The facts and interpretation of this event are particularly important since, as asserted in his description, it is “the most special historical event that has occurred in the lives of Mongols during the past three hundred years”.
Given the heavily propagandized view of Mongolian history that was developed during the Stalinist and the longer socialist era in Mongolia – including demeaning and disparaging characterizations of the 8th Jebtsundamba and of Buddhism generally – such reconsiderations of Mongolian history are especially important and significant at the present time, that is, as the nation asserts its values and its history in relation to its course for the future.
In this time, Professor Batsaikhan argues for the strategically intelligent, foresightful, and politically effective personal role of the 8th Jebtsundamba in engineering Mongolian independence, including the successful strategic managing of Mongolian relations with Russia, with China, and also internally vis-à-vis powerful Mongolian nobles and clans.
Batsaikhan Ookhnoi is a professor in Mongolian history. He has since 2000 been working at the Institute of International studies, Mongolian academy of Sciences.
He was a visiting Professor at Shimonoseki city university (2017), Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (2012), Cambridge University, UK (March-May, 2010), Tohoku University, Japan (2004 –2005) and Humboldt University, Germany (2004; 2015).
His publications include Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, The last emperor of Mongolia (Admon, 2011), Mongolia: becoming a nation state (1911-1946) (Admon, 2005) and The History of Modern Mongolia 1911-2017 (Soyombo, 2018).