Ulaanbaatar, May 30 (IANS) Underscoring shared Buddhist heritage, the holy relics of the chief disciples of the Buddha — Arahant Sariputta and Arahant Mahamoggallana — arrived in the Mongolian capital on Saturday afternoon for a 10-day public exposition at the Gandan Tegchenling Monastery on the occasion of Mongolian Buddha Purnima.
The relics, which enjoy the status of the Head of State in terms of protocol and security, arrived in Ulaanbaatar by a special Indian Air Force (IAF) flight from New Delhi, accompanied by a high level delegation led by Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya. The nearly 45-member delegation also includes senior officers and reputed monks from India and Sri Lanka. According to the Indian Embassy in Mongolia, the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) is also actively involved in the organisation of the important exposition.
Together, the Mahabodhi Society of Sri Lanka, National Museum of India under the Ministry of Culture in association with the Government of Madhya Pradesh, brought the holy relics to Mongolia at the request of the Gandan Tegchenling Monastery.
“India and Mongolia are strategic partners and spiritual siblings with deep civilization linkages due to Buddhism. In this context, the exposition is a good opportunity for the followers of Buddhism in Mongolia to pay their tributes to the relics of Lord Buddha’s two chief disciples,” the Indian Embassy in Ulaanbaatar mentioned.
On the sidelines of the exposition, the National Museum of India and IBC would also be organising a special exhibition on Buddhism.
“The Government of Mongolia is extending the necessary support for the exposition of the holy relics. The Gandan Tegchenling Monastery is looking after the religious aspects of the exposition commensurate with the special high status of the relics. Devotees from all over Mongolia will visit the Monastery to pay their tributes. The exposition of the holy relics will further strengthen the existing spiritual bond between India and Mongolia,” the Indian Embassy highlighted.
The exposition, which begins on May 31 – the Mongolian Buddha Purnima – and continues till June 10, was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the State Visit of Mongolian President Khurelsukh Ukhnaa to India in October 2025.
“The relationship between India and Mongolia is not merely diplomatic — it is a bond of warmth and spirituality. The true depth and breadth of our relationship is reflected in our people-to-people ties. For centuries, both countries have been bound by the thread of Buddhism, which has led to us being called spiritual siblings. Today, to further strengthen this tradition and give new strength to our historical ties, we have taken several important decisions,” PM Modi stated while addressing a joint press meet with the Mongolian President Khurelsukh Ukhnaa following their talks at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi on October 14.
“I am pleased to announce that next year, the holy relics of two great disciples of Lord Buddha – Sariputra and Maudgalyayana – will be sent from India to Mongolia. We will also send a Sanskrit teacher to Gandan Monastery to study the Buddhist texts there in depth and carry forward the ancient tradition of knowledge,” he stated then.
The relevance of the journey of the relics of Arahant Sariputta and Arahant Mahamoggallana to Mongolia lies in their role as Dhamma carriers, pillars of the early Sangha whose lives exemplified the transmission and safeguarding of the Buddha’s teachings.
“The Indian Air Force IL-76 (Gajraj) became a symbol of cultural diplomacy and India’s enduring civilisational outreach, airlifting the sacred relics of Lord Buddha from Delhi to Mongolia on 30 May 26. Revered across the Buddhist world as symbols of wisdom, compassion and enlightenment, the holy relics carry deep significance for Mongolia,” the IAF posted on X after the relics arrived in Mongolia.
“Their exposition further strengthens the centuries-old spiritual bond between India and Mongolia — nations connected through the shared legacy of Buddhism. For the Indian Air Force, this mission carried not just priceless relics, but faith, heritage and friendship across continents,” it added.
Arahant Sariputta and Arahant Mahamoggallana were the two chief disciples of the Buddha. Among the countless disciples of the Buddha, none showed greater wisdom and spiritual mastery than the two chief disciples who were born on the same day in adjacent villages in the Magadha region, near present day Nalanda. Arahant Sariputta was born in Upatissa village and Arahant Mahamoggallana in Kolita village. Arahant Sariputta is celebrated throughout the Buddhist world as the supreme exemplar of wisdom, analytical insight and doctrinal mastery.
“It may be noted that these relics till date have gone to only one country, Thailand in 2024 and hence the exposition in Mongolia has special significance. It may be recalled that the exposition of the holy relics of Lord Buddha in Mongolia in June 2022 was a highly successful and memorable event,” the Indian Embassy noted.
In June 2022, four sacred Kapilavastu relics of the Buddha were taken from the National Museum of India to Mongolia for an 11-day exposition, marking their first visit to the country in 29 years. The exposition began on June 14, 2022 on the occasion of Mongolian Buddha Purnima. The relics were displayed alongside Mongolia’s revered Buddha Tooth relic at the Gandantegchinlen Monastery in capital Ulaanbaatar. The relics were taken on board a C-17 transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and accompanied by the then Minister of Law and Justice, Kiren Rijiju, and the 20th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche.
According to the IBC, for Mongolia, the arrival of these relics will have great meaning. Mongolia’s Buddhist identity has historically been rooted in devotion, scholarship, monastic discipline and meditative tradition. The exposition will establish a sacred and tangible connection because they complete the living picture of the Buddha Dhamma.
In 1978, the then External Affairs Minister (EAM) and later Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee had stated: “India and Mongolia are ancient lands of the ancient people of Asia. The historic and cultural collaboration between India and Mongolia is most fascinating and unique and is as old as the history of the spread of Indian culture and ideas into Central Asia and Siberia. We in India consider the Mongol veneration of Sanskrit a matter of special privilege. We hold the people of Mongolia in high esteem for preserving in translation as well as in manuscripts, the vast collection of our precious Sanskrit text on our philosophy, poetry, logic and astronomy lost by us over centuries. In modern times, too, many Mongols visited India–the land of Buddhism.”
