Baldan Baraeven Monastery

Baldan Baraeven Monastery is located in a valley surrounded by four mountains. Each of them resembles an animal – a lion in the east, a dragon in the south, a tiger in the west and a garuda in the north. It is believed that these are the divine guardians of the monastery.

Once it was one of the largest Buddhist monasteries in Mongolia, where lived almost one and a half thousand lamas. But like many temples in 1930, Baldan Bareavan was severely persecuted. In 1970, bandits set fire to the main buildings and the elegant wooden buildings disappeared in the fire.

Today, only the main building and ruins remain on the site of the once magnificent monastery. With the assistance of American historians and archaeologists, as well as voluntary tourist forces, the facades of the building were restored and in 2006 all restoration work was completed.

One of the attractions of the monastery is the rock near the temple, on which Soembo is preserved - the alphabet compiled by Zanabazara. The prophecy persists that even when the monastery is destroyed, this rock will survive and a new monastery will be built around it.