Buddhism, Power, Identity: The Transnational Buryat Buddhist Living Tradition

Abstract

The article views the ethno-cultural map of the Eurasian space through the lens of Buryatia by focusing on its transnational living Buddhist tradition. It discusses the evolution of this tradition and the underlying forces that shaped Buryat Buddhist mobility amidst political and socio-economic transformations and intricate power dynamics. Based on new evidence, the study uncovers the legacy of Buryats who advanced Buddhism beyond national frontiers, thereby creating a transnational community rooted in a shared cultural code, and reveals emerging trends and reconfigurations in the post-Soviet Buryat Buddhist renaissance. This heritage could reposition Buryatia in the transnational landscape and lead to a rethinking of collective identity, agency and global interdependence in the twenty-first century.