Account of the Friends' trip to Mongolia

As a preamble to this trip, it is useful to present the two emblematic figures of Mongolia: Genghis Khan and Zanabazar.

Genghis Khan (1155-1222), whose real name was Temüjin Borjigin, the son of a clan chief, had a difficult childhood. However, he managed to assert himself and be elected Great Khan in 1206, taking the title Genghis Khan (a disputed meaning, but which could mean "emperor of the seas," i.e., "universal king"). He then carried out structural reforms to secure his position and that of his clan. From 1209, he began military campaigns that allowed him to conquer northern China with the capture of Zhongdu (Beijing). His generals led invasions to the west, throughout Central Asia, as far as the gates of kyiv. His successors continued to expand the empire, and at its peak around 1279, the Mongol Empire stretched from Korea to the borders of Europe. In 1260, a division occurred that assigned Mongolia and China to Qubilai Khan (1215-1294), founder of the Yuan dynasty, the northwest and the Russian steppe (territory of the Golden Horde) to the descendants of Djochi (1182-1227), the Ilkhanate of Persia to the descendants of Hülegü (1217-1285) and Central Asia to the descendants of Jaghatai (1183-1242). The military superiority of the Mongols was due to the fact that campaigns were conducted during the winter, their astonishing mobility, perfect discipline and a remarkable sense of strategy. If the personality of Genghis Khan is very contested because of his cruelty, we must recognize his interest in all new techniques and sciences, a certain tolerance towards religions and the establishment of rules protecting women. The "Pax Mongolica" that he established throughout the territory allowed people to travel from one end of the empire to the other in safety, thus promoting trade between West and East.

A descendant of Genghis Khan, Zanabazar (1635-1723) is a fascinating character: he was the first Mongolian spiritual leader (Bogd Gegeen). Recognized by the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) as the reincarnation of a Buddhist sage, he was not only a spiritual but also a secular leader, promoting the synthesis of the Gelugpa and Sakya schools as well as the submission of the Mongol leaders to the Kangxi Emperor. A poet, architect, and painter, he was also an accomplished sculptor skilled in the art of casting bronze statues and was probably one of the greatest artists in Asia.

Barely off the plane, we headed to the capital Ulan Bator to visit Gandan Tegchenlin Monastery, the largest monastery in Mongolia. It was founded by Zanabazar, and only two buildings of it were spared from the purges of the communist era: the Tsogchen prayer hall dating from 1656 and the Janraisig temple. Built in 1912, this temple houses a gigantic statue of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, Janraisig in Mongolian. Gandan Monastery housed numerous temples and theological schools that were destroyed in 1937-1939, under the Mongolian People's Republic. Since 1990, with the advent of democratic Mongolia, the reconstruction of the complex has gradually begun, and more and more new monks are being welcomed there.

After lunch, a visit to the National Museum of Mongolia allowed us to embrace the country's entire history from the Neolithic period to the present day. Several rooms are dedicated to the era of Genghis Khan and the Turks. A beautiful collection of costumes from different provinces showcases the artistic richness and refinement of the Mongolian peoples.

Colossal statue of Avalokitesvara in Gandan Tegchelen monastery.

Example of traditional women's costume. National Museum of Mongolia.

Crossing the steppe to reach Sweet Gobi.

A stroll through the city took us to the large Sükhbaatar Square, home to the imposing parliament, the opera house, the central post office, and more. The city is a mix of Russian-inspired architecture – the oldest reminiscent of St. Petersburg, those from the 1920s and 1950s, the Soviet style – post-Soviet buildings, and very modern constructions.

The next day, after a four-hour journey on an asphalt road, we reached the Sweet Gobi camp where we had lunch in the central yurt and then settled into our respective yurts. During the journey, the vastness of the steppe revealed itself, covered with short grass of varying greenness and dotted with tufts of taller grass. The landscape is alive with herds of horses, cows, sheep, and goats, and is punctuated by white yurts scattered here and there. In the afternoon, a visit to Lake Tara provided the opportunity to see a herd of horses drinking and to observe the various birds moving around the lake.

An immersion in the nomadic life allowed us to understand their way of life as well as their customs. Khuyag and his wife Khandaa warmly welcomed us into their yurt where we enjoyed a variety of dairy products and delicious ravioli made and cooked before our eyes. Three generations live in this camp, which moves with the seasons. A breeder of horses, cows, sheep, and goats, Khuyag has received numerous medals, including that of the best breeder in the province.

Anne Fort helps prepare the ravioli with Khuyag and Khandaa.

Camel riding experience in the Little Gobi.

Interior of the Edernr Khambiin Khiid Monastery.

Stele of Bilge Khagan (735) with Chinese inscription. Bugdiin Ovoo Museum.

The following morning was spent exploring the landscapes of the small gobi ("desert" in Mongolian) of Elsen Tasarkhai alternating sand dunes and grassy areas, a vestige of the time when the sea covered the southern half of Mongolia, 30 million years ago. Our small group was able to experience a camel ride and admire the landscape from a higher vantage point. After lunch, we reached the sacred mountain of Khögnö Khan in the afternoon. We were welcomed at the small monastery of Ederne Khambiin Khiid by Khandmaa, daughter of the lady who rebuilt the place from the 1990s. Indeed, erected in the 17^rd century by Zanabazar in homage to his teacher, the monastery was destroyed twice, the first during the wars between the Khalkha Mongol clans and the Dzungar Khanate of the Western Mongols (1688-1691) and the second in the 1930s, under the communist regime and today only ruins remain. This lady introduced us to purification by incense smoke and Baigal, our guide, explained its history. The day ended with the tasting of shamanic tea in front of a magnificent landscape unfolding at the foot of a rocky promontory dotted with granite blocks.

On Sunday, the road took us first to Bugdiin Ovoo, to a group of stupas built by a family in memory of their mother, then to the Khoshoo Tsaidam Archaeological Museum located near the temple in memory of the great general Kultigin (684-731) and that of his brother, king of the second empire of the Celestial Turks (Göktürk), Bilge Khagan (683-734). As the museum model presents, a moated enclosure opened onto the stele supported by a tortoise recounting the origins of the Turks as well as the king's great deeds. A path lined with rams, lions, and high-ranking officials led to the building where the rituals were held, at the rear of which were two stone basins decorated with bas-reliefs, one intended to burn the sacrificed animals, the other to receive their ashes. Outside the museum, the original locations of the two enclosures of the Bilge and Kultigin temples have been restored and demonstrate the strong influence of the Tang imperial mausoleums on these funerary temples. The Bilge stele, dated 735, bears inscriptions in Turkic and Chinese, which led to the decipherment of this previously mysterious language, the "Orkhon script," in 1893. All the sculptures from the monument are now perfectly presented in a museum opened in 2008 thanks to a partnership with Turkey.

The following morning was spent exploring the landscapes of the small gobi ("desert" in Mongolian) of Elsen Tasarkhai alternating sand dunes and grassy areas, a vestige of the time when the sea covered the southern half of Mongolia, 30 million years ago. Our small group was able to experience a camel ride and admire the landscape from a higher vantage point. After lunch, we reached the sacred mountain of Khögnö Khan in the afternoon. We were welcomed at the small monastery of Ederne Khambiin Khiid by Khandmaa, daughter of the lady who rebuilt the place from the 1990s. Indeed, erected in the 17^rd century by Zanabazar in homage to his teacher, the monastery was destroyed twice, the first during the wars between the Khalkha Mongol clans and the Dzungar Khanate of the Western Mongols (1688-1691) and the second in the 1930s, under the communist regime and today only ruins remain. This lady introduced us to purification by incense smoke and Baigal, our guide, explained its history. The day ended with the tasting of shamanic tea in front of a magnificent landscape unfolding at the foot of a rocky promontory dotted with granite blocks.

On Sunday, the road took us first to Bugdiin Ovoo, to a group of stupas built by a family in memory of their mother, then to the Khoshoo Tsaidam Archaeological Museum located near the temple in memory of the great general Kultigin (684-731) and that of his brother, king of the second empire of the Celestial Turks (Göktürk), Bilge Khagan (683-734). As the museum model presents, a moated enclosure opened onto the stele supported by a tortoise recounting the origins of the Turks as well as the king's great deeds. A path lined with rams, lions, and high-ranking officials led to the building where the rituals were held, at the rear of which were two stone basins decorated with bas-reliefs, one intended to burn the sacrificed animals, the other to receive their ashes. Outside the museum, the original locations of the two enclosures of the Bilge and Kultigin temples have been restored and demonstrate the strong influence of the Tang imperial mausoleums on these funerary temples. The Bilge stele, dated 735, bears inscriptions in Turkic and Chinese, which led to the decipherment of this previously mysterious language, the "Orkhon script," in 1893. All the sculptures from the monument are now perfectly presented in a museum opened in 2008 thanks to a partnership with Turkey.

Yaks grazing in Tsenkher.

The Orkhon.

Horses grazing in the larch forest crossed to reach the monastery of Tovkhon Khiid.

The tour took us to the Orkhon Valley, the main river of the central plain, which flows north toward Lake Baikal. This region, of volcanic origin, has a unique appearance, the steppe being dotted with black stone blocks from eruptions. After a picnic by the river, in a majestic setting, we were welcomed by a family of yak herders and tasted yak yogurt. In the nomads' diet, alongside meat, "white foods" play an essential role (milk tea, yogurt, cream, butter, fresh or dry cheese).

The next day was a day of mountain hiking to reach the Tövkhön Khiid Monastery, located at an altitude of 2 m. The hike took us through a dense larch forest on uneven terrain to reach the other side where the small monastery founded by Zanabazar in 300 is located. It is here that he is said to have created the soyombo, a script based on Tibetan but intended to transcribe Buddhist texts into the Mongolian language, as well as the symbol of the same name that adorns the national flag. The monastery has been destroyed and rebuilt several times and is, today, only a pale reflection of its former grandeur. On the way back, a stop allowed us to see the "slab tombs" of the Xiongnu's predecessors (3^rd 1st century BC^er s. AD) at Temeen Chuluu: quadrangles delimited by tall standing stones, with a grass-covered slab in the center, dating from the 2^e and 1th^er millennia BC. Sometimes, stones decorated with deer, called deer stones, were reused, one being truncated and placed upside down on this site. These burials yielded small bronze and ceramic materials.

The next day we traveled across the steppe between the mountains to see first another type of cemetery at khirgisuurs, dating from the first half of the 1^er millennium BC: each tomb consists of a mound surmounting the remains, placed in the center of a rectangular enclosure delimited by stones arranged on the ground, with four small mounds at the corners, marking the location of animal offerings. Further on, at Sug Zurag, on the banks of the Orkhon, the rocks are decorated with petroglyphs representing animals, such as deer and wolves. We then reached the majestic Orkhon Falls, whose strong flow is due to the confluence with the Ulaan River. 20 m high, the falls pour water rich in minerals that flows into the bottom of a canyon. Lunch with nomadic herders consisted of various dairy products and "passions" filled with meat, fried, and very fragrant. A Mongolian wrestling demonstration was offered by our drivers, one of whom, Toroga, competes at the national level.

On Friday, we took the Karakorum road and stopped at the Shankh Khiid Monastery, which is still active. We observed the call to prayer led by two monks, one blowing a shell horn, the other banging cymbals. The religious "service" followed. This monastery, which was only partially spared by the communist purges, was founded by Zanabazar in 1647. The main temple is unfortunately closed due to its poor condition, but it is reputed to house seven mandalas. kalachakra.

Monk visiting Tovkhon Khiid Monastery.

The standing stone tombs of Temeen Chuluu.

Orkhon Falls.

Call to prayer at Shankh Khiid Monastery.

The Karakorum Museum offers an overview of local archaeological finds as well as objects from a tomb from the 7th^rd century located in Shoroon Bumbagar. These artifacts include 550 pieces such as mingqi, gold and silver jewelry, coins, ceramics, bronzes, and terracotta and wood sculptures. The tomb walls are decorated with paintings in the Tang Dynasty style, evoked here by reproductions.

On Saturday, after seeing Prjewalski's horses in the Khustai Nuruu reserve, we were surprised to attend a celebration in honor of a high-ranking Indian official. The program included a reenactment of a caravan journey, a demonstration of Mongolian wrestling, archery, and a horse race ridden by teenagers, not to mention folk dancing.

The Karakorum Museum offers an overview of local archaeological finds as well as objects from a tomb from the 7th^rd  century located in Shoroon Bumbagar. These artifacts include 550 pieces such as mingqi, gold and silver jewelry, coins, ceramics, bronzes, and terracotta and wood sculptures. The tomb walls are decorated with Tang Dynasty-style paintings, represented here by reproductions.

The great monastery of Ederne Zuu, surrounded by a 1-meter wall punctuated by 600 stupas, retains only twenty of its sixty original temples from the 108th century.^rd century, having escaped destruction. The main Zuu temple, built in 1610 and composed of three buildings, is now a museum. On either side, smaller structures house notable pictorial works. The Golden Stupa, built in 1799 and surrounded by eight smaller stupas, also survived the purges of the 1930s. Finally, the Lavrin temple, a Tibetan-style building, is the only active temple, returned to worship by the government in 1990.

Stele inscribed in Persian, originally in a mosque in 1341, but overlaid with a Soyombo. Granite. Karakorum Museum.

Central Zuu of the Ederne Zuu Monastery. Karakorum.

Golden Stupa. Ederne Zuu Monastery. Karakorum.

Back in Ulan Bator, a visit to the Natural History Museum, a former Soviet-era building, gave us an idea of ​​the diversity of Mongolian fauna and allowed us to see a section devoted to the dinosaurs of this region, some of which have been completely reconstructed.

Demonstration of Mongolian wrestling in Khustai Nuruu.

Zanabazar. Tārā Blanche. Gilt bronze. 17th century. Zanabazar Fine Arts Museum. Ulaanbaatar.

Zanabazar. Amitabha. Gilt bronze. 17th century. Zanabazar Fine Arts Museum. Ulaanbaatar.

Manjushri. Tangkha made of appliqué. Silk. 19th century. Zanabazar Museum of Fine Arts. Ulan Bator.

The Museum of Fine Arts-Zanabazar presents, in addition to the works of the "master" and his school, a remarkable collection of painted or embroidered religious works. White Tara Zanabazar, in gilded bronze, constitutes the centerpiece. This sculpture testifies to the artist's exceptional mastery in the art of casting metal to capture the grace of the subject. A self-portrait of Zanabazar is particularly moving for its simplicity and the finesse of its execution.

A very convivial “Mongolian hot pot” dinner allowed us to thank the drivers who had been exemplary in their kindness and good humor during these ten days.

The next day, a visit to the Choijin Lama Temple capped off the trip, allowing us to finally see a lamaic shrine preserved from destruction. Although built in the 1900s, this temple features a classical layout and architecture. Now a museum, the luxurious decor, statues, and instruments of worship are on display. Choijin Lama was the brother of the last Bogd Gegeen and the kingdom's official oracle.

Statue of the Choijin Lama in the main temple of the Choijin Lama Monastery complex. Gilded bronze. Ulan Bator.

Undur Gegeen Temple in the Choijin Lama Monastery complex. Ulan Bator.

Audience Hall with the throne of the last Bogd Gegeen. Winter Palace. Ulan Bator.

Zanabazar. Tārā. Gilt bronze. 17th century. Winter Palace. Ulaanbaatar.

On the recommendation of Anne Fort, a visit to the Green Palace of the last Bogd Gegeen, the successor to the Zanabazar line, proved to be very instructive. Built at the end of the 19th^rd century and early 20^rd century, it comprises two distinct parts: a succession of temples and palaces with Chinese architecture where thangka painted and embroidered, and, within the complex, a second palace, the Winter Palace, presented to the Bogd Gegeen by Tsar Nicholas II, was built in a European style reminiscent of St. Petersburg. The palace preserves and restores the period furnishings, as well as the royal clothes of the last sovereigns, some jewelry and various art collections. A series of sculptures representing the twenty-one aspects of the goddess Tarā by Zanabazar is particularly noteworthy.

The final dinner allowed the group to thank our guide Baigal Bayarsaikhan, who was perfect throughout the trip, as well as Anne Fort, who summarized the thousand-year-old and very complicated history of Mongolia.