MUSEUMS. Gandan Monastery. Migjid Janraising Statue.
A 25m gold and bronze statue of Avalokites-vara (Janraisig), built by the Bogd Khaan in 1911, once stood in the main temple at Gandan Khiid. The magnificent statue was destroyed by the communists in 1937, and the metal taken to Leningrad (St. Petersburg) and melted down to make bullets.
In October 1996, after nearly five years of work, a new statue called Migjid Janraisig (which means 'The Lord Who Looks in Every Direction') was finally consecrated by the Dalai Lama. The 25m high, 20-ton statue is made from copper, gilded with gold donated from Nepal and Japan and covered in gold brocade and over 500m of silk. The statue contains precious stones, 27 tonnes of medicinal herbs, 334 sutras, two million bundles of mantras and, in the base, an entire ger, plus furniture!
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