 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 44,000 (2018) 0 1% of its total population | |
| Religions | |
| Hinduism Majority: Shaivism Minority: Slavic Vedism and Vaishnavism | |
| Languages | |
| Sanskrit (sacred) Ukrainian |
Hinduism is a minority religion in Ukraine. It is followed by 0.1% of the population (around 44,000), with a slightly higher proportion in Western Ukraine (0.2%). [1]
According to the 2016 survey by Razumkov Centre, Hindu believers constituted 0.2% of the population of Ukraine, with a slightly higher proportion in Donbass (0.6%) and eastern Ukraine (0.3%). The percentage of Hindus decreased by 0.1% according to the 2018 survey by Razumkov Centre, with a slightly higher proportion in Western Ukraine (0.2%) and less than 0.1% in other regions. [2]
As of January 1, 2006, twenty-nine Krishna Consciousness communities were registered. IRF 2006
It has over 30 charitable missions (e.g., “Food for Life”) and has begun the construction of a school. ISKCON has 60 teaching centres and 15 God Krishna temples. It is estimated that ISKCON in Ukraine has 450 students, 8,000 active adherents, more than 300 clergy, and nearly 40,000 adherents.
Yoga is gaining popularity in Ukraine.
Sahaja Yoga, Vasudeva Yoga Association of Ukraine and Ashtanga Yoga Club of Ukraine are some Organisations in Ukraine teaching Yoga.
Sahaja Yoga is a method of meditation which seeks to bring a breakthrough in the evolution of human awareness. It was created by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi in 1970.
International Federation of Yoga CAS (Vajra Yoga) Archived 2022-01-20 at the Wayback Machine is present in Kyiv as well. It is mainly focused on the correct approach to the spine in asanas. There are classes for both beginners and advanced yoga students. Some Vajra Yoga teachers give courses in English. Its two main studios, Vajra and India Club, are located in the city center. The timetable of the classes can be found on its website Archived 2018-03-30 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian/Ukrainian).
Yoga in Daily Life has a Centre in Ukraine. Address- Society Yoga in daily life Cherkassy Ukraine, Smelyanskaya str, 80-60, Cherkassy
Ukrainian Federation of Yoga, [3] the biggest Hatha yoga school has branches almost in all major centers including Kyiv, Kharkiv and Lviv
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava Hindu religious organization. It was founded on 13 July 1966 in New York City by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Its main headquarters is located in Mayapur, West Bengal, India.
Hinduism has been spread in Russia primarily due to the work of scholars from the religious organization International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and by itinerant Swamis from India and small communities of Indian immigrants. While ISKCON appears to have a relatively strong following in Russia, the other organizations in the list have a marginal presence in this country. There is an active Tantra Sangha operating in Russia. According to the 2012 official census, there are 140,010 Hindus in Russia, which accounts for 0.1% of the population of Russia.
The word Bhagavan, also spelt as Bhagwan, an epithet within Indian religions used to denote figures of religious worship. In Hinduism it is used to signify a deity or an avatar, particularly for Rama Krishna, Vishnu in Vaishnavism, Shiva in Shaivism and Durga or Adi Shakti in Shaktism. In Jainism the term refers to the Tirthankaras, and in Buddhism to the Buddha.
Satsvarupa das Goswami is a senior disciple of Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), better known in the West as the Hare Krishna movement. Serving as a writer, poet, and artist, Satsvarupa dasa Goswami is the author of Bhaktivedanta Swami's authorized biography, Srila Prabhupada-lilamrta. After Prabhupada's death, Satsvarupa dasa Goswami was one of the eleven disciples selected to initiate future disciples. Satsvarupa dasa Goswami is one of the first few Westerners ordained by Bhaktivedanta Swami in September 1966. He is a Vaishnava writer, poet, and lecturer, who published over a hundred books including poems, memoirs, essays, novels, and studies based on the Vaishnava scriptures.
Hinduism is a minority religion constituting about 0.15% of the population of Austria. Hinduism is not one of the 16 recognised religions in Austria. The Austrian law allows religious groups not recognized as societies to seek official status as confessional communities with the Office for Religious Affairs. Hinduism is one of the eight confessional communities in Austria. However, the Sahaja Yoga and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness are categorised as associations, not as confessional communities.
Kirtanananda Swami, also known as Bhaktipada, was a Gaudiya Vaishnava guru and the co-founder of New Vrindaban, a Hare Krishna community in Marshall County, West Virginia, where he served as spiritual leader from 1968 until 1994.
Mukunda Goswami is a spiritual leader (guru) in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.
Sachinandana Swami is a Gaudiya Vaishnava guru, sannyasi, and one of the religious leaders of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.
The Radha-Krishna Temple is the headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in the United Kingdom since the late 1960s. It was founded in Bury Place, Bloomsbury, by six devotees from San Francisco's Radha-Krishna Temple, who were sent by ISKCON leader A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to establish a UK branch of the movement in 1968. The Temple came to prominence through George Harrison of the Beatles publicly aligning himself with Krishna consciousness. Among the six initial representatives in London, devotees Mukunda, Shyamsundar and Malati all went on to hold senior positions in the rapidly growing ISKCON organisation.
Hinduism in Mongolia is a minority religion; it has few followers and only began to appear in Mongolia in the late twentieth century. According to the 2010 and 2011 Mongolian census, the majority of people that identify as religious follow Buddhism (86%), Shamanism (4.7), Islam (4.9%) or Christianity (3.5). Only 0.5% of the population follow other religions.
Hinduism in Azerbaijan has been tied to cultural diffusion on the Silk Road. One of the remnants of once-dominant Hindu and Buddhist culture in the Caucasus is Surakhani, the site of the Ateshgah of Baku. As of 2020, there were about 500 Hindus in Azerbaijan.
Hinduism is a minority religion in Slovenia. ISKCON was registered in Slovenia in 1983 and The Hindu Religious Community in Slovenia was registered in 2003 in Ljubljana
Hinduism is a minority religion in Hungary. According to the 2022 census, there were 3,307 Hindus in Hungary.
Hinduism in Poland is a minority religion. Hinduism has spread to Poland through ISKCON since 1976. First groups of Polish devotees were established in Warsaw and Wrocław. The first Polish Hindu temple was established in 1980 in Czarnów, Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Main ISKCON temple is New Ramana Reti Temple in Mysiadło.
Hinduism in Israel refers to the Hindu population in Israel. In 2020, about 0.01% of Israel's population were Hindus.
Hinduism in Greece has a small following. On March 1, 2006, the Greek government passed a law allowing cremation. This law was welcomed by the Indian community in Athens. In 2012, there were about 20,000 Hindus in Greece.
Christianity is the predominant religion in Ukraine, with 85% of the population identifying as Christian according to a 2022 survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS). Seventy-two percent of the population avowed fidelity to an Eastern Orthodox Church: 54% of Ukrainians proclaimed adherence to the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine; 14% identified as Orthodox Christian without specifying a church affiliation; 4% associated with the Moscow Patriarchate. Another 9% of Ukrainians professed devotion to the Catholic Church in Ukraine: 8% Ukrainian Greek Catholics and 1% Latin Catholics. Two percent of the population declared affiliation to a mainstream Protestant Church, and a further 2% identified with some alternative sect of Christianity.
Hinduism in North Macedonia is mainly represented by the Hare Krishna movement (ISKCON) and the Sathya Sai Baba Organisation. ISKCON and the Satya Sai Baba-Centre have been registered in Macedonia as a part of the Oriental religion.
An ISKCON guru is a person who is permitted to initiate disciples into the International Society for Krishna Consciousness system. The guru system has undergone several changes and reform since its beginnings in the 1960s. Upanayana as a traditional "sacred thread ceremony" of the Gayatri Mantra, commonly known Hindu Samskara, is complemented by Pancaratric mantras of the Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya and follows the principal initial nama initiation ceremony, referred to respectively as brahmana diksa and Hari nama diksa.
The ISKCON Krishna House is a Hare Krishna temple in Columbus, Ohio. Established in 1969, it is the oldest Hindu temple in Ohio. Its significance has been recognized with an Ohio Historical Society marker.