AHMEDABAD, INDIA, October 31, 2019 (Buddhist Door): Some 1,500 Dalits embraced Buddhism in a mass conversion ceremony in the Indian state of Gujarat on 27 October. The ceremony was held at the Sardar Vallabhahai Patel National Memorial in Ahmedabad in the southwest of the state. The city is approximately 186 miles north of Mumbai in Maharashtra, a major center for the ongoing Ambedkarite movement and other Dalits seeking social advancement through conversion to Buddhism. The mass conversion was organized by the Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA), an international Buddhist organization founded by Ven. Hsing Yun in 1992.
Although the term “dalit” was first used by the British in the 1930s, it represents ethnic groups in India and Nepal that have historically been excluded from the fourfold varna system of class and caste in the region, dating back to and preceding the life of the historical Buddha. The term was popularized by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, an economist and reformer and the chairman of India’s Constitution Drafting Committee in 1947. Ambedkar famously led a mass conversion to Buddhism of some 500,000 of his supporters in 1956. Suggesting caution, Badri Narayan, a professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University School of Social Sciences, said: “This is the beginning of a Quit Hinduism movement, and if upper-caste Hindus continue to chase Dalits away, the count of Hindus would come down significantly.” Narayan suggested that Hindus in India should take note and seek ways to avoid further large-scale conversions.
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