ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the character of revival of Buddhism in Mongolia. In Mongolia, lam is a general term used for monks and novices, though in Tibet bla ma means a supreme spiritual teacher. Erdene zuu was the first monastery built in the area of today’s Mongolia in 1586. Tibetan sutras have been preserved in the National Library of Mongolia and in Gandan Monastery. Gandan Monastery in Ulan Baatar was partially reopened in 1944 and has been the centre of Mongolian Buddhism ever since, the majority of the old religious practices could be revived only after the democratic changes of 1990. Mongolia is a Buddhist country; the revival of religion was successful due to the activities of old monks. In Mongolia, there are big gaps in monks’ education. The cooperation of monasteries with other monasteries inside and outside Mongolia seems to have been revived only in a small scale.
