Mahabodhisattva Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar M.A., Ph.D., D.Sc

“With justice on our side, I do not see how we can lose our battle. The battle to me is a matter of joy… For ours is a battle not for wealth or for power. It is a battle for freedom. It is a battle for the reclamation of the human personality.”   

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, All-India Depressed Classes Conference, 1942     

 “The Buddhist revival in India ignited by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar more than fifty years ago has brought millions of the country’s most impoverished and marginalized people to the Buddhist path. There is much we can learn from them.”  

Alan Senauke       

Dalit Indian Buddhists (over 30 million) from every corner of the Indian subcontinent greet each other with the phrase “Jai Bhim,” Victory to Bhim!”…The affectionate nickname for Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar.  He dedicated his life to elevating the ‘Untouchables” or as Dr. Ambedkar renamed them Dalits (people who are broken to pieces), to share equally in  the justice and humanity found in India’s  Constitution... a Constitution he had a seminal role in formulating and bringing into fruition. India is home to over 200 million Dalits. According to Paul Diwakar, a Dalit activist from the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights, "India has 600,000 villages and almost every village a small pocket on the outskirts is meant for Dalits."        

Dr. Ambedkar worked tirelessly for human rights and the annihilation of the Indian caste system. Although Dr. Ambedkar was born into a rigid unjust political and economic social system, he rose to prominence in the legal and political worlds of India.  Dr. Ambedkar’s lived world was dominated by, as Alan Senauke tragically illustrates, “Human rights abuses against these people, known as Dalits, are legion. A random sampling of headlines in mainstream Indian newspapers tells their story: 'Dalit boy beaten to death for plucking flowers;' 'Dalit tortured by cops for three days;' 'Dalit ‘witch’ paraded naked in Bihar;' 'Dalit killed in lock-up at Kurnool;' '7 Dalits burnt alive in caste clash;' '5 Dalits lynched in Haryana;' 'Dalit woman gang-raped, paraded naked;' 'Police egged on mob to lynch Dalits.'"       

Dr. Ambedkar, in 1935, realized that the Brahmanic caste system (although outlawed, and later legally abolished under India’s 1950’s secular constitution)  was still the cause of inequality and much suffering. Dr. Ambedkar wrote “The religion of Buddha has the capacity to change according to times, a quality which no other religion can claim to have… Now what is the basis of Buddhism? If you study carefully, you will see that Buddhism is based on reason. There is an element of flexibility inherent in it, which is not found in any other religion.”  After careful study of the Buddhist tradition, and under the shadow of ill health, he officially and publicly received the 3 refuges of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha in Nagpur on October 14, 1956 from the most senior Buddhist monk in India, U Chandramani. He then, in an unprecedented action, offered a Diksha Refuge Blessing Ceremony to over 400,000 of his followers, giving them the three refuges and his own twenty-two vows, which included the five precepts. Thus, this lion’s roar of the Sage of the Sakyas signaled a momentous renewal of the Buddha’s sublime egalitarian teachings, reverberating through the vast Indian subcontinent.  Subsequently, within weeks, mass conversions to the Buddha’s teachings erupted and Dr. Ambedkar named his Buddhist movement "Navayana Buddhism," that is, a New Vehicle, free of the stagnant religio-politico baggage of the past.   

This Akash (vast openness) Navayana Buddhist Association (ANBA) is dedicated to the memory of Mahabodhisattva Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar and his Vision for the Dalit People of India. The Akash Navayana Buddhist Association (ANBA) is a continuation of his work. We offer a free official Diksha Buddhist Refuge Blessing online ceremony for all members of the Dalit community, Dharma teachings and socio-economic support.      

Sarva Mangalam (Blessings to all).