Understanding Caste From Buddha To Ambedkar And Beyond

Understanding Caste

Classical Buddhism, Neo-Buddhism and the Question of Caste

This book examines the interface between Buddhism and the caste system in India. It discusses how Buddhism in different stages, from its early period to contemporary forms—Theravāda, Mahāyāna, Tantrayāna and Navayāna—dealt with the question of caste. It also traces the intersections between the problem of caste with those of class and gender. The volume reflects on the interaction between Hinduism and Buddhism: it looks at critiques of caste in the classical Buddhist tradition while simultaneously drawing attention to the radical challenge posed by Dr B. R. Ambedkar’s Navayāna Buddhism or neo-Buddhism. The essays in the book further compare approaches to varṇa and caste developed by modern thinkers such as M. K. Gandhi and S. Radhakrishnan with Ambedkar’s criticisms and his departures from mainstream appraisals. With its interdisciplinary methodology, combining insights from literature, philosophy, political science and sociology, the volume explores contemporary critiques of caste from the perspective of Buddhism and its historical context. By analyzing religion through the lens of caste and gender, it also forays into the complex relationship between religion and politics, while offering a rigorous study of the textual tradition of Buddhism in India. This book will be useful to scholars and researchers of Indian philosophy, Buddhist studies, Indology, literature (especially Sanskrit and Pāli), exclusion and discrimination studies, history, political studies, women studies, sociology, and South Asian studies.

AMBEDKAR AND THE MAKING OF MODERN INDIA: SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION, DEMOCRACY AND GENDER JUSTICE

The idea of writing this book has been germinating in my mind for long time but due to certain unavoidable reason could not get it finished. Really, it is very tough task to put together Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s ideas and thoughts on entirety in a single book, yet this book is an attempt to provide a coherent account on his socio-political struggles to establish an egalitarian transformative society with the ideas of liberty, equality, fraternity and social justice through the Constitutional means with all odds of caste indignities; and challenged the age-old social structure intellectually rooting on the ground and rendered unwavering contributions in making modern India.