Elista - the capital of Kalmykia

Elista was founded in 1865 as a small settlement; the name is from Kalmyk els(e)n "sand(y)". [5Kalmyk [5 Today, Elista is a political, administrative, cultural and economic center of the Republic of Kalmykia. It is one of the Buddhist centers in Russia.

Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni was built in 2005 AD, in southern Russia, in Elista, the place sanctified by the leader of the Buddhists of the world by His Holiness the Dalai Lama XIV. Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni is the largest Buddhist temple in Europe. After the Soviet era, the destruction of spirituality, a small exotic country in the process of revival of Buddhism, which originated 2,600 years ago in India.

Elista attractions The largest square, Lenin Square, is located in the city center. There is a fountain “Three lotuses” and a chess board of 5x5 m size there. This place is popular among young people.

Many kinds of pagodas, gates, pavilions and simple representations in oriental style are scattered throughout the city. On the main square you can admire the beautiful “Pagoda of the seven days”, a prayer wheel filled with 30 million Buddhist mantras brought back from India and offered by the Dalai Lama.

One of the main local sights is a meter and a half statue of Buddha-Shakyamuni, made of white Ural marble. The statue was erected on July, 6, 1995, on the 60th anniversary of Dalai Lama XIV. Today, the rotunda with the statue of Buddha became not only a special decoration of the city, but a cult place as well.

Elista has a district called “Chess City.” In its center, there is a Palace of Chess, built to hold various chess competitions. Chess-City is a kind of embodiment of the idea of the project New Vasyuki from the novel “12 Chairs.” The avenue heading there is named after Ostap Bender - the protagonist of the novel.

The modern building of the National Museum offers a perfect space for getting an insight into the Kalmyk people and the republic, with eight rooms covering their history, ecology and culture. One room deals with the deportations during WWII.