The Tulku institution in Russia: between absence and presence

The article considers the Tulku (reincarnations in Tibetan Buddhism) institution in the context of the history of Buddhist Sangha in Russia. The focus is on the contradiction between the Russian authorities' policy (both tsarist and modern) aimed at limiting any external influences on Buddhist Sangha and believers' desire to recreate an important religious institution. The rise of the Tulkus is associated with the period of the Qing Empire (16441912), which predetermined their transnational character. Tulkus can be born in different places, and Tibetan and Mongolian lamas participated in their recognition and approval. On the contrary, the Russian government has always been interested in creating a national Sangha to be managed by the local leaders. That is why it effectively banned this institution. However, the ban produced the opposite results. In the absence of their own, local reincarnations, believers turned their attention to foreign lamas. Thus, after 1990, the restoration of Buddhist Sangha in Russia was impossible without the participation of foreign Tulkus. At the same time, even those leaders who advocate independence of Buddhism in Russia from Tibetan influences try to use the concept of Tulkus to their advantage. The relevance of this medieval institution in the early 21^st century is explained by the fact that it is an alternative to the common religious hierarchy, which, as a rule, has little authority in the eyes of believers. Due to the fact that this institution did not exist in Russia, this issue has not been sufficiently covered in the academic literature, either Russian or foreign, with the exception of several important works referred to in the article. This article presents a new view of the issue and will contribute to the discussions on transnational and national forms of religion, relations between religion and the state, and religion in the post-Soviet space.

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