A newly consecrated stupa has turned the Danakosha Ling retreat in Jokioinen, Finland, into the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the Nordic countries. Completed in 2024, the stupa is now the largest of its kind in Finland and has become the spiritual heart of the growing Buddhist community in the region. Built in accordance with traditional Tibetan rituals, the monument encapsulates over 100,000 mantras, relics, offerings and sacred artefacts.
Consecration led by prominent Tibetan teacher
The stupa will be formally consecrated in August 2025, during a ceremony attended by 300 guests from around the world. The event will be led by Jetsun Khandro Rinpoche, a highly respected female lama from the Mindrolling Monastery in India. Fifteen monks travelled to Finland to oversee the construction process and ensure ritual accuracy.
The upper sections of the stupa contain sacred texts and calming mantras, while the base includes symbolic objects such as knives and guns, intended to promote peace by “calming wars,” as explained by spiritual leader Tulku Dakpa Rinpoche. The stupa is also accessible to the public and features symbolic decorations, including a clockwise rotation and the image of the snow lion.
A growing Buddhist presence in Finland
The Danakosha Ling monastery was founded in a former machine shop in 2016 and became an official monastery in 2022. Today, it is one of Finland’s most active Buddhist communities, with approximately 150 members. Tulku Dakpa Rinpoche, who was the first Tibetan Buddhist granted Finnish citizenship, serves as the spiritual leader and regularly attracts students and volunteers from abroad.
Researcher Johannes Cairns notes that the number of Buddhists with immigrant backgrounds in Finland has doubled over the last decade, now exceeding 20,000. The increasing popularity of meditation and mindfulness, along with a search for spiritual alternatives in a secularising society, have also contributed to this growth.
New trends and generational change
Finnish Buddhism is evolving along several lines. One is the rise of socially engaged Buddhism, with practitioners applying Buddhist principles to issues such as climate change, mental health, and the welfare state crisis. Another trend involves second- and third-generation immigrants reassessing the religious institutions established by their parents.
The overlooked role of Thai women
The expansion of Buddhism in Finland has also been supported by Thai women, often married to Finnish men, who have played a significant role in establishing and maintaining Thai Buddhist temples in cities such as Turku, Tampere, Lohja and Nurmijärvi. According to Mitra Härkönen, a researcher at the University of Helsinki, these women are key organisers and religious leaders in their communities.
However, intercultural encounters are not without tension. Cairns warns of cultural appropriation when immigrant perspectives are sidelined by Western interpretations of Buddhism. He also highlights the need for Buddhist communities to rethink traditional hierarchies in a European context.
A regional milestone with global resonance
With its new stupa, the Jokioinen monastery not only becomes a landmark for Tibetan Buddhism in the Nordics, but also symbolises the wider diversification of religious life in Finland. As Buddhism continues to grow in the region, it reflects broader shifts in spirituality, migration and cultural identity.
