"Strangers among us": Hinduism in Lithuania

This chapter uses historical and sociological perspectives to analyse religious traditions and groups of Hindu origin in Lithuania, and it discusses their diverse forms of expression and public attitudes toward them. First, the article describes the historical evolution of Lithuanian interest in South Asia and the development of academic studies on Asian culture and religion in Lithuania. This is followed by a discussion of Hinduism's place in contemporary Lithuanian society and religion. Second, the article discusses various Hindu religious and spiritual groups that represent different forms of religious life. This part focuses on the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (iskcon) and the Art of Living Foundation organisations, which can be considered the most visible representatives of Hinduism in Lithuania. Interest in Asian culture and religion can be observed in Lithuanian society from the sixteenth century onward, but it was only in the nineteenth century that this interest became institutionalised. In contemporary Lithuania, Hinduism has become part of society's religious landscape and an important element of Lithuanian religious diversitySociologijos katedraVytauto Didžiojo universiteta