Ynglism

Domain XIV · Western esoteric, divinatory & new spiritual movements · Aleksandr Yurievich Khinevich · 1992 · Omsk, Siberia

What it is

Ynglism (Russian ingliizm; adherents "Ynglings" or "Inglists") is a new religious movement founded in Omsk, Siberia, in 1992 by Aleksandr Yurievich Khinevich, whom followers call "Pater Dii". Its full self-designation is the Old (or Ancient) Russian Ynglist Church of Orthodox Old…

Format

• Leadership. A charismatic founder-leader with the title Pater Dii; Aitamurto describes the church as one of the most authoritarian Rodnovery organisations, with authoritative leaders and less tolerance of deviation from doctrine than other groups. The 2026 Bozok article describes a strict internal…
• Money. Largely self-financed, with members' donations, sales of books and videos, and some sponsorship; no fee schedules for courses are published in the sources used here.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Bodies. Registered bodies included the Asgard Slavic Community and the Slavic Community of the Perun Shrine (both under the church's "Asgard Veche" spiritual administration) and a men's spiritual seminary; a temple ("Temple of the Wisdom of Perun") opened in 1993, with seminaries for men and women. Later, unregistered bodies included an "Old Russian Church of Old Believers" and an "Asgard Spiritual School"; a school…
• 2009: all registered Ynglist organisations closed for extremist activity; a court ruled the organisation extremist and banned it in Russia (date of that ruling not stated). A 2009 criminal verdict with a suspended sentence against a church leader is reported only in secondary sources. The date of a 2015 ban decision is.
• Why it is in a clinical guide. Russian courts dissolved its registered bodies in 2004 for inciting inter-ethnic hatred, closed all registered Ynglist organisations in 2009, banned the organisation as extremist, and in 2016 declared five volumes of its scriptures extremist for promoting racial superiority and portraying Christianity, Judaism and Jewish people as hostile. Scholars place it at the most authoritarian…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• the client fearing referral as betrayal. Working: the client takes up referrals.
• restrictive eating, refused care for children. Working: the client involves medical professionals.
• arguing doctrine, moralising, avoiding the topic. Working: the therapist can stay curious and clear.
• self-blame; continuing pressure from members. Working: the client takes informed control of their money.
• relatives pressing the therapist to "deprogram"; covert coercion. Working: calmer contact and kept relationships.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.