Saikhan-Ovoo ( mn, Сайхан-Овоо, Beautiful
ovoo
Ovoo, oboo, or obo ( mn, овоо, bua, обоо, kjh, обаа, Traditional Mongol: , "heap"; Chinese: 敖包 ''áobāo'', lit. "magnificent bundle .e. shrine) are sacred stone heaps used as altars or shrines in Mongolian folk religious pra ...
) is a
sum (district) in central
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...
. The sum center is on the single
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
river of
Dundgovi Province
Dundgovi or Dundgobi ( mn, Дундговь, ''Middle Gobi'') is one of the 21 aimags (provinces) of Mongolia. It is located in the south of the country, approximately south of Ulaanbaatar. Its capital is Mandalgovi. Dundgovi is the second leas ...
, the
Ongi gol. It is the tenth longest river in Mongolia with an overall length of 435 km.
Onglin Khid
Ongiin Khiid is a notable monastery on the Ongi river about 18 km from Saikhan Ovoo. Formerly one of the largest monasteries in Mongolia, it was founded in 1660 and consisted of two temples complexes on the North and South of the Ongi Gol river. The older southern complex consisted of various administrative buildings as well as 11 temples. The northern complex, built in the 18th century, consisted of 17 temples - among them one of the largest temples in all of Mongolia. The grounds housed also 4 Buddhist universities. It was completely destroyed in 1939 under
Khorloogiin Choibalsan
Khorloogiin Choibalsan ( mn, Хорлоогийн Чойбалсан, spelled ''Koroloogiin Çoibalsan'' before 1941; 8 February 1895 – 26 January 1952) was the leader of Mongolia (Mongolian People's Republic) and Marshal (general chief com ...
, the then president and leader of the Communist Party of Mongolia. Over 200 monks were killed, and many surviving monks were imprisoned or forced to join the Communist controlled army. A large number of ruins including a tall
stupa
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circumamb ...
can be seen on the river and on the surrounding hills. In the 1990s, it was decided to rebuild the monastery. The first temple was inaugurated in 2004.
[Michael Kohn: ''Mongolia'', p. 198. London 2008.] There is a small museum in a ger in front of it. One of the stupas has just been reconstructed as well. It has a commemorative plaque indicating the names of the monks who were killed in 1939. At present (2011), 13 monks live in the monastery.
References
{{coord, 45, 27, 33, N, 103, 54, 02, E, display=title, region:MN_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki
Districts of Dundgovi Province