Moscow to Get 2 Buddhist Temples

Aug. 28, 2014

Construction will begin on two Buddhist temples in Moscow this fall, one of which will be dedicated to Buddhists killed in World War II.

Tatyana Odushpayak, chairwoman of Moscow's Three Jewels Buddhist center, told local news website M24.ru that a design would be selected in September for a temple at the Poklonnaya Gora war memorial park, where there is already a mosque, church and a synagogue.

The presence of various places of worship in the park reflects the side-by-side fighting by believers of different faiths during World War II.

According to Odushpayak, the temple will be built using donations. Municipal deputies have already approved the construction, and land has been allocated for the project, deputy Nikolai Tkachuk told M24.ru.

A second temple, to be build in the Otradnoye district, will also be located near an Orthodox church, a mosque and a synagogue, and will also rely on donations from the public.

The required sum for the planned two-story temple is about 200-250 million rubles ($5.4 million — $6.8 million), Dulma Shagdarova, chairwoman of Moscow's Buddhist Society, told M24.ru.

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