History of Buddhism 6,000 monasteries in Tibet along with their art and books, an attempt to wipe out the Tibetan Buddhist culture. After 1980, Chinese repression of Tibetan Buddhism has decreased and the situation has improved with the reprinting of the Tibetan Canon and some artistic restoration. In the nearby countries of Bhutan, and Nepal, Vajrayana Buddhism continues to flourish as a major religion. In Mongolia, which also has Tibetan Buddhism as its main religion, soviet dominance (between 1924-1990) saw much repression of Buddhism. However, Buddhism is now undergoing a revival in post communist Mongolia, with more ordained monks and nuns, and 284
Buddhism in Austria Buddhism in Austria Buddhism is a legally recognized religion in Austria and it is followed by more than 10,000 Austrians. Although still small in absolute numbers (10,402 at the 2001 census), Buddhism in Austria enjoys widespread acceptance. A majority of Buddhists in the country are Austrian nationals (some of them naturalized after immigration from Asia, predominantly from the People's Republic of China and Vietnam), while a considerable number of them are foreign nationals. As in most European countries, different branches and schools of Buddhism are represented by groups of varying sizes. Vienna not only has the largest number of foreign