Historical Vedic religion Historical Vedic religion The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedism, Brahmanism, Vedic Brahmanism, and ancient Hinduism) refers to the religious ideas and practices among Indo-Aryan-speaking peoples of ancient India after about 1500 BCE. These ideas and practices are found in the Vedic texts, and they were one of the major influences that shaped contemporary Hinduism. According to the "Encyclopædia Britannica", in the Hindu tradition and particularly in India, the Vedic religion is considered to be a part of Hinduism. According to Heinrich von Stietencron, in the 19th century western publications, the Vedic religion was believed to be different from
Religion in Russia in [[Kaliningrad Oblast]]. In cities like Moscow, Saint Petersburg and [[Samara]], often up to 1% of the population identify as Buddhists. Buddhism in Russia is almost exclusively of the [[Tibetan Buddhism|Tibetan]] [[Vajrayana]] schools, especially [[Gelug]] but increasingly also [[Nyingma]] and [[Kagyu]] ([[Diamond Way Buddhism]]). There are many Russian converts, and the newer schools have been often criticised by representatives of the Gelug as the result of a Russianised ("Rossiysky") Buddhism and of Western Buddhist missionaries. [[File:A Russian Hindu girl.jpg|thumb|A Russian Hindu girl.]] Hinduism, especially in the forms of Krishnaism, [[historical Vedic religion|Vedism]] and [[Tantra|Tantrism]], but also in other forms, has