In this video, a group of Kalmyk pilgrims (both men and women of all ages) sets off on a pilgrimage from Elista to the Khosheutovskiy Temple in the village of Rechnoe, Astrakhan oblast’. The group gets on a minibus at night and the next morning the vehicle arrives at Volga to be transported to the other side of the river by a barge. When the pilgrims arrive at the temple, it is closed. A Kalmyk lama starts to perform a ritual at the entrance to the temple. The pilgrims light candles and give offerings, including water, sweets and incenses. The lama reads prayers to request blessing from Buddhas and ancestors for the sake of the revival of Buddhism. The prayers include the Little Treasure of Guru Rinpoche, a praise to the Buddha Shakyamuni, Green Tara, and Prajnaparamita, a prayer to remove obstacles, and a prayer of longevity. The lama also asks all the pilgrims to pray for all living beings as well as for their close relatives and themselves. After the prayers the pilgrims roll out Buddhist ki morn flags. The lama reads prayers to the spiritual masters of land and water and consecrates the ki morn flags. Then the lama says that the pilgrims can make wishes. The participants tie up their ki morn flags together and then hang them on the walls of the temple. Some flags are also tied to the nearby trees. Then the lama bestows blessings on the pilgrims who then go around the temple. After the ritual, Sanal Molotkov, a guide, tells the pilgrims about the history of the temple. According to him, in 1812 the Kalmyk prince Serebjab Tyumen was invited to St Petersburg to celebrate the victory of Russia in the Napoleonic War. In Russia’s capital the Kalmyk prince was awarded a golden sword and the Order of St George. There the prince saw the Kazan Cathedral and decided to build a similar temple in his native land with columns and a dome. Batur Ubashi Tyumen, the prince’s cousin, helped him to build the Khosheutovskiy Temple. The construction started in 1814 and finished in 1818.