An international scientific conference “Buddhist Education: Problems and Development Prospects” has opened in Elista.
The conference was organized by the Kalmyk Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Kalmyk State University named after Basan Gorodovikov in cooperation with the Association of Buddhists of the Republic, the central khurul “Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni” and the Save Tibet Foundation. Leading experts in the field of Buddhology and Buddhist education from Russia, Mongolia, India, France, USA, Canada, Hungary and other countries, including rectors of Buddhist academies, participate in it offline and online.
At the opening in the Kalmyk Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the issues of introducing the principles of Buddhist education into education in Russia and the creation of a Buddhist university in Kalmykia were discussed in detail. This idea has been ripening in society for a long time, and today, in the light of amendments to the law “On freedom of conscience and on religious associations,” according to which clergy educated abroad must retrain in Russia, has become especially relevant. An initiative group has been created, a project for the future university has been prepared, said Telo Tulku Rinpoche.
The international conference will run until April 30. And on the eve in Elista, a round table “The heritage of Lama Tsongkhapa in the Buddhist regions of Russia” and a scientific and practical seminar “Education for the heart and mind: social, emotional and ethical education” were held.