NEWS

Conference in Nagpur Explores Ambedkarite Buddhism and Chinese Buddhist Diplomacy

By Devamitra | | Buddhistdoor Global

The Nagaloka campus and its resident Nagarjuna Institute in the city of Nagpur in India’s Maharashtra State, hosted a conference titled “The Revival of Buddhism in India and its impact on Buddhist Dynamics in South Asia” from 18–20 October. According to the Indian lunar calendar, 18 October marked the anniversaries of the conversions to Buddhism of Ashoka the Great (c. 304–232 BCE) and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar (1891–1956), with the former commemorated as Ashoka Vijaya Dashami. The day was therefore spent welcoming guests and making an evening pilgrimage to Deekshabhoomi, the site of Dr. Ambedkar’s conversion along with 600,000 members of the Dalit community. Dr. Ambedkar chose to convert on 14 October 1956 (the lunar date being calculated as corresponding to Ashoka’s initiation as a Buddhist layman), launching what is today known as the Ambedkarite movement, which combines Buddhist teachings with an Indian vision of social justice, specifically anti-casteism and the restoration of the principles of the Indian constitution, which Dr. Ambedkar played a key role in formulating. On 19–20 October, scholars from India and members of the Dalit community, from intellectuals and activists to Nagaloka alumni, gave speeches and held discussions about their social work and strategies in propagating the Dharma for the material and spiritual welfare of the diverse Dalit communities across India. In attendance were also Sri Lankan speakers, among them Ven. Ratana Thero MP and Harsha Navaratne, chairman of the Sevalanka Foundation. Dignitaries from Chinese Buddhist institutions, included Ven. Chong Hua of Chong Sheng Temple in Dali, Yunnan Province, and Ven. Ren Da and Ven. Miao Hai of Zhengjue Monastery in Zibo, Shandong Province.

Topics explored at the conference included not just the Ambedkarite Buddhist movement but also Buddhism’s role in the positive development of India’s two major Buddhist-influenced neighbors, China and Sri Lanka. Dalit scholars and Nagaloka graduates shared how the Ambedkarite movement is spreading a message of peaceful social reform across India, building infrastructure and facilities for oppressed people, and pushing for egalitarian policies. Prof. Mahesh Deokar, head of the Pali department at Savitribai Phule University in Pune, gave a speech about the significance of Dr. Ambedkar’s conversion to Buddhism to India. Mangesh Dahiwale, executive director of the Centre for Dalit Studies in Hyderabad, discussed the Ambedkarite aspects of democracy and social justice in the context of India and Asia. Dhammachari Maitriveer Nagarjuna of Nagaloka Institute gave a lecture on the dynamics of Ambedkarite Buddhism. Prof. S. R. Bodhi of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, talked about the spreading influence of Ambedkarism among the non-Dalit Scheduled Castes. Sri Lankan and Chinese guests shared their strategies for Dharmaduta work and possible intersections of theory and practice between Ambedkarite Buddhism and Chinese and Sri Lankan Buddhism, which could lead to further international dialogue.



Map detailing Nagaloka’s India-wide activities. Image

courtesy of the author