CENTRAL INSTITUTE OF BUDDHIST STUDIES

The Central Institute of Buddhist Studies (CIBS) in Leh, Ladakh, was founded in 1959 as the School of Buddhist Philosophy, established after Ladakhi monks could no longer travel to Tibet for higher Buddhist education due to the political situation there. Bakula Rinpoche played a key role in persuading Prime Minister Nehru to support the institution, which was inaugurated with rituals performed by Skyabje Ling Rinpoche. Initially admitting ten monks from ten Ladakhi monasteries, the institute was first led by Ven. Yeshi Thupstan (1959–1967). It moved from Leh to Spituk village in 1962, and later to new buildings in Choglamsar in 1973. In 1973 it also became affiliated with Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, Varanasi, and expanded its curriculum to include Sanskrit, Hindi, English, and Pali, alongside Buddhist philosophy and Tibetan literature. Other courses taught include Traditional Medicine (BSRMS), Traditional Painting, Traditional Sculpture, Wood Carving, and Traditional Astronomy. In 2016, the Central Government, on UGC advice, declared CIBS a 'deemed to be university' under the UGC Act, 1956, provisionally for five years, following its disaffiliation from Sampurnanand Sanskrit University and the Tibetan Medicine and Astrology Department, Dharamsala.