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Hinduism in Belarus has a very small following. There are three main Hindu groups in the country: ISKCON, Brahmakumaris and The Light of Kailasa. ISKCON is under severe pressure from Alexander Lukashenko's government, and The Light of Kailasa is banned altogether.
There are more than 1000 Indians in Belarus. [1]
"Hare Krishnas" are followers of the Hindu religion, members of Vaishnavism.ISKCON has six registered communities in Belarus [2] in the cities of Gomel, Grodno, Minsk and Vitebsk.
In 2003, activists of Belarusian branch of ISKCON issued a statement against defamation of their religion in Belarusian school textbook on Humanities (textbooks are approved and published by the government). ISKCON were accused of fooling the believers (an offensive word "making-blockhead" was used in the textbook), and it was stated that Krishnaite believers need a psychiatrist assistance to return to "real life". [3]
The Belarus government continued to use textbooks that promote religious intolerance towards Hare Krishna. The Ministry of Education continued to use the textbook Man, Society, and State, which labels Protestants and Hare Krishnas as sects, despite protests by religious groups. [4]
"Light of Kailasa" are followers of the Hindu religion, members of the Shaivism. It is not registered in Belarus.
Brahma Kumaris have two centres in Belarus.
The 1000-member Minsk Community of Krishna Consciousness (the Hare Krishnas) faced closure for meeting at, and attempting to register, a property it owned. Local authorities refused to register the Hare Krishnas at a building they purchased in 1990 and had used as a place of worship, claiming the building was zoned only for residential use.
Since 2004 the Hare Krishnas had received six warnings from local authorities for meeting at a building where it was not registered. The Minsk community appealed to the UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR), thus hindering the local government's ability to close the community. In August 2005 UNCHR recommended that the authorities "restore rights" to the community within 90 days. At the end of the period covered by this report, the authorities had not complied with UNCHR's recommendation. [5] The Minsk Community of Krishna Consciousness found several legal addresses to rent, but the landlords rescinded their offers after they were pressured by authorities. The community found another legal address and submitted the registration documents, but the authorities denied registration.
Authorities harassed, fined, and detained Hare Krishnas for illegally distributing religious literature. Since Minsk city authorities repeatedly denied requests by Hare Krishnas for permission to distribute religious materials in the city, the group decided to stop distribution.
In 2016, ISKCON activist in Homiel was fined for outdoor religious activity. [6] According to Human Rights Watch, arbitrary arrests of ISKCON activists and other Hinduists are regular. [7]
In July 2021, Belarusian authorities launched an attack on non-governmental organizations, and among NGOs forcibly closed by Ministry of justice was "Vedanta vada" (Russian : Веданта вада) Hinduist cultural and educational organization. [8] "Vedanta Vada — Hare Krishna in Mahilioŭ" group was active in promoting Indian culture and religion. [9]
On July 13, 2002, police detained in one of the Minsk parks 17 members of the Belarusian spiritual community "Light of Kailasa", accusing them of holding an unsanctioned procession and meeting. The seven men and five women were among 17 arrested Saturday evening while singing Hindu songs and hymns in a Belarusian park.
The 12 Hindus, all citizens of Belarus, began their hunger strike while waiting in a police processing facility, where they were being held until their appearance in court. Officials at the processing center confirmed that the group had begun a hunger strike and said that a court hearing would be held soon. [10]
Hindus oppose a bill passed by the lower house of parliament prohibiting religious groups with less than 20 years' presence in Belarus from publishing literature or establishing missions and banning organized prayer by denominations with less than 20 Belarusian citizens. [11]
The group unsuccessfully tried to register before the new more restrictive religion law came into force in November 2002.
On 1 June 2003 four armed police officers broke up an evening ritual and meditation held at a private flat in the capital Minsk by approximately six members of the Light of Kaylasa Hindu community, the group's leader Natalya Solovyova told Forum 18 News Service on 7 June. The raid came exactly a week after a similar Hindu meditation meeting was broken up elsewhere in the city. Forum 18 tried to find out why these Hindu meetings have been raided by police, but on 9 June the telephone of Alla Ryabitseva, the head of Minsk City Council's Department for Religious and Ethnic Affairs, went unanswered. Contacted by Forum 18 the same day, Aleksandr Kalinov at the Belarusian State Committee for Religious and Ethnic Affairs said that his department had no documents on the Minsk Hindu community. [12]
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement or Hare Krishnas, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava religious organization. ISKCON was founded in 1966 in New York City by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
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 appear 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 140,000 Hindus in Russia, which accounts for 0.1% population of Russia. A majority of Russian Hindus were Vaishnavites.
Hinduism is a minority faith in Czech Republic followed by 0.02% (2,024) of the population as of 2021. Hindus are represented by three communities: Czech Hindu Religious Society, Hare Krishna Movement and Vishva Nirmala Dharma.
Hinduism is a minority religion constituting about 0.15% of the population of Austria. Hinduism is not one of the 16 recognised religion 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 a confessional community.
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 in Kazakhstan is represented mainly by the ISKCON followers and by expatriate Hindus from India. The Census in Kazhakhstan doesn't recognize Hinduism. According to an estimate, there are about 500 Hare Krishna devotees in Kazakhstan. There were about 801 Hindus in Kazakhstan in 2010 according to ARDA.
There is relatively little history of active practice of Hinduism in Romania, although many prominent Romanian thinkers have had an interest in Hindu thought, and since the Romanian Revolution of 1989 there have been some converts through the work of International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Hare Krishna devotee provide free food for life program and other cultural festivals around the country. Every year Hare Krishna devotee organise Rath Yatra of Lord Jagganath and thousands of people participate in the Rath Yatra.
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.
Hinduism is a minority religion and a fairly recent development in Lithuania. Hinduism is spread in Lithuania by Hindu organizations: ISKCON, Sathya Sai Baba, Brahma Kumaris and Osho Rajneesh. As of 2015, there were 580 (0.02%) Hindus in Lithuania.
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.
The Light of Kailasa is a Hindu movement originally from Belarus. It is a part of the Saivite movement. It was banned by government authorities in Belarus.
Hinduism is a minority religion in Scotland. The bulk of Scottish Hindus settled there in the second half of the 20th century. At the time of the 2001 UK Census, 5,600 people identified as Hindu, which equated to 0.1% of the Scottish population and was slightly above the number of Hindus in Wales. In the 2011 UK Census, the number of Hindus in Scotland almost tripled to over 16,000 adherents.
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion; however, the Government restricted this right in practice.
Hinduism is the fastest growing religion in Northern Ireland with over 2400 Hindus in the country, making up 0.13%. There are currently 3 Mandirs in Belfast alone: Radha-Krishna Temple in Malone Road, Laxmi-Narayan Mandir in Clifton Street and Radha Madhava Mandir (ISKCON) in Upper Dunmurry Lane. There is also a Hare Krishna Centre on Inish Rath Island that was established in 1985.
Belarus–India relations are the bilateral ties between India and Belarus. Belarus has an embassy in New Delhi whilst India has an embassy in Minsk. Both countries are members of the Non Aligned Movement. However, Hindus in Belarus face oppression and defamation by Belarusian authorities.
The Belarusian LGBT Human Rights Project GayBelarus is a national youth civic association. They operate the Jáhada positive queer infoportal.
Hinduism is a minority faith in Brazil followed by approximately 0.005% of its population. Hinduism in Brazil is represented mainly by Ananda Marga, Brahma Kumaris and the Osho Institute Brazil, ISKCON, Yoga In Bound, Brasil Gaudiya Math and Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math e Organização Vrinda de Paramadweit. The vedic astrology is also becoming popular due to Academia Brasileira de Astrologia Védica.
Kailasa Candra Dasa, also known as J. K. Goodwin, is an American Gaudiya Vaishnava teacher, sidereal astrologer and author with a small number of students. In 1972, he joined the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Madison, Wisconsin. After the passing of ISKCON founder A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, he opposed ISKCON's "zonal acharyas", beginning in 1978 and 1979. He is co-founder of the Vaishnava Foundation, a nonprofit organization incorporated under the name Metamorphosis League for Monastic Studies. He works out of the United States. He continues to oppose what he sees as the deviations that emerged within ISKCON after the demise of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.