datsan
Ivolginsky Datsan (Russian: Иволгинский Дацан) is the center of the Buddhist Traditional Sangha of Russia. It is a Buddhist temple located in Buryatia, Russia, 23 km from Ulan Ude, near Verkhnyaya Ivolga village.
The spiritual activity of the datsan is manifested in temple rites, medical practice, and a traditional system of Buddhist education.
The datsan opened in 1945 as the only Buddhist spiritual centre of the USSR. Its name changed from "Khambin's sume" into the Monastic centre.
It was the residence of the Central Spiritual Board of Buddhists of the USSR and later of the Buddhist Traditional Sangha of Russia, as well as that of Pandido Khambo lama, the head of the Russian Buddhists. The Buddhist university «Dashi Choinkhorling» was opened in 1991 attached to the datsan.
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